Burrowing
 

I have a preloved 10 year old corn snake. The weather is getting colder and although he has 2 hides recently I put his favourite one on the warm side and popped his smaller one on the cold side The warm side is at 29C but recently he's been digging and burrowing in the substrate on the cold side far much more. I've popped his favourite hide back on the cold side and swapped the least favourite back to the warm side but I'm a bit stumped. I've had him just a few months but he's not done this before now. I mean he's burrowed but not stayed under the substrate. My house IS super cold and before I had him his old owner never used a thermostat on his heat mat. I'm wondering if he needs his heat bumped up a touch more. I'm scared he's trying to hibernate. I have no intention of breeding him

He will seek the temperature that he desires, especially if he can burrow as he does. I'm sure someone will ask you how you are measuring the temp on the warm side. I have my warm side set at 85 F and as I look at my 17 adults there are 14 sitting on the cool side, which is 78. The other 3 are sitting in the middle between warm and cooler.

I have a thermostat on the warm side set to 29c

1. so where is the probe located?

2. are you sure the temperature under the hide is actually 29c? (Just because you set a thermostat to that temp does not necessarily mean "It Is" that temp.)

3. Are you actually measuring the temperature and if so, are you measuring it inside the warm hide?

It doesn't matter what the temp is up near the top of the cage or up against the side glass (where most people put those stick on thermometers that are useless).

The temperature reading should be inside the "warm side hiding place." If it's 29c inside the warm side hiding place then you have no need to worry. As already stated, the snake will go where he's most comfortable. If he's hanging out on the cool end right now, maybe he just wants to.

My snake spends time on both sides of the cage. As long as the warm side temps are correct, and the cool side does not fall below 70, (22c) he will be fine.

There are possibly 3 different temperatures when you use an under tank heat source. There is the temp you set with a thermostat, or heat controlling device. There is the actual temp under the substrate, usually on the inside glass bottom of the tank or vivarium, and then there's the temp on top of the substrate. I set my thermostat and then test the temps with thermometers with probes. I check the temp at the heat source, then place one thermometer probe under the substrate, and one on top of the substrate. Some people prefer to use infrared temp guns, and their prices have come down so they are quite affordable. I use thermometers with probes because mine have alarms that let me know if my heat controller malfunctions.

My probe is on the substrate on the mat I will invest in a digital thermometer

If you are saying your heat mat is inside the vivarium with the probe for the heat controller on top of it, you should have enough heat unless your substrate is very deep.