We here at Donpaulna Aviaries also keep Australian snakes, just for an extra interest. We are only keepers of these reptiles, not breeders as yet, but maybe this will happen in the future. We realize these creatures turn some peoples stomachs, but they are quite friendly towards us and I feel once given a chance others will appreciate their beauty. We have here at our place, Diamond, Carpet, and Children’s Pythons, (see Aussie snake pics for photo’s of our snakes), but plan to build another outdoor snake aviary and collect more in the near future. All our Diamonds and Carpets are housed outdoors, but the Children’s is housed in a special designed display tank indoors in our bird room. Snakes, not like birds, need very little caring for and our snakes are fed depending on the seasonal condition. They need to be fed more in the warmer months then the colder, this is also the time when they are more active. We fed rats, mice, and sometimes birds such as sparrows and quails, which they need in their diet. In the wild these snakes main diet is birds and small rodents, so we like to provide as close as possible to their diets as we can to keep them in top condition. We never feed them together as this may cause problems, they are taken out of their outdoor aviary and placed into a special tank in our bird room, one at the time. We feed them all on the same day if possible so as not to disturb them as much. Their outdoor aviary only needs to be cleaned out every couple of months in the warmer conditions, but not as much in the colder conditions. Our snakes shed their skins around three to four times a year, this is normal for all snakes. They need things like logs and rocks to help them with their shedding, these have been provided and placed in certain positions in their aviary. Water is another thing that is necessary for their shedding, this is given in large round clay water bowls. The skins are collected and usually given to friends of our children. My older son Steven is usually the one who looks after their needs and handles them the most in our family, although we all like to handle and play with them from time to time.

CONCLUSION: Snakes are not noisy to keep, very little to look after and maintain, and are fascinating creatures to watch. I hope this information has provided some light on the keeping of snakes as pets to someone, and I hope people will look into maybe keeping one for themselves one day.

Yours in aviculture: Paul Stevens.