I have a 9-month-old corn snake I got back in February, and I’ve figured out a good system for weighing her, but I’m struggling with how to measure her length. She’s so wiggly! I have a flexible sewing tape measure I try to use, but it’s like she knows I’m trying to measure her length–she folds up like an accordion, and if I try to follow her body with the tape she slithers away faster than I can keep up.
I really want to make sure she’s growing at a healthy rate. Does anyone have tips for measuring length? Or if her weight changes are good should I not worry too much about it?
You can try using a piece of string instead of the thicker sewing tape measure. It’s a little easier to maneuver and hold to the snake. Then you can just snip the string at the length and measure that.
I’ve done both the string/yarn method and the edge of the enclosure or baseboard. But…
If her weight is increasing, her body condition is good, and her behavior is healthy, you’re golden. I very rarely measured length on growing youngsters before about 2024. Once or twice a year was about it. Suddenly, it seemed everybody was asking about length, lol.
Side note, you probably know this but in case someone else reading the thread might not, measuring sheds is not at all an accurate way to determine the snake’s length. For one thing, the areas of skin which are normally covered by the overlapping scales add length when the shed is pulled off. Additionally the shed is stretched as it’s pulled off. The stretching isn’t consistent from one shed to the next, so there’s no magic formula to figure the snake’s length.
