can i free willy?

juanbenae · juanbenae's Garage

I have recently inherited a gopher snake that was caught in the mojave desert about 5 years ago from my girlfriend's son. they have moved, no longer having the room for the tank, and mostly him being 17 now is concentrating on the needs of another slippery snake.. the thing is about 36-40" long and has been handled quite extensively since they've had him and is quite tame. It has become much more active than in winters past according to sweety because it is being kept in my living room where the woodstove keeps it a constant 75* or so. she therefore suggested I feed him as he was being so active. he was not interested in the mouse i dropped in last night and that whole fiasco is another story for another time. put it this way, i had to go to 3 different stores before they would sell me a "feeder" mouse. i had wised up and asked for a "friend" mouse at the 3rd place and they obliged.

what i am wondering is that with snakes having been in captivity for so long can i release him in an area where i am pretty sure he will have a chance to live being away from people, roadways and such? will this aquarium kept snake be able to readapt to living in the wild or will it be more like a mammal or bird in that once it's been kept it has to be forever? i would like to let him go as to not have to care for him, keep having to feed him mice, which i am not crazy about, & basically have grown out of keeping reptiles. I would wait until spring when it warms up to actually let him loose to make a better chance of survival.

what do you guys think his chances of him re-acclimating into the wild might be?

t

vash · vash's Garage

willy...i got nervous.

it has been awhile for me since my reptile days also. toby, i think the deal with releasing a snake into the wild, (any pet reptile for that matter) is the disease. it is like when the pilgrims showed up at plymouth rock with a scratchy throat...

"hey running bear,,,cough cough..pass the corn."

the wild animal police dont like it. put it up as a freebie on craigslist...it will go away nicely.

Hugh R · 12-23-2008, 10:00 AM

How did these mother******** snakes get on this mother******** plane!

I have King, Gopher and Rattlesnakes in my yard and twice found them in my house. My kid brought home a rubber toy snake once from a friends house and I made him get rid of it. The last thing I want to do at 6AM when I get up and see a snake in the house and have to determine whether it's the rubber one or not.

I agree with Vash, Craigslist the sucker.

lendaddy · 12-23-2008, 10:49 AM

Free its spirit with a flat bladed shovel.

dhoward · dhoward's Garage

Tastes like chicken.

gtc · gtc's Garage

I'd send it back to the desert, or someplace warm enough for it to survive. I'm of the opinion that it's not really possible to domesticate a snake. Since it was wild to begin with, I think diseases wouldn't be an issue... usually you worry about your captive bred animals catching something from wild caught food.

Aurel · Aurel's Garage

They make nice boots and belts...

the · 12-23-2008, 02:43 PM

Let it loose, it'll be fine.

Zeke · 12-23-2008, 04:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by the

Let it loose, it'll be fine.

See, that's CO talking to CA. Some people still make sense.

Jeff Higgins · 12-23-2008, 04:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by car 311

...him being 17 now is concentrating on the needs of another slippery snake.. the thing is about 36-40" long and has been handled quite extensively...

9dreizig · 12-23-2008, 05:45 PM

I think Charles Keifer has a shelter for snakes... ;-)

daepp · 12-23-2008, 06:01 PM

I've never seen a tame gopher snake - they are usually as mean as rattlers.

King snakes OTOH...

Carrman · 12-23-2008, 06:24 PM

Nah, gopher snakes can be very docile. Varies from individual to individual, but for the most part they are usually pretty mellow. I used to catch them on the golf course as a kid, and keep them as pets for a while.

Would run across one from time to time that was as mean as a rattler, though! Some would even actually rattle their tails to simulate a rattlesnake. If it was sitting in some dry leaves, it could get a good rattling sound going.

Here's a wild one we came across on a hike a few summers. I caught it, he was very docile, no problem. (We just took a pic and let him on his way).

Weaver · 12-23-2008, 06:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lendaddy

Free its spirit with a flat bladed shovel.

One of the greatest posts ever! Can't stop laughing my @ss off.

daepp · 12-24-2008, 08:08 AM

Our gray banded California King Snake:

Now this guy is docile!

rouxroux · 12-24-2008, 10:39 AM

boxer shorts