The blacktail rattlesnake generally has a calm demeanor and its beautiful coloration and markings are some of the positives for maintaining this species in captivity. However, these two species can be difficult to acclimate to captivity from the wild. Captive bred individuals or young animals make better candidates for captive care. This page primarily dicusses the care of northern blacktail and eastern blacktail rattlesnakes from the United States.

Acquiring animals

Like many animals, the best source for obtaining individuals is captive bred from a breeder. Unfortunately, these two species are not bred as frequently or consistently as other rattlesnake species. Most individuals that become available are wild caught animals. Both species of blacktail rattlesnakes are legal to collect in the United States with proper licenses from the state it is being collected from. Acclimating wild-collected animals can be challenging. Although these species is fairly docile in the wild, they can be quite nervous and have difficulty adjusting if they do not have a sense of security.

Enclosures

Blacktail rattlesnakes are large rattlesnakes with adults needing ideally at least 24" x 24" in floor space for an adult. Young animals can be housed in shoe-boxes and their enclosure size enlarged as the snakes grow. Enclosures can be constructed of many different materials but air flow should be a main consideration as this species does best with good ventilation.

Heat should be set up to be directed downward as this species basks when the opportunity is given. A thermal gradient ranging from 70°F to 80°F with a basking spot that they can bask under during the day should be provided.

An enclosure with a naturalistic look made from melamine for 1.1 Crotalus ornatus. 36"W x 24"D x 24"T

A hide or hides should be provided for blacktail rattlesnakes. Stacking flat rocks on top of each other will give blacktails the opportunity to hide as well as thermoregulate and different levels on the enclosure. Blacktail will also climb if given the opportunity so providing a climbing structure can also be beneficial. Water should always be provided and misting can be done - especially in the summer - to simulate monsoon rains.

Substrate can vary from newspapers and paper towels to dirt, rocks, aspen bedding and mulch. If using misters or misting systems, make sure to allow proper drainage of water so the substrate does not remain damp. I've found cypress mulch to be one of the easiest substrates to use.

Feeding

Blacktail rattlesnakes are generalists in nature - feeding on a variety of different prey items. They tend to prefer rodents and small mammals it appears. While captive bred or captive born blacktail rattlesnakes tend to take prey a little bit more readily than wild caught animals. Getting wild caught rattlesnakes to take domestic rodents can be difficult. In general, northern blacktail rattlesnakes seem to more readily take domestic rodents than eastern blacktail rattlesnakes. While they have been known to take squirrels and other larger rodents in the wild, most adult blacktail rattlesnakes max out at small to medium rats. Babies, though small in size, seem to prefer large fuzzies or small hopper mice as their first meals despite the prey-to-predator size ratio.

This newborn northern blacktail's first meal was a small adult mouse that was offered to its mother.

Some of the best success I have had in getting wild caught blacktail rattlesnakes to feed in captivity is by using non-domestic rodents to get the snakes going. I have used frozen roadkill kangaroo rats, captive bred deer mice, gerbils and African soft-furred rats with various degrees of success. Finding and feeding roadkill k-rats can be a challenge and I was fortunate enough to obtain some research deer mice to try but they can also be difficult to obtain. Many people have had success with gerbils but I have found ASF rats to be a pretty good starter prey item for difficult feeders. Once I get animals to feed consistently, I continue to offer domestic mice or rats as prey but still offering their prey item of choice to keep them feeding. Sometimes they will convert to domestic rodents and sometimes they do not. I have had blacktail rattlesnakes be off feed for over 8 months before eating. Also note that prey color may potentially play a role in feeding. I have had blacktail rattlesnakes refuse white mice and rats but willingly strike and feed on colored rodents. These blacktails all eventually switched over to white rodents when offered.

Some keepers keep blacktail rattlesnakes individually and some keep pairs together year-round. One caution when feeding animals housed together is the feeding response. I separate animals for feeding and leave them separated for about 24 hours after. Bites due to a strong feeding response can happen. While bitten animals will often recover without any intervention, it is better not to risk it.

A blacktail rattlesnake bitten in the face by a cagemate. The swelling reduced on its own and the snake recovered quickly.

Reproduction

Like most desert rattlesnakes, blacktail rattlesnakes are typically biennial breeders. In captivity, they have been known to produce offspring in back-to-back years. Adults typically breed in the late summer (August through September) in the wild and that is usually the case in captivity. Blacktail rattlesnakes are stimulated by the summer monsoon rains and misting pairs during this time may help stimulate breeding activity. I have found that blacktails breed with or without this rain simulation.

Eastern blacktail rattlesnakes courting. This activity was preceded by a spike in humidity outside.

Females which successfully mate in the summer will retain the sperm and ovulate and fertilize the eggs the following spring after emerging from hibernation. Between 2 - 10 babies are born the following summer and measure between 8 - 12" in length. When the female is gravid, I still offer food - which they typically accept - but with smaller-sized prey. I tend to keep neonates with their mother until at least their first shed. At this time, I will also offer food to the mother.

A very gravid female eastern blacktail rattlesnake.

Freshly born northern blacktail rattlesnakes.

The parents in the top photo with their offspring later that summer. The babies just had their first sheds.

Once the neonates are separated from the adults, I keep them individually in shoe boxes with a hide. I offer live large fuzzies or small hopper mice for their first meal. Young Crotalus molossus tend eat fairly readily although they may go a few months before accepting their first meal. Young Crotalus ornatus on the other hand can be a challenge to get feeding and I offer large fuzzy to small hopper mice or ASF rats of comparable size to get them going. I find that young eastern blacktails tend to be less consistent with how often they feed as well.