Can Corn Snakes Live Together?
I have 2 old corn snakes who live together, and have thrived very well for many years, and they do just fine living together in the same habitat. However, in general this is not always the case. In fact, corn snakes tend to live alone. I got lucky with my particular set of corn snakes and it has worked out great, and I have learned a great deal more about corn snakes over the years that I did not know at the time when I put them together.
Can Corn Snakes Live in the Same Cage or Habitat Together?
So to answer the question specifically “CAN corn snakes live together?”, yes, corn snakes CAN live together. If 2 corn snakes are content with each other’s company, they can get along fine in the same habitat.
But here is where it gets more complicated. Just because they “can” live together does not always mean they want to, or should. In fact, you are gambling in this situation if you are not absolutely sure what you are doing.
A long time ago (before I knew better), I had a situation where one of my young corn snakes actually ate another younger corn snake. Which leads me to the following question:
Corn Snake Cannibalism: Do Corn Snakes Eat Each Other?
While rare, yes, corn snakes can eat each other, or at least attempt to each other. You may find that one corn snake will swallow another corn snake. When this happens, occasionally, the corn snake doing the eating will die due to over eating. You will end up with 2 dead corn snakes.
It should be noted however, that it’s debatable if if this “cannibalism” is intentional or not. There are cases where one corn snake may accidentally mistake the other corn snake as dinner, then it becomes too late. I would not classify this as cannibalism as it was not actually intended.
A common cause of a corn snake consuming another corn snake is a flaw in your feeding procedure. You should feed your snakes in separate enclosures. Corn snakes get very excited at dinner time. When a mouse is present, they strike quickly and aggressively, and will not let go.
If 2 corn snakes latch onto the same mouse, they can end up eating the mouse then continuing on to eat the other snake. Like a deadly, cannibalistic version of the “Lady and the Tramp” spaghetti scene.
Another issue with 2 corn snakes latching onto the same prey, is that they will detect that there is still life left in the mouse, though it’s actually the life in the other corn snake. Both snakes think there’s life left in the mouse which causes them to squeeze and squeeze until the life is gone. Both snakes end up in an unintended squeezing contest until one of them finally wins.
I feed my corn snakes in their own separate feeding containers, then return them to their tank later.
There are also other issues involved besides eating each other, like the risk of sharing disease.
This is why I say it is a “gamble” to put 2 corn snakes in the same environment. Perhaps those 2 corn snakes will get along famously and live happily ever after.
But, unfortunately, there’s only one terrifying and nasty way to find out.
So with that new information in mind, let’s revise the question, and ask a slightly better question.
Should Corn Snakes Live Together in the Same Habitat?
No. It is not recommended that you house 2 or more corn snakes in the same tank or habitat. While some corn snakes can cope with this living situation, you have no way of knowing if this arrangement will work out, and the consequences can be deadly or cause injury to your pet snake.
In the wild, corn snakes tend to be loners. They are individuals that focus on hunting, eating, breeding, rinse, repeat. They barely even look after their young after laying eggs.
They are not interested in sharing their space, and especially their food, with a roommate or 2. As a human being, I have to say I can related to this as well. Can’t you? Not that I have ever resorted to cannibalism with a roommate before, but sometimes other treacherous acts have crossed my mind.
It has been observed that in general, 2 male corn snakes will not do well together, but 2 female corn snakes will be just fine. My corn snakes are 1 male and 1 female.
Corn Snake Co-habitation Summarized
So to summarize this issue, I would say in general, yes, a corn snake can live together with another corn snake in a stable environment with plenty of space, food, and other amenities. This provides them with everything they need and avoid them turning on each other. In fact, a huge number of people have 2 corn snakes in 1 environment with no issues whatsoever.
As the snakes grow older together, the likelihood of an issue seems to go down, as I’ve only personally experienced negative outcomes of cohabitation with younger snakes.
All that being said, I would not want to advise someone to randomly stick 2 or more corn snakes together in a tank and “hope for the best”. These are your pets, and you would never take that risk with any other pet like a cat or a dog.
There can be benefits to sharing tanks with multiple corn snakes, like cost and space saving, so I can see the argument for attempting it, but it is ultimately your choice, and I don’t recommend it. My current set of corn snakes are getting along great, but I would never consider doing it again with a new set of corn snakes.