Corn Snake Care
Everything you need to keep a corn snake healthy: biology, enclosure, heating, feeding, shedding, health, handling and breeding.
- Level
- Beginner
- Study time
- ~6 hours
- Modules
- 5
- Lessons
- 36
- Assessment
- Module quizzes · graded certificate
- Version
- v1.0 · reviewed 2 November 2026
What you'll learn
- ✓Describe the corn snake's biology, natural history and behaviour, and what they mean for its care
- ✓Set up a secure, escape-proof enclosure with a proper thermal gradient, suitable humidity and low-level UVB
- ✓Choose the right prey size and feeding schedule, and thaw and offer frozen prey safely
- ✓Recognise healthy shedding and common problems such as respiratory infections, mites and regurgitation
- ✓Handle a corn snake safely and keep useful husbandry records
- ✓Explain incubation, morph genetics such as Snow, and the responsibilities of breeding and ownership
About this course
A practical five-module guide to caring for the corn snake (Pantherophis guttatus), a North American rat snake and one of the most popular captive-bred snakes in the world.
The course is written by HWA, the Herpetological & Wildlife Academy.
You'll study the corn snake's biology, natural history and behaviour, setting up a secure enclosure with the right heating, humidity and low-level UVB, frozen-thawed feeding, prey sizes, feeding schedules and regurgitation, handling, shedding and common health problems, and finally breeding, incubation, morph genetics and responsible ownership, including UK law.
Every lesson is written in plain English with tables, diagrams and photos. Each module ends with a glossary and a multiple-choice quiz. When you've passed all five quizzes you receive a verifiable certificate of completion graded Pass, Merit or Distinction, based on your average quiz score.
This course is general education. It does not replace advice from a specialist reptile vet about an individual animal.
Cover photo: A corn snake coiled on moss in Tennessee. Photo: Peter Paplanus, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Course content
5 modules · 36 lessons · ~6 hours study time
Module 1Understanding the Corn Snake7 lessons
- Introducing the corn snakeClassification, size and lifespan, and where corn snakes come from.Free preview8 min
- Habitat and behaviourThe places corn snakes live and how they behave.8 min
- Anatomy and constrictionBody structure, scales, jaws and how corn snakes subdue prey.8 min
- Growth and sexingHow corn snakes grow, and how males and females are told apart.8 min
- Wild diet and captive breedingWhat corn snakes eat in the wild, and their place in captivity.8 min
- Module 1 glossaryThe key terms from this module. Learn them and be able to explain each one in your own words.6 min
- Module 1 quizTest your understanding of Module 1: 10 multiple-choice questions. Pass mark 60%.10 min
Module 2Enclosure Setup and Environmental Requirements8 lessons
- The enclosureWhat a corn snake needs, enclosure size and keeping it escape-proof.8 min
- Heating and temperatureThe thermal gradient, heating equipment, thermostats, monitoring and night-time temperatures.8 min
- HumidityHumidity targets and managing moisture, including a humid hide.8 min
- Lighting and UVBThe photoperiod, low-level UVB and measuring UV Index.8 min
- Substrate, hides, climbing and waterChoosing a substrate, providing secure hides and climbing structures, and water.8 min
- Bioactive, housing alone and setting upBioactive enclosures, why corn snakes live alone and preparing for arrival.8 min
- Module 2 glossaryThe key terms from this module. Learn them and be able to explain each one in your own words.6 min
- Module 2 quizTest your understanding of Module 2: 10 multiple-choice questions. Pass mark 60%.10 min
Module 3Nutrition and Feeding6 lessons
- Whole prey and feeding schedulesNutritional needs, feeder animals and sizes, choosing prey size and how often to feed.8 min
- Frozen-thawed prey and how to feedWhy frozen-thawed is safer, thawing prey correctly and feeding technique.8 min
- Food refusal and regurgitationWhy corn snakes refuse food, handling after meals and regurgitation.8 min
- Water, supplements, weight and recordsHydration, why supplements are rarely needed, weighing and feeding records.8 min
- Module 3 glossaryThe key terms from this module. Learn them and be able to explain each one in your own words.6 min
- Module 3 quizTest your understanding of Module 3: 10 multiple-choice questions. Pass mark 60%.10 min
Module 4Health, Behaviour and Everyday Management7 lessons
- Health, handling and defensive behaviourRecognising a healthy snake, handling and understanding defensive behaviour and musking.8 min
- SheddingHow shedding works, the signs of a shed and dealing with shedding problems.8 min
- Common health problemsRespiratory infections, mouth rot, mites, internal parasites, skin disease and serious infections.8 min
- Brumation and reproductive healthSeasonal behaviour and reproductive problems in females.8 min
- Quarantine, hygiene, routine and vet careQuarantine, Salmonella, a care routine and records.8 min
- Module 4 glossaryThe key terms from this module. Learn them and be able to explain each one in your own words.6 min
- Module 4 quizTest your understanding of Module 4: 10 multiple-choice questions. Pass mark 60%.10 min
Module 5Breeding, Genetics and Responsible Ownership8 lessons
- Preparing to breedReproduction, sexing, breeding condition and seasonal cooling.8 min
- Courtship to egg collectionMating, ovulation, the pre-lay shed, egg laying and collecting eggs.8 min
- Incubation and hatchingIncubating eggs, temperature and development, candling and hatching.8 min
- Hatchling careCaring for hatchlings and their first feeds.8 min
- Morphs and geneticsCommon morphs, how they are inherited and keeping genetic records.8 min
- Responsible breeding and ownershipBreeding complications, placing hatchlings, UK law, transport and lifelong care.8 min
- Module 5 glossaryThe key terms from this module. Learn them and be able to explain each one in your own words.6 min
- Module 5 quizTest your understanding of Module 5: 10 multiple-choice questions. Pass mark 60%.10 min
Who this course is for
- New and prospective corn snake owners
- Keepers who want to check their set-up against current good practice
- Reptile shop staff who advise customers
Assessment & certificate
Each module ends with a quiz that is marked automatically: multiple-choice questions plus a written section where you explain what you've learned in your own words. You can take each quiz once and cannot retake it, and you'll see the correct answer to any question you got wrong.
When you've completed every module, you receive a certificate of completion with a unique verification code, graded on your average score across all the module quizzes:
- PassUp to 69%
- Merit70–79%
- Distinction80–100%
Everyone who completes every module receives a certificate.
This certificate confirms completion of an online, theory-based course and a passed online assessment. It is not an accredited qualification and does not certify practical competence.