Out of the Maze ALIVE!

[Nanci]

That's (one of ) my baby!!

This snake, Maizey Maize, is a snake who _wants_ to be a pet. Even a non-snake lover would love her. Found her in my yard last summer when I was out there, doing yard work, delerious with pneumonia-induced fever, trying to make up for calling in sick to work. I picked up this brush pile, to take it to the fire pit, and there she was, glistening in the grass like a red and orange jewel. I tried to pin her down with a stick, but I wasn't really up to my best snake-handling capabilities, and she crawled up the stick to my arm and said "Take me in the house, please!"


Nanci

[Nanci]

Look at her- she likes to use Loquat leaves as pillows! Isn't she smart and cute?

Nanci

[Blueberry]

Look at her- she likes to use Loquat leaves as pillows! Isn't she smart and cute?

Nanci

Didn't think I would ever say it about a snake - but yeah - she is cute

Awesome photo too

[bikerz]

Nanci (OT!) but what kind of camera do you have? That shot is so sharp.

(and I guess, for a snake, she is kinda cute!)

[Nanci]

http://tinyurl.com/fu6pm

Casio Exilim EX-S100. It's several years old. So tiny you can put it in jeans pocket and not be bothered. At the time, had the fastest startup and shutter release of all digitals. It's only 3.2 megapixels. It has all these incredible presets- flower (which is what I think I shot Maizey at) food, natural green, pets, party, etc. You can set it manually, but why? I have a more-megapixel fancier Olympus that never leaves the house- too big to carry on a bike or running, needs all these filters and stuff.

Here's another good one- you can even see Dill's third eyelid!

[Lise]

Your baby beasties are all sweet. Isn't it something to be "chosen" by an animal?

[slinkedog]

Look at her- she likes to use Loquat leaves as pillows! Isn't she smart and cute?

Nanci

Yes, she is rather cute! Just out of curiosity, do you feed her or does she fend for herself? If you feed her, what does she get?

[Nanci]

She eats one thawed frozen adult mouse every Sunday evening. (Live mice can injure the snake if not eaten immediately.) I thaw the mouse in hot water, put it in this plastic covered shoe bin, wash my hands so Maizey doesn't smell mouse on me, then take Maizey out and play with her a while, (so she doesn't associate my hands/being taken out with feeding and bite, not that she would) and then I place her in the feeding bin on top of the washing machine (dark and quiet in there.) The reason I don't just drop the mouse into her tank is because she could accidentally ingest some of her aspen bedding and get very sick. I buy about ten mice at a time and keep them in the freezer. I buy them pre-frozen. She is right at the stage of going from two small adults to two regular adults- she won't eat two, but she's hungry too soon...When she's all done eating (only takes ten minutes or so) I gently place her back in her tank. She crawls into one of her hiding places and stays there for two or three days, until the meal is digested. She picks whether she wants a heated hideout or room temperature.

So back to Moab! I went there for a family vacation when my daughter was very young. We spent a lot of the time hunting lizards and hiking in Arches National Park. Before my MTBing days, unfortunately. I love Utah. Bryce Canyon is difficult to hike if you have to backpack your kid, though.

Nanci

[slinkedog]

She eats one thawed frozen adult mouse every Sunday evening. (Live mice can injure the snake if not eaten immediately.) I thaw the mouse in hot water, put it in this plastic covered shoe bin, wash my hands so Maizey doesn't smell mouse on me, then take Maizey out and play with her a while, (so she doesn't associate my hands/being taken out with feeding and bite, not that she would) and then I place her in the feeding bin on top of the washing machine (dark and quiet in there.) The reason I don't just drop the mouse into her tank is because she could accidentally ingest some of her aspen bedding and get very sick. I buy about ten mice at a time and keep them in the freezer. I buy them pre-frozen. She is right at the stage of going from two small adults to two regular adults- she won't eat two, but she's hungry too soon...When she's all done eating (only takes ten minutes or so) I gently place her back in her tank. She crawls into one of her hiding places and stays there for two or three days, until the meal is digested. She picks whether she wants a heated hideout or room temperature.

Okay... I think I might be sorry I asked!! No, really, I have had some pets that eat live food, so I get the picture. I've just never had to feed something as big as a mouse!!

[SadieKate]

When I was growing up, Mom would buy live mice and kill them for the purpose. She was kind of out of practice after decades of separation from her drug development job during grad school and yanked the entire skin off the mouse the first time.

We kept all kinds of gopher and garter snakes. Desert tortoise and box turtles were kept in the yard.