THIRSTY, SHY, HIDER~NEED SUGGESTIONS!

One of my 3 corns is a shy little 2010 girl named Cassandra.

This girl hides all the time. She's never been seen perusing her Viv.

I always offer her water before feeding and she always takes about 30-40 gulps when I do that. I never see her drink otherwise, even though she has two water sources strategically placed in her Viv.

Her first three feedings went well, but she has refused the last two feedings, which is odd. These are as many details as I can offer you...

11-13 ~ 1 large mouse pinkie
11-21 ~ 1 large mouse pinkie
11-26 ~ 1 large mouse pinkie
12-01 ~ Refusal
12-05 ~ Refusal

Her Viv Before:
She is definitely the 'hider' of the 3 snakes I have. Even though I've never seen her perusing her Viv, I have seen a worm tunnel from the bottom of the Viv. I have her in a 20 gallon tank (yes, I know that's huge but the Mister wanted it) with 1.5-2" of Aspen, lots of hides, a humid hide and 2 water bowls (pyrex dessert bowls) which may be too tall for a shy snake. So I think she may not have been able to recognize her water sources. The floor of her Viv averages 83F. I use heat mats and all three snakes are hooked into the same T-Stat.

Her Viv After: Let me know if this sounds like it makes sense...I just now took out more than half of the Aspen, so she's now got a lot less between her belly and the heat (about 1/2" or less), and I replaced her water bowls with 2 jar lids. I placed them both on the glass so she can't miss them if/when she comes out of her coco/hide. Then I covered the hide places with fake ivy so she wouldn't feel so exposed because of having less substrate.

I think Cassandra is shy in seeking water and proper temp areas. I'm now understanding much more from personal experience how different each snake and each situation can be. My snakes are in the L/R because that's where our woodstove is. They're across the room from it. BUT, I think because the Aspen was so thick it may have only hindered her heatwise. I also noticed that after her 3rd feed it took her a few more days to poop and then the night before her 2nd refusal, she pooped again. So in my mind that appears to be a heat related digestion issue.

I know it's not easy to help when you can't see what's going on, but I'd like to hear what you have to say. Let me know if my rationale regarding Viv changes makes sense.

I contacted the Breeder and he was very nice in trying to help me. Now I'm coming to you to see what kinds of ideas/suggestions you might have.

EDIT ADD: Aspen was returned to Cassandra's tank via popular consensus ...

Honestly, I think you're lucky to have two young snakes you DO see often! I didn't see my first corn for probably the first year I had him.

Corns are naturally shy, and especially in a larger tank, it seems pretty normal that Cassandra wants to keep to herself a bit. It sounds like you made the right step though in adding more coverage. Fake plants may help her feel more comfortable.

You could also cover the viv with a towel to make the insides darker. I have always seen my snake more in tubs than in glass vivs. I think this is because tubs (especially in a rack) are darker.

I think it's a mistake to remove aspen. If she likes burrowing, let her. Be patient, and eventually you will see her more often. You've only had her for about a month. Some snakes need a long period of adjustment before they will show themselves to you.

Also, where is her viv? Is it in a high traffic area? If so place it in a calmer area, and you might just see her more often! Cassandra is most likely exploring her viv.. she's just probably doing it when it's dark and quiet in the room she's in.. and when you're not there.

As far as the refusals.. she might be stressed out. Wait a little longer between food offerings. Wait a week at least, even though it seems like a long time. Snakes can get stressed out when they are offered food too many times and can start associating food offerings negatively. It perpetuates the problem for longer than might have been necessary.

Pick up some NutriBac from Kathy Love (or wherever else you can find it), to help restore essential micro organisms to Cassandra's stomach the next time she eats.

I hope some of that helps! Just remember to be patient and give Cassandra time. She deserves it!

I rarely see any of mine drink but if I dunk their snouts in their water on the way back into the tank after feeding, they do tend to drink - and they can drink long and hard. They've never shown any signs of dehydration. I think it's just a reflex reaction rather than a sign of trouble. I'm sure mine just drink overnight.

As for not seeking the "proper" temp zones, most of mine hang out on the cool side all of the time. Some of them even when digesting. It's a personal preference. As long as she has lots of hides (which she does), then she'll be able to move between them as she sees fit. There's no way of forcing them to thermoregulate - you just have to provide the best facilities and trust that they'll do it for themselves.

It honestly sounds like the drinking thing is normal and that you've provided all the right conditions for thermoregulation.

The only thing I can think to ask is, did the refusals start when she went into the big tank or has she been in there all along? Apart from that, I can't shed any light. I agree that if she's a hider and she uses the aspen to tunnel, then that should be encouraged. 1.5-2 inches of aspen won't be enough to seriously block the temp, so I think it's safe to put it back as it was.

I would put the aspen back as it was. Is it possible she is refusing because she is blue? And I wouldn't give the water a second thought. If it's there, she can find it. If you are worried, and it makes you feel better, when you put her back, put her into the water. Then you know she remembers it.

Her last shed was 11-20-2010

I have noticed the smaller and younger the snake, the more they hide. The older they get, the more brave they get about being seen. I've had Wishbone for about a year now. She went from a tiny baby I NEVER saw to a juvenile who will now stick her head out the "window" of her skull when I knock. She's out a lot more now that she's bigger.

Devon

(I love teaching snakes to come out when you knock!)

Knock-knock...LOL

Thank you Jessicat, Bitsy, Nanci and Devon.

I put all of the substrate back in and gave Cassandra my blessing...go forward, find water and eat at your next feeding. We'll see what happens.

while it does seem fast for another shed, sometimes they surprize us. My Shade shed twice in a little less than 4 weeks once, and when we first got him Scarlet shed 3 times in the first month. We understood why he did, he came to us from a place that kept him with as little humidity as they possibly could because some pet shop guy said all snakes live in the dessert and need it dry. He had also been on sand, co-habbed and only fed once a month. He was a year old when we got him and was the same size as the hatchlings you see at petsmart. How long have you had this little one? When she last shed was it complete? If it was broken at all and any stuck, perhaps she is getting ready to shed again to get rid of the irritation a stuck bit might be causing?

Hi CarnivorousZoo, I don't know if you were able to click through on her link, but we got her on 11-02 and she was leading up to a shed. She had a clean shed on 11-20. I know I've read in this forum (I think Nanci posted it somewhere) that baby snakes can shed every 3-4 weeks.

I also put towels up on each side of her Viv today, so as to block a bit of side distraction and any potential chilled air/drafts. And since I rearranged all the substrate today and fussed about her Viv, she has been out and perusing for the past TWO hours!