hello!!! so sorry to bother you with questions, but what is your opinion on the best pet snake for an absolute beginner? i've loved snakes since i was a kid but never had the possibility of owning one, but I might in a little while. i've heard that corn snakes are easy and cute? sorry if this is weird!!
Hello!
That's not a weird question, that's a great question!
The answer is that the best pet snake for an absolute beginner to reptiles is the one you have researched fully and love the most. While it's true that some snakes are more forgiving in terms of husbandry and may be easier to keep in captivity, with proper preparation most snakes in the hobby can be suitable for a first-time keeper.
Corn snakes are not the first snake species I ever kept, but they were the snake that fit me best, and by coincidence are also one of the easiest to keep. I know other folks for whom boa constrictors were their true best match, or ball pythons, or sand boas, or king snakes. Even more challenging snakes like rainbow boas or old-world rat snakes can be a fine first snake if you are fully prepared.
I guess the questions you should ask yourself are: Why do I want a pet snake? What appeals to me most about having a snake? When I picture myself with a pet snake, what does it look like? How big should my snake be? What should their enclosure look like? How important is interaction with my snake, and how often will we interact? What sorts of activities will my snake and I partake in? Should my snake be more active or more snuggly? What will my snake eat? How much space, time, and money can I reasonably devote to this snake's enclosure and long-term husbandry? How likely is that to change within a snake's lifetime?
There are no wrong answers to these questions. Sit down and really think about it. When you have your answers, write a list of pros and cons for species that match what you're wanting and weigh them against one-another. Price out enclosures and supplies and compare them for an "easier" snake that tolerates your local climate better versus a more challenging species that needs more specific humidity and temperature ranges.
Finally, listen to your heart... but act logically. If your heart-song happens to be playing to the tune of a more challenging species, then follow it! Regardless of the species you choose, be ready to read a ton, find peer-reviewed scientific articles about the snake species you've selected, see if books on their keeping are available and read those, join online communities for that species, learn their husbandry inside and out and backwards, talk to breeders of that species, understand their natural history and their native habitat and be prepared to recreate it in captivity before you bring that snake home.
It's a process, but at the end of it you'll have exactly what you wanted and nothing less.
