Advice needed: Three quick housing questions...

[Tess]

Okay, so the fiance has been laughing at me because I have been obsessively conducting "experiments" over the last week that he refers to as "taking care of my pretend snake," ha!

Basically, I have the little "viv" setup for the snake I'm planning on getting this weekend (if Michelle is reading this--I can't wait! ), and I've had the UTH going and the thermometer probes getting readings 24 hours a day so I can get a baseline on temps and adjust the rheostat until I'm comfy with it before the snake arrives, etc. (Right now cool side goes between 72 and 74-75 F throughout the day/night, the warm side between 81 and 83...that's okay, right?)

The thing is, I, uh, well, I MIGHT come home with more than one snake this weekend. You all know how that goes, I'm sure! But I have three little questions, and feel a little silly asking them both! I am trying to make housing decisions so I'm prepared in the instance that I do come home with, say, three snakes.

1) Current setup is a Sterilite container of appropriate size. Man, this is an awesome idea, using these plastic tubs. Very cost effective. BUT...I spent an hour in the aisle testing the cover integrity of all of these tubs. I'm told that snakes are escape artists, but I'm told that plastic tubs are appropriate, and I'm struggling with how to reconcile these pieces of advice. How do you "secure" the lids on plastic tubs? I'm considering boring holes and using velcro "zip ties" threaded through the lip vertically for a secure fit, but...am I overthinking this?

If the cover is "reasonably" tight, am I okay? You all have me convinced that these snakes can exert 90 cubic tons of pressure per square inch with their snouts and can wriggle out of holes the size of a pinhead, lol! Is there some magical way to modify the lids that I just haven't stumbled on yet? Help!

2) Ventilation...the plan is to drill two offset rows of soldering-iron-tip sized holes along the top "body" of the plastic tubs. Is that sufficient? What is a rough idea of how many/what sized ventilation holes I need so that the snakes have sufficient airflow? I wish I knew a reasonable way to measure this, but, as-is, I'm just fretting about it instead.

3) I am so stressed about that "lid" and "ventilation" thing that I'm looking at alternatives, and I found these neat "critter keeper" jobbies that would work for young snakes, that are like Sterilites but with a super-tight lid and ventilation built in. You know the kind, I'm sure. One that I am looking at uses a clear divider panel (very secure, that's not my worry) down the middle to make two "enclosures" you can use one small UTH with. You get the picture...but my question is, I don't want to stress the snakes, so is a clear divider okay? Or does it need to be opaque so they can't see one another? Will seeing another snake close-by stress them? What about smelling another snake? Advice on that, please...! I'm such a worrywart.

Thanks, all.

 

[LBoz]

I use glass vivs, so I can't discuss plastic tubs with any knowledge, but I just wanted to send you major KUDOS for being so prepared! :cheers:

One thing about the heat...you might try to bump it up a touch warmer to around 85F, but again, I don't know if this will effect the integrity of the plastic. I'm sure the pros will be along any minute to answer your questions.

Best of luck. Can't wait to see your new snake(s)!

 

[TripleMoonsExotic]

Current setup is a Sterilite container of appropriate size. Man, this is an awesome idea, using these plastic tubs. Very cost effective. BUT...I spent an hour in the aisle testing the cover integrity of all of these tubs. I'm told that snakes are escape artists, but I'm told that plastic tubs are appropriate, and I'm struggling with how to reconcile these pieces of advice. How do you "secure" the lids on plastic tubs? I'm considering boring holes and using velcro "zip ties" threaded through the lip vertically for a secure fit, but...am I overthinking this? If the cover is "reasonably" tight, am I okay? You all have me convinced that these snakes can exert 90 cubic tons of pressure per square inch with their snouts and can wriggle out of holes the size of a pinhead, lol! Is there some magical way to modify the lids that I just haven't stumbled on yet? Help!

Define "appropriate size." That would help answer your question on whether you can use a divider in the tub to house two snakes. I no longer use plain tubs, mine are all in secure racks, but I know some have used binder clips for additional security. It also would depend on the lid, because the ones that have clasped lids you really shouldn't need additional security (though it won't hurt).

Ventilation...the plan is to drill two offset rows of soldering-iron-tip sized holes along the top "body" of the plastic tubs. Is that sufficient? What is a rough idea of how many/what sized ventilation holes I need so that the snakes have sufficient airflow? I wish I knew a reasonable way to measure this, but, as-is, I'm just fretting about it instead.

I use 1/8" (I think - hubby took them away from me last week) drill bits for ventilation holes. I actually only put four holes in the front of the bin where the water bowl is. These tubs are not air tight, so putting a ton of holes in them is unnecessary. What you would want to do though is monitor the humidity and if it is too high, add holes. It's easier to add holes because of too much humidity then remove holes because of too low humidity.

