• 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.

How many can fit???

Silt

Silt

New member
I currently own a 2 year old, 3.5 foot male corn, and he's living by himself in a humungo 55g Zillatank (a great enclosure!!!). I'm now looking for more sub-adult/adult corns. How many could fit into that viv? I'm hoping to breed during the next breeding season in 2006, and I don't really care if I don't get a whole ton of fertile eggs because I house the male & female together for the entire year. If I can fit 3 corns in there, is it OK if I house 2 females & 1 male together?
Hopefully I made sense, because I don't the majority of the time, lol. :shrugs:
Thanks a lot in advance!

Lisa
 
Well.. as many will probably post on here.. first do a search on what can happen with corns housed together.. try looking up cannibalism... thats the one that changed my mind about housing them together. ~,~
 
Thanks Gintha.
I understand that the more corns you have, the more likely for them to pass on disease, mites, etc. I also understand that it's probably not the best idea to house 2 together, but is it still okay since they would both be adults and around the same size (no more than .5-1 foot difference)? I would make sure also that I wouldn't get a shy one, just in case. [sorry if this sounds like I'm just trying to make up excuses so I can house 2+ together, but I'm not, lol]
 
There is also legitimate concern that the female be of minimum size and weight before her first mating. If male and female are housed together and the female is NOT of minimum size and weight for a healthy pairing, and the male breeds her, she can suffer from medical issues directly related to that.
 
ultimuttone said:
http://www.cornsnakes.com/forums/showthread.php?t=25435

Please read the links in this thread.
Some may have success-at least for awhile, but is it really worth saving a few bucks on a new enclosure?
Click to expand...

There's just one little problem about saving the money thing... I spent $200 on that cage, and it's GIGANTIC to house just one corn. It's about 55g long or so.

Can you only get mites from using aspen/wood shaving chips? I use organic paper towel that has no bleach in it, it's cheaper than the wood chips, and works better anyways.

coyote said:
There is also legitimate concern that the female be of minimum size and weight before her first mating. If male and female are housed together and the female is NOT of minimum size and weight for a healthy pairing, and the male breeds her, she can suffer from medical issues directly related to that.
Click to expand...

If I were to get one that IS of minimum size and weight, would it be all right? I wouldn't purchase one anyways that wasn't, I'm being very picky so nothing can go wrong, and so I won't regret anything I shouldn't have done.

Thanks for all of your help so far, even though I've done a TON of research, some sites just don't have all the answers. It's better to get multiple opinions off of here anyways... :D
 
Silt said:
Thanks for all of your help so far, even though I've done a TON of research, some sites just don't have all the answers. It's better to get multiple opinions off of here anyways... :D
Click to expand...

What's the point of getting multiple opinions if you aren't going to listen to any of them? You've been told multiple times not to house two corns together, and you still keep asking if it's ok.
 
I hate to say it but the most likely response that you will get here is not to house them together all the time. There are some people that manage it successfully - although I believe they're same sex pairings. I would not under any circumstances pair a male and female living together year-round. Even if the female is of the suggested size for breeding having eggs is hard work. My dad's female lost half her body weight when she laid her first clutch and then she double clutched two months later. If she had been left in with a male she most certainly could have had a triple clutch and it very well could have killed her. To me (and Dad in this case) it's not worth the risk of losing a snake to save some money on housing. It's possible that the male could literally harass the female to death IMO. There is also the issue of quarantining new snakes for a period of at least 3 months so the snakes should be separated then anyway (ie you'd need a second set up). Truly, I would start searching the classifieds for used aquariums or cages if you're worried about the money. That or take the money you would save on vet bills (most likely) and use it to buy a second cage for a second snake. Or make your current viv into a show piece for your one snake. I'm sorry if this is harsh sounding as I don't intend it to be that way but it seemed to me that things weren't as clear as they could be. Maybe I'm wrong and in that case feel free to disregard this post. This is just my opinion and how I feel about the issue. Ultimately you'll have to make your own decision and I hope that your snake(s) don't end up paying for it.

~Katie
 
Ok...I definately feel bad about the tone of my last post so I am apologizing for the tone. You do seem like you have done research, just maybe not enough. I also noticed that you're only 12 and have tons of time to become even more addicted like the rest of us. I do have to give you props for maintaining a big viv like that, I just think it would be in the best interest to keep your snakes separate unless you are breeding them. If you want to house them together because your parents won't let you have another tank (which I could see my parents saying) explain to them the reasons that you would like to have a second tank and the benefits of housing separately. If nothing else they should be impressed by all the research you have done. I am sorry for the tone of my last post, it was harsh when it didn't need to be. You've come to ask opinions and I've definately given mine so I'll attempt to keep my mouth shut before I stick my foot back in it.

~Katie
 
Okay, I'm going to be getting another enclosure sometime soon, so I'll be doing some looking around.

Sorry I was being so stubborn before -- bad day. Thanks for being harsh actually, it got the point across.

