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Girlfriend got me a snake, now I have a problem....

J

Jazzik

New member
This snake previously belonged to my girlfriends friend, he doesnt have the time for it anymore and as my girlfriend already has a baby corn, she thought it would be nice for me to have this one.

Thats completely fine, I'm happy to have it and he seems to be a great pet. From what we know hes about 9 and has been used to not having a heat mat. I've since fitted a heatmat cos he seemed a little sluggish and this seemed to spark him into life.

Hes fine for being handled doesnt bite or even seem to mind infact after ive handled him he likes to come to the front of his viv as if to say he wants to come out again.

Anyway, I digress and onto the problem. I've had him for 3 weeks first week, he was fed after being moved (2 hour car journey) and he ate, digested and poo'd about 4 days after and was quite lively for a couple of days before being fed again. Now his next feed is due tomorrow and I still see no evidence of him pooing again and hes seemed quite reserved all week. I have had him out a couple of times but wasnt sure if handling him would help or hinder his digestion.

Is it ok to feed him again? Is he struggling with it? How can I possibly know?

Any help greatly appreciated.
 
I would not worry for the first couple of weeks as its not a mayjor problem. He is probobly a bit reserved because of all the moving about and also because he has not had a heat matt and this will take a bit of getting used to.

If he does not poo after a 3 weeks try putting him in the bath with about an inch of water and klet him have a good swim. Make sure that the water is just luke warm.. This helps them poo.
 
Couple of things...

First... Welcome!!

Second... you mentioned that you got him an heatmat. Did you also get a means of controlling the heat output of it, such as a thermostat or a rheostat (glorified dimmer switch)? Not sure about the ones available to you in the UK, but the ones on this side are capable of getting far to hot to be healthy, or even safe, for a cornsnake. A digital thermometer would also be very handy (that's my way of saying "mandatory!") for monitoring temps so you really have a good handle on his environment.

Third... to you question... it's not necessarily a concern that he hasn't pooed yet. Looks like you're feeding once a week, yeah? What size mouse? At 9, he's obviously fully mature and if the mouse is a full grown one, once a week might be a wee bit too frequent, but every snake is a bit different, so you have to use your best judgement. Do you know when he last shed? He might be going into a shed cycle and that can certainly dampen even the most chipper serpent's spirits. Keep an eye on him is my best advice.

Fourth... Good on ya for adopting him! Don't worry about making little mistakes here and there. The main thing is you're motivated and obviously are willing to ask the questions that you need to ask so that you do right by him. That's great!

Fifth, and Finally... You dare ask a question without putting up a picture of your new snake!!?? (okay, just kidding... a little)

Good luck!!
 
mele2511 said:
P.S how on earth is it still alive without any heat ???????
Click to expand...

Well he had just a red bulb, and from what we could see it was at about 24oC.. the heatmat seems to have made a lot of difference and its triggering his thermostat a lot more. I try to keep him at about 28oC (82f) as this is what my GF said is right?

I want to get a new viv, thermostat etc.. but it all takes time.


Here he is, still not sure on a new name yet... welcome to any suggestions :D

IMG_0993.jpg
 
MerlinsPop said:
Couple of things...

First... Welcome!! ............
Good luck!!
Click to expand...


He has a thermostat, but its a room one which isnt really all that great, its working and turns the mat and the bulb on and off thats about it :p I will be getting a "glorified dimmer switch" as soon as finances allow as well as a few other things. The heatmat i have put under a piece of plyboard that i have pinned to the bottom of the viv but it does seem to be quite warm to the touch almost like a hot waterbottle.. I have put half of his water bowl over it so that the viv becomes quite a humid environment and the option is there for my snake to take a dip, although the bowl seems a little small for that. Thermometer is just a standard mercury one, Ill pick up a digital one when i get into town, should I place it at the warm end of the viv? or at the cool end..which is where he seems to spend the majority of his time.

As for feeding, a full size mouse once a week is what he was apparently on, and he is always quick to come out and eat them. They are "medium" full size though not the biggest I could have got as they looked a bit too big, he seems quite content eating these ones though, and they look about the right size in comparison with his head.

Also, for the first time yesterday he started sort of "yawning" not sure what that means, but ive never seen him do it before.

