I am thinking about getting into texas rat snakes and am wondering how their temperament is, and if they will do better in a rack system or glass terrariums. I am also wondering if they get bigger than corn snakes and if they eat as good as corn snakes also?
Texas Ratsnakes are known for difficult temperament, especially when young. Definitely a snake you need to work with. That being said, I have seen a few adults that were just as easy to handle as a Corn Snake.
Texas Ratsnakes can be housed in racks as neonates, but once they put on some size, they are not a good choice to live in a rack long term. They are very active semi-arboreal snakes that do best in a large terrarium with climbing opportunities. I’m not one of those people who is opposed to keeping snakes in rack for idealistic reasons. Every single snake I own lives in a rack, but I have selected species that thrive in a rack setup. Texas Ratsnakes are not one of those species. On the plus size, if you provide an appropriate habitat, you will have the opportunity to see a lot of cool behavior in this active species. They make great display snakes for that reason.
As far as food is concerned, they are usually bullet proof feeders once they get started. They can eat an all-rodent diet or you can supplement with f/t birds.
They can get significantly larger than corn snakes. It’s not unusual to see a 6ft specimen, but some individuals never break 4ft.
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Thank you, this helps a lot! 