King Snakes are the largest family of serpents, genus Lampropeltis Lampro. Milk Snakes are named from a fictions myth that they drink milk from cows. Although completely untrue, the name has stuck. Milk snakes belong to the same genus as King Snakes. Milk and King Snakes are available in a spectrum of colors with 8 recognized species and 48 recognized subspecies. They are typically easy to care for, can range in size from 3' to 7', with an average lifespan of 15-20 years. They're natively found from southern Canada to Ecuador.
When you bring a baby Snake home. He/She she will be scared, it’s best to put them into their enclosure and leave them alone for a couple days. This allows them to get acclimated to the new sights and smells. On about the third day, it's ok to hold him/her for a short time (10-15 minutes). For the first few weeks keep the length of time you handle the new snake brief, as they get acclimated.
Housing: King/Milk Snakes are excellent at escaping. Having the proper enclosure is critical for their health and safety. The basic rule for sizing the enclosure is to add the length/width of the enclosure and the snake length should not exceed it. The enclosure needs to have a tight fitting lid, preferably a lid that latches when it's closed and allows for air circulation. Popular enclosures include Glass aquariums and bins (example: Sterilite, Rubbermaid, Iris). If you use an overly large enclosure for a small snake, you should provide additional hides. This will allow them to feel more secure. Ideally you would have one hide on the warm side and one on the non-heated side of the enclosure.
Location: Placement of the enclosure is important. If you put it in a high traffic area with lots of vibration, it could cause undue stress on your new baby snake. Snakes are naturally secretive animals, hiding from predators mostly. We recommend placing the enclosure in a low traffic area. If a snake is stressed from not feeling secure it can lead to aggression (rattling tail then striking) and feeding problems.
Substrate: We recommend using about an inch of Aspen Sani-Chips in the enclosure. Sani-Chips allow for spot cleaning, helps reduce any odors, and allows the animal to burrow. A full cleaning of the enclosure is recommended periodically. Newspaper can be used as an effective substrate (just let it air out a few days to make sure the ink is dry before using). Do not use any pine sub-substrates as it can contain toxic oils to your snake. Also, do not use sand as it can lead to impaction and respiratory problems.
Heat: Snakes are cold blooded animals and need to have a heated location in its environment to thermo-regulate (control their body temperature). If there is not sufficient heat available, they can not digest their food properly. Temperature also controls how active the snake is. A heat gradient in the enclosure from 75*F to 85*F is ideal. This allows the snake to find the temp they desire to feel comfortable. The type of heat you provide the enclosure is dependant on the type of enclosure you decide to use. Options include UTH (Under Tank Heaters), Heat Tape, and Heat Lamps (Note: Never use Heat Rocks for reptiles, they overheat the animal and can severely burn them.). Under Tank Heaters (UTH) are basically a heating pad that is placed under the enclosure. Proper ones made for reptiles today are usually only a few watts and provide a constant temperature. Heat Tape is the same “basic” product as the UTH, but require a thermostat or rheostat to control the temperature. Heat Lamps are basically a light bulb used to create heat. The challenge of using a heat lamp is regulating the temperature when the light is shut off at night (to maintain a natural light cycle). We recommend using under tank heat on one side of the enclosure for aquarium set ups.
Lighting: King/Milk snakes do not require any specialized lighting. Normal ambient light is perfectly fine. Just maintain a natural light cycle (day time/night time) as they don't have eye lids.
Water: King/Milk snakes should always have access to clean water. The water dish should be large enough for the snake to get their whole body in and submerse. We recommend you change/clean the water dish twice a week to avoid any bacteria buildup. We use Spring Water, as distilled lacks the needed nutrients and minerals. Tap water could contain chemicals that are harmful to your snake. If you see any defecation in their water, change it out to avoid issues of drinking dirty water.
Humidity: King/Milk Snakes typically live comfortable at the same level of humidity that we keep our own environment. They might seek higher levels during the shedding process or to help thermal regulate. At which time they will usually just soak in their water dishes.
Numbers: We only recommend you keep a single snake per enclosure. This allows you to easily monitor each animal. You’ll know which one shed, defecated, etc…If you do keep more than one Snake per enclosure, make sure they are of the same sex (only females), they have separate hides, they are of the same relative size, and never feed them together. Remove them for feeding to separate containers.
Meals: When you first bring home your new snake "do not" attempt to feed them for at least 3 days, after which time the meal should be small . Once they are fed, "do not" hold any snake for at least 24 hours. Handling sooner is known to cause regurgitations. We recommend waiting 2 days just to make sure it's had time to process it's meal. After about 3 weeks of feeding your new snake small meals, you may slowly increase the meal size. Most baby King snakes will typically be eating pinky mice for about the first 6 months. After which time they will likely move up to a fuzzy. At about a year they will probably be eating hoppers. After a year and a half to two years they will start eating adult mice. Never feed them anything that is more than 1 ½ times the thickness of the thickest part of their body. You can feed babies every 3-7 days. Adults can be fed every 7-14 days. It’s recommended you place your snake in a separate container to feed with no substrate. For safety reasons we recommend you feed Frozen/Thawed (F/T). It reduces the ability of transferring parasites from feed to your snake and gets rid of any issues with mice being able to bite/injure your snake. Frozen/Thawed are typically more cost effective and much more convenient. Check out our links page for recommended feed suppliers. For our local clientel we usually supply feed at reduced prices.
Sheds: King/Milk snakes shed their outer layer of skin as they grow. As the new skin is reveled the colors are vibrant. If the housing is setup right they should not need anything to help with the shedding process. The skin should come off in one piece. If the shed does come off in multiple pieces, it’s typically classified as a bad shed and could be an indication that there was a lack of humidity in the enclosure (especially if using Heat Lamps). To raise the humidity during the shedding process you can place a moist (not dripping) paper towel in one of the hide boxes. You can also mist the enclosure or place some moist Sphagnum moss (available in plant departments of most stores…wring it out, not dripping with water) in a small Tupperware style container with a hole cut in it…so the snake can get in and out. Just watch for the eyes to turn milky or cloudy, when this happens… use one of these methods to increase the moisture until the shedding process is complete.
This information is not intended to cover everything. An additional refrence we recommend "Kingsnakes & Milksnakes in Captivity, by Robert Applegate". Please feel free to contact us with any questions.
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