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New to snakes

K

king_kaa

New member
So i got my first snake. I want to make sure I am learning.
I just have a few questions.
1. So when i first got him he was active moving lots. Then he hid for two days he was in the bottom of the cage. Now he sits at the top of his cage all coiled up. Is it normal for him not to hide he is about 15 or 16 inches long so young still he should hide right. And it's at the top of the cage. I was thinking temp was not right but it is about 29 degrees interest on hot side.
2. I have had him one week. He was fed the day before I got him so I waited 5 days tried a pinky he ended up eating two. I was going to use a sperate cage for feeding but he just got in his new home I didn't want to stress him out. I just left the mouse inside the cage and checked every hour once it was gone I put another. Will it always be that easy to feed him or will he have to be inticed as he grows.
3.how will I know what I am looking for when he goes to the bathroom.
 
1. Snakes move around. He will go where he feels most comfortable. Most snakes like to Hide, so you should have a Hiding spot directly over his heat pad, and a 2nd hiding spot somewhere on the cooler side of the tank. He should normally go to the warm side when digesting a meal. He may choose the cooler side when he's not digesting.

If a snake stays in the cooler side all the time, it could be an indication that the hot side is too hot. Make sure you check with a thermostat the temperature of the actual glass bottom inside the hide over the heat pad. Adjust your temp from there. The temp on the warm side should be 28 to 31 (about 30 would be nice) and on the cool side 22 to 25.

2. you said the snake was about 15 or 16 inches long. How much does he weigh? If you don't know, get a scale and weigh him. You said he ate 2 pinkies. Are you positive you should be feeding him 2? A corn snake will over eat if you let them. You should base your feedings on the weight of the snake. A snake that weighs between 17 - 24 grams can eat 2 pinkies. If he weighs more than 24 grams you could actually feed 1 fuzzy and if he's less than 17 grams you should only feed 1 pinky.

3. if you are using newspaper or paper towels for substrate you will see the poop. If you are using Aspen, you're going to have to look for it. A baby snake will usually poop about 2 days after eating, depending if the snake is healthy and the living conditions are optimal.
 
Good advice from Karl_Mcknight, just thought I'd add some opinions of my own.

1. He was probably exploring. I move things around my viv every couple of months to keep interest levels up and for the first couple days, my snake will explore. So it may be that.

2. If you are using a substrate they can burrow in (ie. aspen) make sure you are checking temps at the bottom of the viv since your snake can burrow down there. If you are sure temps are right and behavior seems normal, I wouldn't worry, sometimes on really cold days my snake (Jag) likes to press against the glass on the cool side even when I am sure her temperature gradient is correct. Corn snakes are pretty good at moving across the gradient to regulate their own temperature.

3. As your corn snake gets older and if you feed regularly, he will start to develop a "schedule." For example, I know that my snake poops about 2 days after eating and then again 2 days later. Also, I use papertowel so it is very easy for me to see where the poop is.

Congrats on becoming a guardian for a CS! They are amazing creatures. And welcome to the forums!
 
1. The first couple of days were probably so active because it was a new environment and he was checking it all out. After that, he probably accepted it and just sits where he pleases. I would definitely keep an eye on temps. They will seek out cooler spots when they're hot.
2. If he ate that willingly, chances are you won't have any issues with him eating. That being said, they can and do randomly go off feed, especially as adults during breeding season or sometimes during shed cycles. You mentioned feeding in the enclosure...be careful to not allow him to ingest substrate if you're keeping him on something other than paper towels, carpet, etc.
3. You'll know it when you see it. :) It should be a runny looking pile of brownish poo with some white bits mixed in (they're urates). The smaller the snake, the smaller the poo. I use papertowels as well, so I can't really miss a poo. If you're using a substrate, you may not see it at first. Once dry, it'll look like a stringy piece of dried up poo lol.
 
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