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Hiya. Another newbie seeking help

RachelS

New member
Hi, I'm Rachel :wavey:

Great forum and dead easy to navigate (I mod on a tropical fish forum with the same format :) )

I've 6 tropical fish tanks, a cat and a dog. My son Jerry (in the avatar) brought home Slither, his nursery's common garter snake, for the Easter hols and is now well into the idea of having his own snake (I'm dreading the tears when we take it back next week :cry: )

I myself had a checkered garter when I was younger but it only lasted a year due to a lack of research on my part in the first place so I don't want to rush in head first this time

I'm wondering about the tank. If we go for a corn snake, as a baby, would I be able to use a spare UK 15G, 2 foot fish tank and then progress to another spare tank (4 foot 200L) as it becomes adult? I've a 18" 15W ballast in the 15G. Is a reptile tube suitable or is there anything better? The nursery's tank has come with a 40W lightbulb which doesn't look that safe to me although I've read conflicting reports on their usage. There isn't a heatmat either which I thought was fairly mandatory although perhaps the combination of the bulb and a mat would be too hot (it's a 2 foot tank)

Any help would be appreciated :)
 
Tank size sounds good, escape-proofing the lid is the main problem, and as for heating I prefer to just use the heat mat without any lights. Lights tend to dry the vivs out and can contribute to shedding problems.
Of course you do realise that here comes another addiction?
"I'm Rachel and I collect snakes, it started with tropical fish................" :)
 
I agree about the lights. Extra lights aren't needed unless the tank will be in a low light area. If there is plenty of ambient light, then I wouldn't worry about using extra lights (unless you really feel better with them).

A UTH (under tank heater) is fairly mandatory. Use of a UTH and a "heat" lamp could be overkill. If you do decide to use a light, a fluorescent type tube might suit you better as they don't seem to put off much heat (at least my old fish tank one didn't).

The heat mat should cover about 1/3 of the bottom of the tank. A lot of them say on the box/directions what size tanks they are suitable for use. And a way to control the heat mat is a MUST. This can be done with a rheostat, thermostat, or just mounting it to ceramic tile before placing under the viv so that it doesn't get too hot.

Welcome to the forum, by the way! There are tons of great threads with good info. Just about anything can be found by searching the old threads (but your probably aware of this :) ). But don't be afraid to ask about something that isn't clear.

:wavey:
 
Welcome to the club

When I was in highschool my science teacher got me started on keeping corns. He had adopted a 5ft female and later bought two other hatchlings. I got to take them all home over christmas break one year and I was hooked! Sounds familiar? I use a combination of the two a UTH and lamp. I turn the lamp off at night and turn on a night glow on the opposite or cool end of the tank it is nice for night viewing. I agree with the lid. If you do decide to get your son a corn, make certain it is escape proof. I used to have a tank with a screen lid that I secured to the tank with clamps and one night I forgot about them. Luckily Huey didn't notice and take advantage! Keep reading the threads and find what works for you. Corn snake are know for being rather easy to keep with a few simple items.

Nathan
 
Thanks for the help :)

I'll go for the mat. I just thought perhaps a light might be needed for UV stimulation or something or other possibly. Shows how much I know! It'll make a change anyway to modifying fish tank lighting to get stupid plants to grow :mad:

Last bit in the intro forum........ I heard they need a little humidity. Does the mat, together with fresh water in the tank create this?
 
RachelS said:
Thanks for the help :)

I'll go for the mat. I just thought perhaps a light might be needed for UV stimulation or something or other possibly. Shows how much I know! It'll make a change anyway to modifying fish tank lighting to get stupid plants to grow :mad:

Last bit in the intro forum........ I heard they need a little humidity. Does the mat, together with fresh water in the tank create this?

They need about 40-50%, mainly during their shed cycle. Which you could simply mist the cage to raise the levels.
Here a link to read too.

