Do Corn Snakes Have Teeth? - Big Or Small

Ahhh, Snake bites… It can sometimes seem like a worrying thought right? Especially from a pet, that you keep in your house. I get it, but you seriously have nothing to worry about when it comes to corn snakes. Corn snakes are commonly known as a very friendly species. As long as they are well fed and interacted with on a daily basis, then your snake will get used to the human touch very quickly. Read on for information on “Do corn snakes have teeth?”.

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Corn snakes are one of the most popular snakes to be kept as pets. It’s for this exact reason, due to their friendly characteristics. Corn snakes have very small teeth, tiny in fact, so much that you can barely see them unless up really close. Their teeth are jagged and angled backwards. Also like the teeth of a saw tool. This is so when they are out hunting, trying to catch their pray, their teeth act like a pair of grips. Once their prey is caught, the more they struggle and try to escape, the further a corn snakes teeth dig in. So if in the rare event you are bitten by a corn snake, then don’t react by pulling away quickly. Let the corn snake release itself.

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So what does a corn snake bite feel like…

Many people refer to their bite as a “pin prick”. Usually it’s the shock of a corn snake bite that scares people, not the actual pain. In most cases the bite won’y even pierce the skin. You may see some graze like spots appear, but again this is absolutely nothing to worry about.

Similar to other non-venomous snakes, corn snakes have roughly 20-30 teeth. Usually there are twice as many teeth on the top of the mouths then there are on the bottom part of their jaw. Commonly with four rows at the top and two rows at the bottom.

Fun fact…

Here’s a little fun fact for you. Did you know, that Corn snakes have always struggled to digest their prey. The main reason their teeth are jagged is to stop their food coming back up. Corn snakes teeth are used like grips, which help to push their food down. Not a bad little evolutionary technique they’ve developed, seeing as they swallow their food whole.

So now I can almost hear your brain ticking… Does this means Corn snakes have fangs?

Absolutely not. Please don’t get corn snakes teeth confused with ‘fangs’. Corn snakes do not have fangs. Fangs are only found on venomous snakes. It’s their mechanism to inject lethal venom into their prey, sedating it before they enjoy a nice meal. Corn snakes are constrictors by nature, so they grab hold of their prey and wrap themselves around it, suffocating their prey until ready to eat.

What Do Corn Snakes Teeth Look Like?

Corn snakes are a non venomous species, so they have no need for an injection mechanism, which is known in snakes as fang. You will only see fangs in venomous species of snakes, so this is definitely something to remember if you ever come across one in the wild.

If you can imagine was the teeth on a wood saw look like, corn snakes are very similar looking teeth. The method they use to kill their prey is through constriction. But, in able to do this, they need to actually catch their prey first. Corn snakes complex teeth means they have the perfect structure for capturing their prey and not letting go. Not very easily anyway.

Although corn snakes do not have fangs, they do have a rows of jagged, angled teeth which are used to grip onto their prey and not let go. The more a prey wriggles, the deeper their teeth dig in, tightening their grip. Similar to other non-venomous snakes, corn snakes have roughly 20-30 teeth. Usually there are twice as many teeth on their top jaw then there are on the bottom part of their jaw. Commonly with four rows at the top and two rows at the bottom.

That said, you should not be afraid of a corn snake bite, as our skin is rather tough to pierce. Corn snakes teeth are accustomed to rodents with fairly soft skin compared to humans, so a corn snakes teeth don’t actually need to be be that piercing. At worst, if you are bitten by a corn snake, you will only encounter a very small bite, which is no more painful than a scratch. Tiny blood spots may be seem, but only from adult corn snakes.