I am so stressed about that "lid" and "ventilation" thing that I'm looking at alternatives, and I found these neat "critter keeper" jobbies that would work for young snakes, that are like Sterilites but with a super-tight lid and ventilation built in. You know the kind, I'm sure. One that I am looking at uses a clear divider panel (very secure, that's not my worry) down the middle to make two "enclosures" you can use one small UTH with. You get the picture...but my question is, I don't want to stress the snakes, so is a clear divider okay? Or does it need to be opaque so they can't see one another? Will seeing another snake close-by stress them? What about smelling another snake?

The larger "critter keepers" would be a sufficient solution if that's why you would like to use. A clear divider is perfectly alright and that is often how keepers divide a large tank (a 55g for example) to house more then one snake. The only thing you would not want to do is add a new snake next to an established snake because you would want the new snake to be in quarantine in a completely different room.

 

[jenneses]

I'm a newbie myself but after reading a LOT of posts in the husbandry section I used binder clips to secure the lids of the tubs, and put two rows of holes in the tubs all the way around. I stuck the heating pad to heat-resistant plexi-glass and set the the plexi-glass up underneath the tubs on wire racks so there was adequate air flow for the pad. You can see my temp set up in my post: http://www.cornsnakes.com/forums/showthread.php?t=72144 just make sure you're signed in. But the experts can give you better information.

 

[Tess]

I'm sorry, I wasn't clear! By "appropriate size," I meant that the container I currently have is of the shoebox sized variety, and I am getting hatchlings. I didn't mean to imply that I would be dividing the shoebox-sized tubs to house the hatchlings. What I meant was that either 1) I will pick up two ADDITIONAL shoebox containers, one for each hatchling, OR 2) If I am not comfortable with the security/ventilation options of the Sterilites, I am considering picking up two considerably larger (another 2/3rds as large as a single shoebox) dedicated "critter keeper" that could be divided into two sections for two female hatchlings, and the little boy could have his own, I guess, just to be safe. Is that more clear? I'm sorry if I am struggling with the terminology.

Thanks for the advice on the airholes; that was my suspicion, as you are correct, they are certainly not airtight. I'll go with less rather than more for now, and 1/8 of an inch sounds about like the drill bit size my fiance showed me as well.

And thank you for the clarification on the clear divider. That is good to know.

Re: quarantine: I am assuming that if I am buying several hatchlings from one or two clutches from a reputable breeder, which have been kept in close "rack" or similar distance to one another from birth, that I am okay in keeping them close together (and NOT quarantining them) when I get them?

And thank you, LBoz! I am already such a strict and obsessive "ferret-mommy" that it was easy to apply the same mentality to these cute little corn snakes.

 

[TripleMoonsExotic]

quarantine: I am assuming that if I am buying several hatchlings from one or two clutches from a reputable breeder, which have been kept in close "rack" or similar distance to one another from birth, that I am okay in keeping them close together (and NOT quarantining them) when I get them?

If they are purchased at the same time, yes, they would be in "quarantine" together in the same area and there is no need to put them in separate rooms. I'm talking about bringing new animals around established animals. Sadly, purchasing from a reputable breeder does not negate the need for proper quarantine. All new reptiles should be in a minimum of a 90 day quarantine no matter who you get them from.

QUARANTINE PROCEDURES:

1. While two completely separate facilities are best most do not have that luxury. So at the very least you need two separate rooms. One for established reptiles and one for new reptiles. New reptiles should never be in contact with established reptiles.​

2. 90 days quarantine minimum. If a reptile is in the quarantine room for 30 days and then you bring a new reptile into the room, every animal should start over on day one of quarantine. This is done because their would be no way to identify which animal had a disease/infection if one were to come up.​

3. Take care of your established animals first; water changes, feedings, cleaning, etc. Do not take care of quarantine animals and then established animals.​

4. Always wash your hands thoroughly (20 seconds of scrubbing with an anti-bacterial soap) before and after handling any of your animals or doing any type of upkeep with them, particularly after working with quarantine. If your hands are not specifically dirty, an alcohol based hand sanitizer can be used between animals.​

5. Do not offer uneaten food between animals. If you feed live never return uneaten feeders back into your rodent colony.​

6. Two of everything! Separate paper towels, tongs, thermometers, scales, water dishes, hides, etc, for each room.​

 

[Ceridwen]

At Home Depot they sell little clamps with rubber tips near the big clamps intended for holding wood together while glueing and such. They are about 25 cents each and are a lot easier to get on and off of the Sterilite lids than binder clips are.

Sorry I don't have any pics but the ones I got are covered in bright green rubber. Different sizes were different colors.

 

[Tess]

At Home Depot they sell little clamps with rubber tips near the big clamps intended for holding wood together while glueing and such. They are about 25 cents each and are a lot easier to get on and off of the Sterilite lids than binder clips are.

Oh, brilliant! I use those to secure the ferret's litterboxes to the bars of their cage, I know exactly what you're talking about. Ha, I just overthink things.

And jenneses, I really like your setup. It looks like a very clear-cut, manageable setup for a first timer with a small number of snakes. I can handle that.

TripleMoons, thanks for the quarantine clarification. If (when?) I pick up other snakes at a different time (rather than all at once from one group like these would be), I will be certain to follow those procedures, no matter WHERE I get them from.

Thank you all!