Husbandry and such
http://www.cornsnakes.com/forums/showthread.php?t=28341
http://www.cornsnakes.com/forums/showthread.php?t=28342
http://www.cornsnakes.com/forums/showthread.php?t=17224
http://www.cornsnakes.com/forums/sh...?p=133428#post6
http://www.cornsnakes.com/forums/showthread.php?t=28343

Diseases and health
http://www.herpvetconnection.com/
http://www.reptilia.org/News/salmonella.htm
http://biology.kenyon.edu/slonc/bio...rypto.htm#trans
http://www.cornsnakes.com/forums/sh...ighlight=nix*
http://coloherp.org/cb-news/Vol-28/...SnakeMites.html
http://www.cornsnakes.com/forums/sh...ight=jello+butt

Free Herp Software
http://www.serpwidgets.com/Apps/apps.html
http://www.proherp.com/

Setup
http://freshaquarium.about.com/cs/t.../bltanksize.htm
http://www.mgreptiles.com/VIROSAN.html
http://www.anapsid.org/blacklight.html
http://arbreptiles.com/cages/flexwire.shtml
http://www.cornsnakes.com/forums/showthread.php?t=19168
http://www.finegtps.com/cageplans.htm#Materials and Cut List

Miscellaneous
http://www.alysion.org/euthanasia/
http://www.moreptiles.com/cornsnake-lifecycle.htm
http://www.cornsnakes.com/forums/sh...17&page=1&pp=10
http://www.cornsnakes.com/forums/showthread.php?t=26017&page=1&pp=10

Cohabitation
http://www.cornsnakes.com/forums/showthread.php?t=17308
http://www.cornsnakes.com/forums/showthread.php?t=31192

On-line frozen mice suppliers
http://www.themousefactory.com/
http://cajunmice.com/
http://www.rodentpro.com/index.asp
http://www.bigcheeserodents.com/
http://www.americanrodent.com/htm/mice.html
http://peticebox.com/
 
So I finally got my cornsnake last Friday :dancer: Had to mod the fishtank a fair bit to eliminate every last gap but it's not escaped yet................

Shall go and take some pics in a min. Rather timid ATM. The shop had fed him on Thursday so we left it in the tank and only got it out for 5 minutes on Sunday. Needs a proper ID as it was just labelled a 'Motley Striped' so perhaps you guys will be able to shed more light on it

Hope camera batteries are charged :)
 
RachelS said:
So I finally got my cornsnake last Friday :dancer: Had to mod the fishtank a fair bit to eliminate every last gap but it's not escaped yet................

Shall go and take some pics in a min. Rather timid ATM. The shop had fed him on Thursday so we left it in the tank and only got it out for 5 minutes on Sunday. Needs a proper ID as it was just labelled a 'Motley Striped' so perhaps you guys will be able to shed more light on it

Hope camera batteries are charged :)

Congrats on the corn. Can't wait for pictures.
 
Thanks :)

Well we tried to get 'him' (haven't got a clue but all my pets in tanks tend to end up being called 'him') out for a pic but he wasn't having any of it. I'm presuming this is fairly normal behaviour at first until they realise we're not predators?!

Any tips will be useful / gratefully received as will a more detailed ID. Got a half decent tank shot anyway :)

Milo.jpg
 
RachelS said:
Thanks :)

Well we tried to get 'him' (haven't got a clue but all my pets in tanks tend to end up being called 'him') out for a pic but he wasn't having any of it. I'm presuming this is fairly normal behaviour at first until they realise we're not predators?!

Any tips will be useful / gratefully received as will a more detailed ID. Got a half decent tank shot anyway :)

Milo.jpg

Nice looking corn, I will tell you that its Anerythristic Motley, and it looks like it's got a stripe going. Congrats on the pickup!
.
Ryan McCullough
MC Reptiles
 
Nice looking little snake.

It will take some time for him to calm down, but how long depends on the snake. Gentle and persistent handling is the key, but each snake has its own personality. Some are more timid than others. Most snakes will continue to run from you for a while, but they will also calm down quickly once you've picked them up.
 
Thanks for the reassurance :) When we got him out last time, he did calm down once held. When put down on the bed, he coiled and raised his head and looked as if he might strike although he didn't

He's due for feeding on Thursday. I know to leave them alone for 2 to 3 days after so we'll have another go tomorrow :)
 
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