Getting worried, how long do they hide out after feeding?

[jessicalb]

We fed Ark (hatchling, about 6 weeks old) on Tuesday, Jan 1, in the morning. It's now Thursday, Jan 3, evening, and we still haven't seen him. We stayed totally out of the enclosure until today, when we just refilled his water and lifted the three hides, very gently, and he wasn't under them, which I hope means he's just still sleeping off his meal burrowed in the substrate.

Temps are within a couple degrees of 72 on the cool end and 85 on the warm end.

So, how long do I wait before I get freaked out that he's sick, escaped, or dead? I don't want to comb through the aspen and risk freaking him out into a regurge if he just wants to be solitary. Help?

[aztek]

Actually, the reason it was out and about the few times is because it was in a new place, now that it's comfortable it will hide most of the time. I still see mine sometimes when it's switching from cool to warm side(Vice versa). Mine hid in the aspen the first few days then it started using the hides.

Wait today's the 3rd? That's 3 days, that's nothing. It takes from 2-4 days for them to digest depending on size.

also a trick to make them more visible is adding plants allover the place, mine seems to sleep anywhere with all those plants protecting him.

[jessicalb]

So I guess we just wait until next feeding day and if he doesn't come out we go looking for him then?

*nervous pacing*

[aztek]

You can look for him now, I doubt he'll regurge and he's about ready to poop, so you should worry more about poop then regurgitation.

[Weebonilass]

Depends on your snake... Daire is an 06 and I almost never see him. Gailleann goes straight up to her hammock and she only huddles deep inside it for a day and then she comes back to the edge until it's time to eat again... little Miss Piggy. Kieran never hid until he got older and now, its normally a couple of days. The new one still hasn't been seen and I fed on the first too. Of course, he refused, but he was awful dull, so I believe he's about to shed. Just slipped a moist hide in there for him to find and then I'll leave him alone until Sunday (I think that's when he's due again).

[Rich in KY]

Is the viv one that you can lift up and look at the bottom to see if you can see him under the aspen?

If not, it is not gonna hurt him to sift through the aspen just to make sure he didn't escape. Just don't handle him after you find him.

[jessicalb]

Our viv really can't be lifted up so we went hunting for him today. He had no visible lump, and was pretty calm so we held him for just a minute. He does seem to be a bit blue-ish grey in spots, and his head has a flake of skin, so I guess he's going into shed. It's only about 50 humidity inside the viv, so I think I might make him a moist hide out of a flower pot.

Thanks for the reassurance!

[susang]

In some way I think this thread falls in line with "why do people think corns are boring". It's altogether possible you will rarely see your snake. Even my big ones can manage to hide in the aspen, causing me to go looking for them. With the big ones after they poo I take them out and check them over. With the little ones two days after eating I take them out check them over and put them back. So the first day you looked under the hides...I would have gently looked for him in the aspen. I take a chop stick and kind of run it along the bottom, wen you bump them you know they are there, usually that sparks them coming out. To clear it up, I don't think cornsnakes are boring, but I don't have them for entertainment. susang

[jessicalb]

In some way I think this thread falls in line with "why do people think corns are boring". It's altogether possible you will rarely see your snake. Even my big ones can manage to hide in the aspen, causing me to go looking for them. With the big ones after they poo I take them out and check them over. With the little ones two days after eating I take them out check them over and put them back. So the first day you looked under the hides...I would have gently looked for him in the aspen. I take a chop stick and kind of run it along the bottom, wen you bump them you know they are there, usually that sparks them coming out. To clear it up, I don't think cornsnakes are boring, but I don't have them for entertainment. susang

That makes a lot of sense. I was just used to him, each evening coming out and exploring and stuff, so when I didn't see him for three days I was concerned. Knowing that that was "new environment" behavior and not typical makes me feel a lot better. We love him even if he's a shy guy. :)

[MerlinsPop]

Yeah, once they figure out there's no escape route, they come out less, unless they're hungry.

I search with my finger. I poke to the bottom, wiggle my finger, then poke agin, wiggle... until I touch something. Then I look for the head poking up somewhere far away, go back down, then poke up somewhere else. Be ware, though, that they can be pretty fast as they come shooting out of the aspen!

[Nanci]

I know exactly how you feel! Last week, I felt like I hadn't seen Jasper in a day or two, having fed him two days previously, so I went looking for him, and couldn't find him! (See thread, Lost and Found Jasper). Which made me nervous so I went looking that same night for Lily, who is _always_ in her vine at the same time every night. She came flying out of the viv like her house was on fire when I went searching for her! Then, I figured she was blue. But I still got her out Monday, because I wanted to amputate the limb of her fakey tree. All three hatchlings got fed Monday. Last night, I hadn't seen Jasmine since Monday, and I couldn't stand it! (She's always out- every night- constantly traveling around her viv!) I tried spying from underneath, but of course couldn't see through the UTH, so lifted up that hide, and got bit for my troubles. At least she's ok. But now I haven't seen Lily since feeding day Monday- the cycle starts again. I just don't worry about adults like this at all, I don't know what's wrong with me.