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New Owner; Viv set up right?

Gemini8910

Gemini8910

New member
Hi! I just got my first snake! :D I finished setting up the viv and now I'm leaving him alone to rest. :) But I just want to make sure my viv is set up properly. I disagreed on some things the guy said but my mom was listening to the "professional" instead of me, whose information I got straight from people here. >_> So here's pics of my snake and viv, and I'll describe what I have. First, my new baby Lorenzo! He's a Miami Phase hatchling. :D
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Then two pics of my viv. :) I feel bad; I accidentally used flash, hopefully I didn't scare him. :(

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So, I got a water dish on the side farthest from the UTH, that little climb log, and that big hide in the middle. The guy gave my the thermometer on the side , but I think I need a different one to measure under the substrate, and another for the cool side. He also said the UTH controlled itself and I didn't need a thermostat. >_> So I need more thermometers and a thermostat, right? Anything else? :eatpointe I'm trying to be extra careful with him since I'm new to this. :p
 
I'd definitely get the thermometers and thermostat ASAP, if you wait too long you may end up with a cooked snake... Or a very angry overheated snake.

Even 'regulated' UTH's often malfunction from what I've heard, and they still get too hot.

I'd also look into ground cover, not sure how big your viv is, but I'm sure the baby would appreciate some fake vines, or even cut up old clothing (I use a cut up old t shirt in my boys cage, he loves it!)

I hear you on the mom thing though, my mom didn't want to trust the people online 'that could be feeding you false information', etc. something that might help convince her, though, is if on your next trip to the pet store, you can find "Corn Snakes The Comprehensive Owner's Guide" By Kathy and Bill Love (The book is great, I own it and recommend it for buying as well) and go to page 7 (pages 6 and 7 should be Acknowledgements) and there it mentions Kingsnakes.com as well as cornsnakes.com. The owner of this site, Rich Zuchowski, is mentioned a couple of times on that page, and the author, Kathy Love, is also a member of the site here. There are also a few other big people in the cornsnake world that are members here.

Perhaps if you can show your mom that the site is a very reliable one, referenced in one of the most popular cornsnake care guides available, she'll be more willing to listen to the information you received off the site. It helped convince my mom.

Good luck, and adorable snake! Miami's are so pretty. :3
 
Yeah I'll see if I can go today and get one. Where can I get a thermostat? I know I can get them online but I don't want to wait for shipping.

It's pretty small. But maybe I'll get some little fake plants from he 99c store or something.

I plan on buying Kathy's book too. :)
 
Oh something else I forgot to mention, you might want more than one hide, and possible smaller ones (you want a hide that the snake can just fit into on both the warm and cool side) you can use like cream cheese containers with a hole cut out of them, or even just a paper towel tube cut in half (I use both, personally) instead of spending more money on hides. They love them and they're great for temp. hides until they grow up.

Not sure where you'd get one in the US... I had to order one online, but it came in about 5 days, so it was here before feeding day for me. I got mine here (<- link).

They love ground cover regardless, I think. Keo's cage is almost completely covered, the only open area is right around the water dish, and he's very comfortable in it. Keo's cage is only a 10g at the moment.

Not sure about your last question there, what is it? Some kind of cleaner?

Good luck at the store!
 
Ok I'll add some little paper towel tube hides, right now he's hiding under the substrate in the corner. :p I got some fake plants that I'll add in too. :)

Yeah, I'm gonna order one online, Petsmart didn't have one. I got two probe thermometers though. The one under the substrate on top of the UTH is reading around 93-95 degrees Farenhight! On top of the substrate it's around 80-82. Should I unplug the UTH or what? I can't get a thermostat until one ships if I order one. D:

Yeah it's a cleaner. One is for the tank and one is for the decorations and furniture. There was one for hands too but I don't think I really need that. Soap works just fine for my hands. :p
 
What's your room temp? If it's in the mid-high 70's you can probably unplug the thermostat for now, but I wouldn't feed him until you have the UTH hooked up to the thermostat, since he can't regulate his temps for digestion and it risks a regurge. I also wouldn't handle him until you have his heating set up right.

Personally for cleaning I just use a spray bottle with water and a bit of bleach in it (not much, though, I've seen people say 1 part bleach to 10 parts water) and I spray the tank with that and let it sit for a few hours after wiping it down, the decorations I just soak in really hot water (like I can't touch it hot) for about 10 minutes. Only because it said directly on the items not to use bleach.
 
Congrats! Sure is a nice looking Miami. Yeah, some vines for hides, toilet paper roll tubes work as hides for the small ones just fine. And if they get dirty, you just throw them out and put another in.

I'd leave the UTH unplugged for now, your room sounds warm enough for till you get the thermostat. Don't worry about the borrowing in the substrate. Many of mine prefer that to the hides. It is a pain at feed time cause I've got to sift through it to find them. Some snakes love to make tunnels through the stuff.

One small request, please? When you post pics, would you scale them down? I hate having to scroll from side to side to read the text. It is a pain!

Anyway, I'm really happy for you now. I was sure you would get one before you went off to college. Congrats again.
 
Congrats, he's gorgeous! My corns LOVE their paper towel tubes. The dollar stores have great stuff you can use for corns, I've gotten lots of things from there. I don't know if you have them but I don't see any in your pics, but you might want to pick up some screen cover locks as added security against escapes. My younger corns all have a favorite past time and that is to wedge themselves in the tiny lip of the viv and the screen.
 
Thanks! :) I have some plastic vines drying after rinsing them under really hot water, and added two quarters of a paper towel roll in there. :p I'm gonna try to stop checking in on him now. XD

Oh sorry about that! It looked fine on my computer, I forgot smaller screens would have to scroll. :/ I'll scale them down next time. :)
 
It has a little pin that stops it from openning. :) Simple, but it seems pretty effective, I can't even open it when it's in. :p
 
Good luck with not checking in! I know it is difficult, but you need to kinda ignore him for a few days. Not an easy thing to do.
 
Ok! :) I finally got a thermostat, way more expensive than I would have liked but I didn't want to go overnight without one. :/

One question about the thermostats and thermometers. How do I get the probe inside but the reader/control on the outside like the directions say? I can't get the lid closed all the way and I'm afraid he'll get out through the tiny space. :(
 
Yay they let you get a snake! He's very pretty. His name fits him. :)

The link that Irefe posted is a good thermostat, and many people here use it. If you plan on getting another snake in the future, you could always build a dimmer switch for less then $7. Here's a link http://www.cornsnakes.com/forums/showthread.php?t=19168&highlight=make+rheostat I've made 5 of them, and they all work great. The only thing is you have to check it and adjust it a couple of times a day, but if you are around a lot it won't be a problem. And it saves you a lot of money.

Add a little more ground cover and it looks good!
 
Thanks! :) My brother found it on a list of pet names under "Male Snakes" lol. XD I'm not sure whether or not it's a guy, but I'm hoping it's a guy. :p

I wanted that one, but even with fastest shipping it still wouldn't get here til monday. :/ Sadly once summer's over I won't have all day to adjust those. :p I have to go to school. :(
 
Looks great. I also go to school all day, but checking it in the morning and at 3 when I get home seems to be fine. As long as there are no major temp flucuations in your room during the day it works great.
 
Well, I don't think I can return this one. :p Besides, I don't thonk my mom would go for me taking care of him using a "home made" electronic device. XD
 
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