• Hello!

    Either you have not registered on this site yet, or you are registered but have not logged in. In either case, you will not be able to use the full functionality of this site until you have registered, and then logged in after your registration has been approved.

    Registration is FREE, so please register so you can participate instead of remaining a lurker....

    Please be certain that the location field is correctly filled out when you register. All registrations that appear to be bogus will be rejected. Which means that if your location field does NOT match the actual location of your registration IP address, then your registration will be rejected.

    Sorry about the strictness of this requirement, but it is necessary to block spammers and scammers at the door as much as possible.

(big post) New snake... HELP!!.. please ^_^

L

Luke Anime

Luke
Ok, my friend gave me his north american corn (Karma) 3 weeks ago, as he could no longer keep it. Karma is 2 years old. He is my FIRST snake so im a little unsure of some things.

Ive done allot of research on how to look after corns, so im feeding him fine, changing water daily, cleaning out poop as soon as i see it, getting him out to "play" (slither about my bed sheets... he loves them) etc etc etc..

I know the humidity for a corn should be around 40 - 60. For Karma, during the day its a nice steady 50, but at night when the light bulb goes off (but the heater stays on of course) the humidity goes WAY up to 70 - 80. This is actually very worrying to me.. so could anyone make a sujestion of what i could do to reduce humidity at night?

Ok just a few more questions:

1. Is there a certain time of day Karma should be fed?

2. Is it ok to have a heating panel on the side wall instead of having a heat mat on one side under the substrate?

3. Karma is ALWAYS hiding, and sleeping, and NEVER climbs his branches.. any reasons why maybe?

4. Are wood shavings a good substrate? Its very cheap.. and Karma loves to bury in it.. but ive heard it can be bad for the respiratory system.. have i heard right?

If any of you could please answer these questions, i would VERY much appreciate it. Having a snake for the first time is quite.... different, and i kinda feel like i should know allot more than i do.

Thanks for reading all. :)
 
Luke Anime said:
Ok, my friend gave me his north american corn (Karma) 3 weeks ago, as he could no longer keep it. Karma is 2 years old. He is my FIRST snake so im a little unsure of some things.
Click to expand...
Welcome! Glad you came and everyone will be happy to answer your questions.

Ive done allot of research on how to look after corns, so im feeding him fine, changing water daily, cleaning out poop as soon as i see it, getting him out to "play" (slither about my bed sheets... he loves them) etc etc etc..

I know the humidity for a corn should be around 40 - 60. For Karma, during the day its a nice steady 50, but at night when the light bulb goes off (but the heater stays on of course) the humidity goes WAY up to 70 - 80. This is actually very worrying to me.. so could anyone make a sujestion of what i could do to reduce humidity at night?
Click to expand...
Where's Karma's water dish? If you move it to the coolest part of his cage it might not evaporate out as much. Also, you can get a smaller dish if needed. Constant exposure to really high humidity is what you want to avoid. Having it fluctuate up and down during the course of a day is not such a bad thing, in my opinion.[/quote]

Ok just a few more questions:

1. Is there a certain time of day Karma should be fed?
Click to expand...
Wild Corns usually eat in the early morning and early evening hours, when the light is lower. If he's eating well for you, it doesn't matter when you feed him. If he's a reluctant feeded, then you can try to exploit his natural tendencies.

2. Is it ok to have a heating panel on the side wall instead of having a heat mat on one side under the substrate?
Click to expand...
Some use side heat and there's probably nothing wrong with it, as long as it gives him a good temperature gradient from warm to cool to choose as he prefers. Make sure he's got plenty of hiding places that allow him to feel secure at whichever temperature he likes best. Most, though, prefer to heat from below to provide "belly heat."

3. Karma is ALWAYS hiding, and sleeping, and NEVER climbs his branches.. any reasons why maybe?
Click to expand...
First question is was he an active climber and explorer for his previous owner? Corn snakes...well, most snakes in general, are fairly reclusive in nature. If he was active before but not now, then you have to do some investigating about what aspects of his new situation differ from his old. Look at temperatures, amount of light that's shining on him, how 'busy' the room is that he's in. Stuff like that.

4. Are wood shavings a good substrate? Its very cheap.. and Karma loves to bury in it.. but ive heard it can be bad for the respiratory system.. have i heard right?
Click to expand...
Wood shavings that have high oil content, such as pine and cedar are to be avoided. Most people use aspen, which doesn't have a lot of those oils and in chiped (and not too finely shredded form) don't have too much dust either.

If any of you could please answer these questions, i would VERY much appreciate it. Having a snake for the first time is quite.... different, and i kinda feel like i should know allot more than i do.

Thanks for reading all. :)
Click to expand...

Hope this and all the other responses you get help. You're quite correct. Reptiles aren't like dogs and cats. Taking care of them requires you to learn different things and look at husbandy from a different direction. I hope you find it rewarding and interesting.

Welcome again, and Good Luck!
 
Ok firstly, Karma's water dish is on the cool side, half shaded by a breeze block, so the water is fine. And when he went through his first shedding stage (with me) i kept a larger bowl on the heated side for him to bath in. The water was warm.. but not to warm.. but still he didnt bath in it for the whole week it was kept in there.. but anyway.

Secondly just to let you know, he has 3 hides. One on the heated side, one in the middle, and one in the shade.

Thirdly, about his previous owner.. he was kept in the same tank (which is made of wood, glass sliders on the front) but in a conservatory which was quite cold. The owner tells me that the temperature was usualy at a STUPID 10 - 15 degrees celcius... i now keep the "tank" at 25 - 30 during the day, and it usualy goes down to 20 - 25 at night. When i visited the snake at the previous owners house, he was always out basking under the bulb (clearly trying to stay warm).

So yeah, all that info just to let you know. Hope it helps with a second reply.

Thankyou SO much for the great welcome. Very much apprechiated :)
 
Hope you have fun with your new corn!

Snakes do hide an awful lot. Karma probably comes out and explores when you are fast asleep at night. :) It's worth remembering that he's also getting used to a new home; he may become more active when he feels more settled in his environment.

Are you using the light bulb purely for lighting, or is it for heat as well?

Edit: Just noticed you're from Kent, too! Neat!
 
Plissken said:
Are you using the light bulb purely for lighting, or is it for heat as well?

Edit: Just noticed you're from Kent, too! Neat!
Click to expand...

Im using it for heat too. With the bulb on, its around 25 - 30, at night when its off 20 - 25. So yeah it works quite well with the heat.. only a cheap 100w too.

And whats so good about Kent? XD I cant wait to get away from home
 
It seems like you have things pretty well in hand. Karma's probably thrilled that he's warm enough to cozy up in his hide for a change! If you can position his hides so that he can be hidden yet observe you and the rest of the room, you'll find that he's watching. One of mine is in a room with a TV and she'd often poke her head out for a better view of the flickering lights.
 
Also keep in mind that it is winter. My 2 year old corn will be out cruising his cage at all hours during the spring/early summer. I don't think I've seen him out of a hide once since September.
 
Hi Luke, another Kentish herper here! :dancer:
Just one question, what sort of thermometer are you using?
 
Luke Anime Quote:
Originally Posted by diamondlil
Hi Luke, another Kentish herper here!
Just one question, what sort of thermometer are you using?

I use an adhesive thermometer strip, and a round one.. like a dial.. not sure what theyre called
Click to expand...

The thermometer type your describing are pretty much useless if you want accurate temperature readings. You should really think about buying a digital thermometer with a probe. There pretty cheap, bout £8-9 ish. Thats probably why Diamondil was asking :)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top