• 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.

Is this okay? Need some advice

EmJagsz

EmJagsz

cornscornscorns
2 years ago my house caught fire so I was forced to live in a rental home while my house was being rebuilt. Being on such a tight budget, I wasn't able to provide a heat mat for each snake so instead I bought a room heater and have been using that. The rental house that I am currently in is pretty small, so I had to place some vivs on the floor of the room (which is also small). Everything seemed fine until now. I have heard one of my snakes sneezing, so I checked his temps and they were in the low 70s.... I'm not quite sure how long they have been like that but I constantly keep the heater on during the day and off during the night. The other vivs get to temps around the high 70s. I know this is NOT ideal temps for corns, but it is the best I can do until I am able to move back home and provide proper heating for them (I should be back home within a few months). They have all been eating, shedding, pooping and acting fine.

So with the snake that I witnessed sneezing, I transferred him to a 25qt tub (he is 280g) on a higher level to keep him warm. I made sure to bleach and wash everything again before I placed them into the tub with him (excluding his paper towel tube, which he loves..) Is this okay?? Will he be okay? Since I am on such a tight budget I won't be able to take him to a vet or anything like that. I am still able to feed them regularly and I love all my snakes so much that selling them isn't even an option (especially since I'll be moving back home soon and I'll be able to heat them properly again)

Any advice is welcome... Thanks
 
Are you able to get a heat mat or even a heat light just for this guy? You don't need any special bulb, just your regular run of the mill bulbs for household use will work. Heck, even a desk lamp might do the trick. Raising the temps to a little more than the usual 85 degrees is one of the home remedies when you see signs of a respiratory infection. Make sure the humidity is not too high (such as some spilled water in the viv), as that can also contribute to respiratory problems. Good luck!
 
The one with the sniffles is definitely a problem, but what you're seeing is probably a result of the overall room conditions. I'd be worried about other snakes getting sick too. Anything you can do to get it around 80+ ? How low does it get at night?
 
I have been keeping the heater on high since I noticed the sneezing and after I moved him to a tub. The temps in his tub atm are JUST under 90F (89.6F). I have turned the heater down a bit for now until the temps reach about 85 and then I plan to turn it back up again to keep it constantly around the high 80s. I feel like such a bad mommy to have let this happen :( but I am trying my best I can do in these circumstances..
 
One thing to help you actually feel better about this is that corn snakes are native to the south-eastern United States...not the tropics. Ideal temperatures for them are obviously in the 80s, but it going down to 70s isn't going to cause a huge problem. Though it is good to at least bring up the temp for the one having problems.

Now I don't want this to come out wrong, but many pet owners of more exotic species get a set in stone list of rules on how to care for (In this case, a corn snake) their animals. They seem to forget that in the wild they would encounter a greater flux in temperatures, for example. Generally they can handle a bit more than people think. This is how you have down right bad pet owners doing just fine with some species of snakes. Now that's not to say you shouldn't do your best to keep them in an ideal situation...but people also shouldn't go batty if something is slightly off.
 
I understand and agree where you are coming from. Usually that's how I look at it, but I remember reading prolonged exposure to such low temps could cause problems, so I want to steer clear of anything that could go wrong. No one wants to deal with a sick snakey! :) But thank you for reminding me, I forgot about that while worrying so much about my poor corn haha His viv had always been the farthest from the room heater, and I'd been planning to switch him to a plastic tub anyway. The temps stay MUCH warmer in his tub. It's about 85.3F in there right now, and it'll get up to about 88F before I turn the heater down again... It is a labour of love.

Thank you all for your kind advice :)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top