We have a small breeding group of ‘18 and ‘19 Pituophis deppei jani (Northern Mexican Pine Snakes). They are a beautiful big-bodied Pituophis species that start out “ugly,” brown and tan. They are highly variable, and as they age, their colors become more distinct. Many animals develop an orange head and tail. Their back saddle markings wash out in the middle and are crisp near the extremities. They can grow to be up to 9’ long and are thicker than most colubrids. An adult P.d. jani is an impressive animal, and mine are extremely docile but active hunters. They are a pleasure to work with, and what I would call a “snake person’s snake.”

One of my favorite behaviors they exhibit is their threat display. They readily rattle their tails, but sometimes they also flatten their necks from top to bottom, hiss and get into an amazing defensive posture. I’ve never really tested it because I respect that pose, but I imagine they would definitely bite if you continue to antagonize them. Most of the other colubrid species I have worked with don’t have such an impressive set of defensive behaviors, and I really enjoy it.

Our adults are housed in 12"x24"x48" and 24"x24"x48" enclosures, and they use the entire space. For the first few years they can be housed in smaller enclosures, but they grow fast and will need a large enclosure as adults. They are similar to many other snakes in that they live long into their 20s. They do well at room temps and do not need any extra heat source.

They have been known to regurgitate if over-fed or fed large food items. We feed ours every 14-21 days and try to keep them lean and active. Our babies are fed smaller items every 10 days.