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new corn owner, settling advice

C

counterculture

New member
hey, just got my first corn today havent attempted to handle him or anything yet, best to let him settle i figured, does anyone have any tips to make the settling period as stress-free and easy as possible for both parties involved.

i have him in the small section of a plastic nursery tank for the moment cos he's just wee maybe 15cm, with a heat mat in place and water bowl.

ive been told an unwashed item of clothing in the unused area of the tank or on the lid is a good way of settling him to get him used to my scent, so ive placed a sweatband in the adjacent section beside the airholes. anyone disagree with this?

he's due a feed on monday do you think it would be best to leave him until then give him plenty time to settle in or should i handle him very small periods on sunday or so just to start the process?

he's spent alot of time chilling in the tank since we put him in, hiding under the tissue lining, apart from a brief escape into the larger section when my g/f put the lid on the wrong way, and a short look around the part he is in, is this normal?

all advice is appreciated

thanks
andy
 
First, he isnt gonna be housed with any other animals is he?

Second, make sure you can regulate his temp so he doesnt get to hot. One side of his enclosure should be between 80-85*F, the other side should be 5-10* cooler.

Third, yes putting in a piece of your clothing is a good way to get him to familiarize with your scent.

Fourth, I wouldnt handle him at all, until Sunday or Monday when you feed him. Then at least 2 days after that. And, yes. He is gonna hide A LOT.
 
he'll be on his own, he's in his "nursery" tank until big enough and we got a 4 foot viv on its way once he gets to a decent enough size for it.

the tank temp is pretty much around what you say, he's spending most of his time in the cooler end.

thanks for your advice
 
Do you have hides on the cool and warm side? Sorry still a little confused about small section of a nursery tank, how big is a small section. As pointed out the heat gradient is important, if this nursery tank is too small you may not have the gradient. I also agree it is best to leave him except for changing water until feeding day, this time. susan
 
its just a 2ftx1ft tank made of plastic that has a partition in the box for growing. its maybe 1ft by 6inches at the smallest section.

i know its not advised but i handled the corn snake, named Loki, today, it wasnt planned, i was changing his water and he made and escape attempt out the top, i put my hand into his path and he quite calmly moved across it and allowed me t handle him for a short period before i placed him back(best to little than too much at this stage i reckoned).
he's back in his tank now and hiding, but it think it went well
 
We are thinking about giving him more space since he keeps sneaking over the partition into the bigger section.

We were advised that corn hatchlings are quite agoraphobic and don't like too much space because it intimidates them when they are small. But would it be ok if we put lots of extra hides in? He really seems to want the extra space but we are concerned about overwhelming him. He is due his first feed tomorrow and obviously it's important that he is settled and happy.
 
we decided to feed Loki today for the first time,a day earlier than the shop advised mainly because we are both working tomorrow and we can monitor him better today, and also so we could open up the rest of the tank.

decided to let him climb out into my hand instead of picking him up and let him wander for a bit while my g/f got the pinky and separate box ready, wouldnt go into the feeding box at first insisted on having a good ol' sniff about first, but mustve caught the scent and fired into the box and got hold of the pinky but with about 1/3rd of his body still in my hand, he had eaten about half the pinky before he let go of my hand and continued feeding.
placed the box in his tank and left him to it.

disturbed him briefly to remove feeding box but seems ok about it all.

how long should it take for the him to digest the food enough so that the lump has gone?

a succesful first feed i think, lets hope it can continue!!
 
:cheers: Congrats on a great first feeding! I think most people wait 48 hours before handling, although some wait three days. I'd say two days would be fine, :shrugs: but its up to you really.
 
we had him since thursday so its been 72hrs and that was the first time he was properly handled.

but were just stoked that he fed right away, we'd been reading lots of posts about how people were havin trouble feeding, but we must be doing something right or maybe Loki is gonna be a porker, either way.....
 
It's such a relief when the first feed goes well huh? Congrats!

My 2 little 5 month olds did the same as yours in that they actually crawled on me. Very exciting stuff. Every animal is different. I think through careful observation we can clue in to when they are "ready" to be handled and even when they need to be put back. I don't really handle my new corns at all, just pick them up to move to the feeding tub and to move them around to another area of the tank to let them know I'm not a threat. I'll maybe try handling outside the tank for longer periods in a couple of months or something. No rush. They'll be with me for a long time : )

Someone on another forum (ball pythons) told me that crumpled newspapers tossed into the tank helps to make the snakes feel secure and settles a stressed snake down. (Like the piece of clothing idea but it's lighter and easier to replace when soiled). It doesn't sound like our guy is stressed but if you think there's still too much room in there for him, maybe the newspapers will help make him feel like there is less "room" and feel more secure. Just a thought.

Pictures!

: )
 
so far so good with Loki with feeding and digesting, handling is still in its early stages but is going as well as expected.

one thing to mention though about is that he's sleeping out in the open in his tank, is this a sign he has settled in?
 
Well it sounds to me like Loki has settled more in a week then Zeebo has in over a year. :cheers: Congrats on him feeding and not being afraid of anywhere but under the substrate.
 
Flagg said:
It could be that he doesn't like the temps inside the hides.
Click to expand...

I don't think so, he sleeps in the hides too (he's in the warm one now). I think he's just being cocky when he does that. :rolleyes:

Cara (Loki's mum)
 
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