Come Hither and Slither: 7 Non-Deadly Snakes You Can Keep as Pets

Though not as common as cockroaches, rats, and other critters, snakes are still among the top vermin faced by pest control in the Philippines. Not all snakes are dangerous to humans, however. In fact, a lot of them make really great pets! Just to give you an example, here are 7 species of colorful, non-poisonous snakes:

Eastern Blackneck Garter Snake

The eastern blackneck garter snake is significantly smaller than its cousin the western blackneck garter snake, measuring a mere 20 inches in length. And unlike its kin, it prefers living in a dry land near water rather than in the water itself, living off small fish, amphibians, lesser snakes, and invertebrates such as earthworms. It features a dark-colored body with three light stripes of yellow, orange, and black which are evenly spread throughout it.

Long-Nosed Snake

This non-poisonous snake makes a really great choice when you’re looking for an exotic pet. Feeding primarily on amphibians and lizards, it doesn’t eat rats, or any other kind of rodents for that matter. The long-nosed snake can grow up to 30 inches long, and it’s characterized by its long, upturned snout (hence, the name) and its tricolor body (black and red saddling for some, yellow and cream bandings for others).

Scarlet King Snake

The scarlet king snake is a snake species commonly found in the United States, and it’s the smallest among all king snakes, growing up to 68.4 centimeters only at maturity. Its diet list includes small birds, rodents, amphibians, and invertebrates. Scarlet king snakes are born with bandings of black, red, and white, but as they mature, they also develop various shades of yellow.

Sinaloan Milk Snake

As one of the most commonly captured and bred snake species, the Sinaloan milk snake is another highly recommendable pet due to its docile nature. Like most snakes, it lives off birds, rodents, amphibians, reptiles, and invertebrates. A fully mature Sinaloan milk snake can grow up to 120 centimeters, and its body is predominantly red with black and yellow-cream bandings.

Formosa Odd-Scaled Snake

The Formosa odd-scaled snake also makes a fantastic exotic pet. Commonly found in Asian countries like China, Taiwan, and Vietnam, this snake is well-noted for its beautiful and uniquely colored and glossy scale.

Mexican Milk Snake

This snake is a native of Mexico, although you can also find some of its cousins in the United States. It has a longer diet list than the previously mentioned snake species, including crickets, earthworms, skinks, birds, eggs, frogs, fish, small mammals, and even other snakes. Able to grow up to 76 centimeters long, its body is notable for its red, black, and cream coloring.

Red Milk Snake

Red milk snakes also live off a longer diet list than many of their contemporaries, preferring to eat slugs, crickets, earthworms, skinks, birds, fish, eggs, mammals, and other snakes. As the most popular and colorful of the milk snakes, it comes in shades of red and white.

These seven snakes make great pets; they’re exotic, beautiful, and require low maintenance. Their venomous cousins, however, are another story. Should you encounter any of them, you know who to call!