Also, sorry if I'm not knowledgable in many fields on cornsnakes/herps, at 12 you don't know a lot, but I'm learning. Please don't judge me just from this topic, today I've just not been myself, I don't know why. And right now, no, I'm not trying to suck up to you if that's the impression you get.

Once again I'm sorry, and thanks a lot!!
 
Is there any way you could section off the big viv into two seperate ones? Making sure there is something inbetween that the snakes can't see through, which could stress them out as well. Just a suggestion, to save on space and money.

Laura
 
Silt said:
Okay, I'm going to be getting another enclosure sometime soon, so I'll be doing some looking around.

Sorry I was being so stubborn before -- bad day. Thanks for being harsh actually, it got the point across.

Also, sorry if I'm not knowledgable in many fields on cornsnakes/herps, at 12 you don't know a lot, but I'm learning. Please don't judge me just from this topic, today I've just not been myself, I don't know why. And right now, no, I'm not trying to suck up to you if that's the impression you get.

Once again I'm sorry, and thanks a lot!!
Click to expand...
We all have bad days. I actually have to give you a lot of credit - you're going out and trying to learn before getting something new which is half the battle. My sister and I are young enough (she's 15) that I remember being 12 well enough to know that most 12 year olds wouldn't put forth the effort. Anywho, let us know when you get that second snake. And always post pics - they're fun!

~Katie
 
lol, right after I posted my post, I saw yours.

Yea, I'm really proud of getting that tank because out of the $200 that it cost I went 50/50 with my dad. When the reptile show came around I also needed approx. $20-25 more for mice, so I earn my money from hard work since I don't get an allowence. I'm happy. :) lol

LauraB, I had actually thought of that, as well -- separating it into 2 parts. If I did, it would be about 22.5g per side. That should be enough for now, right? As the bare minimum is 20g for an adult corn, so maybe that would be suffice until they get full grown. Maybe then my parents will let me get another viv. The only bad thing about getting another tank is a higher heating bill. :shrugs:

The good part about my viv also is that it opens from the front. Here's a pic when I first got it, and when it only had the basic "things" needed in it:

37668107-M.jpg
 
LauraB said:
Is there any way you could section off the big viv into two seperate ones? Making sure there is something inbetween that the snakes can't see through, which could stress them out as well. Just a suggestion, to save on space and money.

Laura
Click to expand...

That is actually a very good idea and would solve both problems. There was a thread not to long ago about that. Might want to search it out :shrugs:
 
ultimuttone said:
That is actually a very good idea and would solve both problems. There was a thread not to long ago about that. Might want to search it out :shrugs:
Click to expand...

The only problem there is the heat/light source. Check out that pic of my tank, and you can see that they're on separate sides of the viv. The heat lamp is over a mesh wire circle cut-out on the left on the outside , and the light is inside on the right side... Any ideas on how I would solve that problem???

Thanks! :wavey:
 
UTH under the middle for heat source and use the cut out for the heat lamp to install an overhead light in its place. Belly heat would be better for the snakes than a heat lamp anyway.
You asked for a suggestion;)
 
When you said you bought a tank, I had assumed you purchased an actual tank (and 55g at $200 is beyond steep). That is a very nice enclosure.

ultimuttone provided you with a superb idea on how to alter the tank to suit your needs...I would run with that idea...
 
Wow, that's a really nice viv! I'm sitting here thinking about how to split that in two. What I would probably do is just get another 10 gallon tank (not too expensive) for the 2nd snake until it's about a year old and maybe then get a 20 gallon for it? Would your parents go for that? How about a plastic container with a heating pad for belly heat? Really cheap way to go. It won't look nearly as nice, but the snake doesn't care and it won't be that expensive. Just throwing some ideas out.

Laura
 
Seems Good

LauraB said:
Wow, that's a really nice viv! I'm sitting here thinking about how to split that in two. What I would probably do is just get another 10 gallon tank (not too expensive) for the 2nd snake until it's about a year old and maybe then get a 20 gallon for it? Would your parents go for that? How about a plastic container with a heating pad for belly heat? Really cheap way to go. It won't look nearly as nice, but the snake doesn't care and it won't be that expensive. Just throwing some ideas out.

Laura
Click to expand...

I'm actually looking for a sub-adult/adult corn -- not a baby -- so I could breed the two in the 2006 breeding season, but thanks for the idea anyways. If worst comes to worst and I cannot find a sub-adult/adult at ALL before spring, then I'll most likely go with your idea, as I already have a 20g aquariam (sp?) with a reptile mesh lid that I used for "Buddy" before I moved him into the 55g.


ultimuttone said:
UTH under the middle for heat source and use the cut out for the heat lamp to install an overhead light in its place. Belly heat would be better for the snakes than a heat lamp anyway.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the idea, my dad and I were actually discussing that idea last night before I saw your post! Great idea! :cheers:

Just one more question (yes, another, and there may be more later, as well), will the 22.5g per side be enough for them [the snakes]? It should be, as the bare minimum is 20g, but for now is it okay?

Thanks a lot for all of your replies, suggestions and help! Keep it comin'!!!

Lisa :wavey:
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top