A few questions so I dont hurt our new snake

We got my daughter a corn snake for her birthday in November. I bought it (dunno if it is a boy or girl but she named him Charlie) from a guy at work and he was about 6-7 months old I think. He is about 24" long now and still has not shed for us. I was told he had just gotten done shedding about a week before we got him. He has grown quite a bit and is on pinkies 1 about every 5 days. Around Christmas time he didnt eat for what seemed like forever (about 3 weeks) he was active and apparently happy during this time so the vet said to wait before we brought him in, and as it turned out he did not apparently like the T-rex pinkie mice we had bought, now that he is back on his regular pinkies he is eating again just fine. I did not know we should not feed him in his cage until a couple weeks ago and we now have a separate container for him to eat in. He ate 2 pinkies tonight for us and if he does well for a few more 2 pinkie feedings and then move up to 1 furry. Last week his eyes got cloudy and he turned kind of a dull oapque color... now he is back to normal color his eyes cleared up sometime today and upon reading through these threads he should shed soon. I need to apparently get a new thermometer because we have that color changing strip kind and you all say those ones arent good but the temp says cool side 70-75 and hot side 80-85. He has a lamp on top and a heater under the tank. OK now the question are we doing all right with him? He doesnt seem to be "plumping" up but getting longer and maybe a little thicker in the midsection. He is active and gentle and wayyyy cool. I never knew I was a snake person till we got him.

welcome....

well, you're definitely in the right place if you have any questions or concerns about the care of your new snake!!

it sounds to me like you're applying what you've learned here and are doing well.

:cheers:

I agree. It sounds like you have everything covered and that your snake is going to do well. Welcome to the forum!

Welcome to the forum...

I've only got 1 suggestion.
When you run out of pinkies, why not try a fuzzie? My snake is a similar size and takes a fuzzie no problem every 5-7 days.

Sounds like your doing everything right though, and thats only a suggestion.

Welcome, I agree with oldhand's suggestion, a 2' snake should be on fuzzies at the least, I have a 26" female that eats small mice. Do not rush to this point however. Go with fuzzies for a while, as he/she is not used to larger sized prey. I would also suggest a round thermometer that you can lay directly on the substrate, this gives a more accurate temp. reading and you can move it to monitor the cool side as well.
Good luck, keep us posted on the shedding, probably after a fuzzy or two, and again welcome.

Mike B

A high quality thermometer is critical for keeping any reptile. The only suggestion I see that might be worth pointing out is that unless your home is chilly, the use of both a heat lamp and a UTH might be too much. Lamps tend to dry out the air in an enclosure, especially when indoor humidity is low.

I would also recommend moving up to a larger prey size. Pinkies don't provide the same benefits for a growing snake that larger mice do.

Sounds like you're doing good. As for the thermometer, I wouldn't recommend one of the round ones; they can be way off. Go for a cheap digital thermometer w/ probe, $10-15 at Walmart.

Sounds like you're doing pretty good! I too, would suggest moving up to fuzzies. Mine has been on them since he was a little less than 20 inches long. Congrats on the new snakes, btw.

Welcome, your first shed will be a good indication of whether you have your temps set right, When s/he does shed, check the very tip of tail has shed and the eye caps, post a picture here when s/he has her shiny new dress on. Good luck and enjoy. :idea: