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Have questions concerning the health of my new snake

Thanks for all the help! I'm pretty sure I know how to move on from here. Jack is my first pet that I've bought with my own money, haven't had any help raising... and I just want to make sure I do everything right hehe.

I'm going to go into the pet store and get something to regulate the heat... and a better thermometer so I can more accuratly tell what the temp is: one for each side of the cage... the hot side and the cool side. Just one more quick thing... will any thermometer work, or do I have to find some special snake safe one?
 
Debbie45 said:
Just one more quick thing... will any thermometer work, or do I have to find some special snake safe one?
Click to expand...

Like Lennycorn said, a regular indoor/outdoor thermometer with a probe will work. The probe should go under the substrate directly above the UTH. And you can leave the "body" of the thermometer on top of the cage or velcro it to the side. Then you can just switch between the indoor and outdoor settings to get an idea of the cool side temperature. The cool side temp doesn't need to be nearly as accurate as the warm side temperature, so even if you just leave the thermometer sitting on the top of the cage or velcro it to the outside with the probe it should give you a reasonably good idea of what the cool side temp is.
 
Forgot to mention, this is general type of thermometer you will be looking for:

ps-00888a2.jpg



That is the type that Walmarts near me have always carried. Just to give you an idea, these thermometers can have a lot of different looks depending on where you shop and what brand it is. Just make sure it's an indoor/outdoor and has a probe. Here's a link showing the various types. http://www.partshelf.com/wired-indoor-outdoor-thermometers.html
 
Can I recomend a meat thermometer I got my at Walmart for 8 bucks its food safe so I assume its fine for my snake it has a nice long probe on it plus you can set it to check the max and min temp so you can check for the range of your tank. and again 8 bucks (they are in the cooking section)
 
Sanebedlam said:
Can I recomend a meat thermometer I got my at Walmart for 8 bucks its food safe so I assume its fine for my snake it has a nice long probe on it plus you can set it to check the max and min temp so you can check for the range of your tank. and again 8 bucks (they are in the cooking section)
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okay, that is really cool. In the food section huh?

I'm off to the store tomorrow. I'm addicted to multiple thermometers placed around the house and in the tanks. I have them all over the place. I am not sure why I like knowing the temperature ANYWHERE and EVERYWHERE so much. Does anyone else do this?
 
tracy0416 said:
okay, that is really cool. In the food section huh?

I'm off to the store tomorrow. I'm addicted to multiple thermometers placed around the house and in the tanks. I have them all over the place. I am not sure why I like knowing the temperature ANYWHERE and EVERYWHERE so much. Does anyone else do this?
Click to expand...

Honestly I live in a studio apartment so my tanks temp is the only temp I worry about haha. I actually only have one of them right now but I am going to buy a second when I get my next paycheck.
 
So much for one more quick question haha... So I know I must sound stupid, but I really am new to this and know nothing about snakes and all that good stuff.

So here's the problem. I don't think my set up is heating the tank properly. The light dosen't give enough heat and the pad gives too much. =/ I don't know what a rheostat does... does it turn off the electricity when it reaches a certian temp? How does that work?

Should I up the wattage of my heat lamp? Get another one? The problem is the cage seems to take the heat. The walls of the cage are hot... like put my hand on it and get burned hot... but the heat dosen't seem to reach the inside of the cage. Is that a cage problem... or a heat source problem? What do I do to fix that? Where is the best place to put a light for maximum efficieny? On the side shining in sideways? On the top shining down? One on both?

I know I'm asking a lot of questions and I appreciate you guys humoring me heh. I just want to make sure I do this right and I'm worried that his tank isn't getting hot enough. =/ Little Jack has me all worried hehe.
 
My recommendation is to get rid of the light and just stick with a UTH. A rheostat works like a dimmer switch on a ceiling light. You have to manually adjust the knob to increase/decrease the heat. A thermostat will turn the UTH on and off to maintain the temperature you set it at.

Once you get a decent thermometer with a probe for measuring temps then you can feel better about the temps being where they need to be. Until then, you won't know what's going on. For now, you are probably better off underheating the tank than overheating and running the risk of causing any harm.
 
Debbie45 said:
So much for one more quick question haha... So I know I must sound stupid, but I really am new to this and know nothing about snakes and all that good stuff.

So here's the problem. I don't think my set up is heating the tank properly. The light dosen't give enough heat and the pad gives too much. =/ I don't know what a rheostat does... does it turn off the electricity when it reaches a certian temp? How does that work?.
Click to expand...

I place the UTH under the tank and I line the inside bottom of the tank with multiple layers of newspaper, like 10-15. That prevents the snakes belly from getting too hot and also you don't have to spend money on "other" stuff. Just thought I'd present that as an option.

- Place the waterbowl over the UTH so it creates humidity for you.
- Both temp and heat can be contained and released by covering and screen lid sections with something non absorbant (will suck moisture) like a ceramic tile or something.

Did any of that help a bit?
 
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Hi Debbie wlecome to the forums, and congrads on your corn snake. Its a pretty one.
Im so sorry your lil one regurded. Like was explained make his next meal 10 days later and as small as you can. Its digestive system need to get back on track.
You can heat a snake tank with a red heat bulb placed in a dome light. If thats what you are asking about as i use that method on one tank. I sit the dome right on the lock top screen cover. Thats my warm side then at 85 and the cooler end is 73.
Remember to ck temps on the surface of the bottom under any substrate with the probe.
I got mine for 11.88 at wal mart in the hardware section by the out door therms and it tells me humidity also.
One your lil one eats again don't take him to a bath. He needs his tank to find his correct heat for digestion.
good luck....
 
tracy0416 said:
I place the UTH under the tank and I line the inside bottom of the tank with multiple layers of newspaper, like 10-15. That prevents the snakes belly from getting too hot and also you don't have to spend money on "other" stuff. Just thought I'd present that as an option.
Click to expand...

IMO, at the least, a thermometer is still an absolute must even if you are using this method. On the other hand it only costs $8 and about 10-15 minutes to make a rheostat, so it's not as if you're breaking the bank to add an extra layer of security.

I sit the dome right on the lock top screen cover. Thats my warm side then at 85 and the cooler end is 73.
Remember to ck temps on the surface of the bottom under any substrate with the probe.
Click to expand...

However, if you are using a light to heat the tank (and UTH) then you should probably be measuring the temp on top of the substrate as well in order to make sure that the heat from the lamp isn't too much.
 
However, if you are using a light to heat the tank (and UTH) then you should probably be measuring the temp on top of the substrate as well in order to make sure that the heat from the lamp isn't too much.[/QUOTE]

Yes i keep two digitals in there 24/7....Thanks
 
Msterry said:
However, if you are using a light to heat the tank (and UTH) then you should probably be measuring the temp on top of the substrate as well in order to make sure that the heat from the lamp isn't too much.
Click to expand...

Yes i keep two digitals in there 24/7....Thanks[/QUOTE]


As I mentioned in another post just 5 minutes ago, I am addicted to thermometers and have tem all over my house AND IN ALL THE TANKS

I thought it was a given that we use thermometers. My mistake.

Yes...please use thermometers rheo's whatever.

My temps are perfect, save for minor fluctuations.

I was trying to save her form purchasing other kinds of heating equiptment.

Cheers! :crazy02: :crazy02: :crazy02: :crazy02: :crazy02:
 
Haha thanks guys. I skipped class today to stay with Jack and make sure that it dosen't get too hot or too cold in his cage, but I'm going today to buy a thermostat... if the pet store has one. If they don't have one, I'm going to buy/ make a rheostat so by the end of today the heating issue should be taken care of. As for the regurgitation thing I can't really do anything there until next Tuesday.
 
If you can;t find the thermostat at Petco (they carry the ZooMed 500R usually), you can get a lamp dimmer pre-built at WalMart for $9 in the electronics hardware section, or follow the thread to build your own. Both work fine, I'm using both types right now on a couple extra sterilite tubs.

If you get an indoor/outdoor themometer with probe from WalMart, make sure you get the one with the probe. They used to have about 4 different models but when I looked at my local store the other day they only carry one with a probe and the rest now are wireless. Just make sure to get the probe. The one for $11.88 with humidity is the best, and now the only one my WalMart even sells any more.
 
Maizey upstairs, Jake downstairs. They only get the warm side measured. (They hadn't moved in yet, so the thermostat is off and the cages are room temperature. LOVE that thermostat, BTW.)

Nanci
 

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Wow... haha that looks much nicer than what I have. I figure what I have works... it just dosen't look pretty. =P Petco did have a thermostat, so I went ahead and got that. I got a thermometer with a probe, it dosen't have a humidity guage, but I already have one of those. I got another thermometer for the cool side of the cage.

Now I've heard different things regarding the heat ranges for corns. Right now the hot side fluctuates from like 90 to 93. The cold side is at like 75/76. Is that too hot, ok, good?
 
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