Thank you all for your help, at least I know I've got somewhere to come now even if my questions sound a lil daft.
 
Nice looking snake you adopted, for sure! Name.... How 'bout "Midnight" as a bit if irony? Yeah, I suck at thinking up clever names, I know.

If you only have one digital thermoter, put it on the warm side, under the substrait. The mercury one can then give you a decent idea of the status of the cool side. That he stays over on the cool side most of the time is probably a hint that it's too toasty on the other side. Since that side feels warm to you, it's probably too hot to him. You're at 98* which is a good 15 or so degrees warmer than his optimal temperature, so it should almost feel cool to you. Once you get the thermoter, you'll know much better. Since he does spend all that time on the cool side, you might want to slide his water more towards the cool end, too.

The picture doesn't show his body well, but your boy looks pretty good... might try stretching his feeding out a day at a time to at least 10 days. If you can get your hands on a digital scale that reads in grams, the Munson Plan would give you a very good feeding guideline. Do a quick search on that phrase and you find it.

Yawning - if it was just once or twice, maybe he got his jaw out of whack and was resetting it. If it was a bunch of times... someone else please tell us what that could mean!
 
I know that when I had a female snow I named her after my favorite female snowboarder, Gretchen Bleiler (Bleiler was the snake's name). Thats just a suggestion. Any favorite skiiers or snowboarders?
 
MerlinsPop said:
The picture doesn't show his body well, but your boy looks pretty good...
Click to expand...

snake.jpg


Full body shot for ya...

With the heat mat and the bulb on the same thermostat, should i turn it down to something a lot lower than its current 28oC? Should the bulb be on or off the majority of the time?

If my questions become an irritance please say so :)
 
I would call him Hawksmoor, king of cities.

I don't know.

Nice snake, I'm jealous such a cutie could fall in your lap like that.
 
I'll leave it to others with more experience to comment more definitively than I can, but he does look to me like he's somewhere in the zone between 'well fed' and 'jabba the snake' (much closer to the former than the latter!). But maybe it's just because he's all folded up (I'll never stop being amazed that they can do that!). But he is sweet looking.
 
He does look a tad chubby, but if he is holding some poop, that could account for it. :D Nice looking snake, I hope he does well for you!
 
I guess popular oppinion says I should spread his meals to 10 days then instead of 7? Obviously moving them apart slowly one day at a time.

I've turned his thermostat down to 25C (80F) is that about right?
 
though.. he does look a lot fatter in those pictures than he does here.... never really noticed how much.
 
Or just get him some exercise! Being out, crawling through your hands, going exploring or climbing in the yard are all good activities.

Nanci
 
Nanci said:
Or just get him some exercise! Being out, crawling through your hands, going exploring or climbing in the yard are all good activities.

Nanci
Click to expand...

Climbing in the yard? Are you kidding?

Also, I'd really appreciate some input on the temps, im totally baffled as he always seems to be down the cold end, and I thought they liked to be warm. I was told 82-84f is right.
 
Jazzik said:
Climbing in the yard? Are you kidding?

Also, I'd really appreciate some input on the temps, im totally baffled as he always seems to be down the cold end, and I thought they liked to be warm. I was told 82-84f is right.
Click to expand...

As for the temps, that's right for the warm side, be sure and let the other side stay a bit cooler. You usually want to use heat an about 1/3 to 1/2 of the viv, so that he can move about and thermoregulate. The cool side should be in the mid 70's, your room temp is probably fine.

You can let him go out in the yard, but you definately want to keep an eye on him (maybe even a hand) so that he doesn't take off..
 
After reading a lot of whats been put here, I dont think ive put the Heatmat in correctly.. i put a thin piece of ply over the top of it should I have put it outside UNDER the bottom of the wood?

It actually feels quite hot to the touch for me, is that too hot for my snake to make use of that area?
 
Jazzik said:
After reading a lot of whats been put here, I dont think ive put the Heatmat in correctly.. i put a thin piece of ply over the top of it should I have put it outside UNDER the bottom of the wood?

It actually feels quite hot to the touch for me, is that too hot for my snake to make use of that area?
Click to expand...
Assuming it's a glass or plastic bottom... under. Once you get that digital thermoter, the probe goes inside, under the substrate.
 
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