Can Corn Snakes Swim? - Sink Or Swim

Can a Corn Snake swim? The simple answer is yes.

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Corn snakes do enjoy a little swim from time to time. Well, maybe not a full swim, but they can if they need to. They mainly like to soak in shallow water whilst bathing. This is because it softens their skin which really helps with their shedding process.

This is essential for corn snakes as there can sometimes be some complications when shedding their skin if it isn’t soft enough. It can shed in patches, and this is bad for their blood circulation. It can cause necrosis and sometimes death in the worst cases. Necrosis is a form of cell injury, which results in the premature death of cells in living tissue by autolysis.

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Bathing

Bathing in water is also good for corn snakes as it helps relieve them from constipation. It also aids the killing and removal of any unwanted mites. It’s always recommended to use warm spring, or filtered water and NOT tap water. The chlorinated water from our taps can actually irritate a corn snakes skin. A range between 100-105 degrees Fahrenheit is a commonly recommended water temperature for most snakes to bathe in.

Corn snakes should usually willingly bathe themselves. There is no need to force them to bathe, so let them bathe in their own time. 5 – 15 minutes is usually enough time for your corn snake to bathe in water. The water bowl should be big enough so your corn snake can move round freely. Commonly they will just curl up and enjoy the warmth and softness of the water. They do however like to adjust their position, so just make sure there is enough room in the water bowl to do this. If your snake shows signs of irritation then take them out immediately, and gently dry with a soft towel to get all the water off them.

Can corn snakes eat fish?

Although not common for housed corn snake to eat fish, they are known in the wild to eat a variety of fish from tiny little minnows, to larger sea bass. Being carnivorous, they will eat most meats in the wild, or at least anything reasonably sized, they can digest easily. Of course being a species that enjoys bathing in water, it is not uncommon for corn snakes to feed on fish from time to time. However their diet should never consist strictly of fish, as they like high proteins, hence why rodents are a snake owners first choice of food. But feeding your corn snake fish from time to time is not going to do them any harm.