Advice, tips, secrets

[molkister]

I'm new to snakes and I'm set on getting a cornsnake. I have a terranium pick out is that a good starter pic? It's a 12x12x12 and I am buying the proper accessories for it. Question: how do I control the humidity? ...heat rock or heat pads/strips ?...I have so many questions I have cuz I wanna make sure my snake will be happy healthy and properly taken care of and I wanna provide the most realistic habit I can..i wanna set my habit up with half a heated area and half a cool area with the cool area having a water fall to a pond and greenery with a log across both sides an in my hot area a rock..both areas will have a hideout.. Am I on the right track?...I am very through when it comes to mostly everything and especially pets... Any advice will help..

 

[Susan]

First, I'm very glad to hear that you are getting the viv set up properly before you bring your new snake home! However, it sounds as if you might be planning on a habitat that will cause you more grief than enjoyment for both you and your snake. The size viv you have will be great for the first year into your snake's second year, but he/she will definitely outgrow it. The whole waterfall/pond idea sounds like a disaster to clean as your snake will probably poop in it on a regular basis. A plain bowl for water is all that is necessary for a corn snake and is much easier to keep clean. The main substrate in your viv should be aspen shaving (there are a few other substrates okay for use in a corn snake viv, but most people prefer aspen shavings). You can put a live potted plant in the viv, but most people use artificial as it looks good forever, is easy to clean and doesn't have the soil that can harbor disease. And forget about a heat rock (I personally think those things should be outlawed) and use either a heat pad or heat strip on the warn side of the viv. You can use your imagination to decorate your viv, the log and 2 hides is a great idea, just make sure the log is either artificial or has been sterilized and again, can easily be cleaned. To answer your initial question, to raise the humidity, you can move the water dish closer to the warm side, or make another hide on the warm side a "moist" hide, by placing damp sphagnum moss in it. Others may have additional ideas as being here in Florida, my main problem is too much humidity in the vivs.

 

[bitsy]

I have a terranium pick out is that a good starter pic? It's a 12x12x12

Agree with Susan on the size. It's an expensive buy for something with a limited useful life. You're probably better off getting something basic for the Corn's first 18 months, then promoting him/her into a fancier adult-sized tank or vivarium/terrarium, which would be bigger than the one you have planned. The guideline is that the Corn should be able to stretch out along the length and width. As most Corns reach about 4-5 feet, that gives you a tank 3 feet long and about 18 inches deep as a minimum.

Question: how do I control the humidity? ...heat rock or heat pads/strips ?

Humidity and heating are two different issues really. I wouldn't worry about humidity. All of my Corns seem to shed perfectly in a normal domestic humidity level (not high here in the UK). If you get a bad shed, you can offer a humid hide so that the snake has a higher humidity environment to use if it chooses.

Heating is best done with an undertank heat mat (UTH), which should cover one-third of the floor area of the tank. The idea is that it heats the floor surface where the snake is and not the air above the floor (where the snake isn't). Ideally, a Corn needs belly heat to digest, rather than an overhead heat source. In addition, Corns aren't a basking species so overhead sources can make them more inclined to hide away if they're light-based.

You will need to use a thermostat with a UTH as they're designed for use with a range of reptiles, some of which need temps that would be dangerous for a Corn. The thermostat probe should be set on the floor of the tank, immediately above the UTH.

i wanna set my habit up with half a heated area and half a cool area

That needs to be one-third heated, two-thirds cool. If your Corn is anything like mine, they'll spend most of their time at the cool end and only venture over to the warm area when digesting.

with the cool area having a water fall to a pond

Good call to have the water in the cool area, but I agree with Susan that a waterfall and pond might be making a rod for your own back. One good Corn poop in that setup and the water pump will clog badly!

Also it might make the humidity too high even at the cool end, which gives a risk of mould or scale rot. You'd need to be very careful to ensure proper ventilation.

and greenery with a log across both sides an in my hot area a rock..both areas will have a hideout..

My top tip would be to get as many hides and as much ground cover in your tank as you can fit in there. Corns are naturally secretive and seem to move around more if they can get around without venturing out into the open. I use sections of cork bark as naturalistic looking hides. They can be a bit of a beggar to clean but they last for years and look great. The same could be said of plastic foliage.

A rock is fine and would give them something to shed against, but you need to make sure that it's properly clean and having been outside, not carrying traces of pesticide, weedkiller, fertiliser etc.

I wouldn't bother with live plants unless you're planning to go all-out for a bio-active environment which an take quite a lot of setting up (see "The Art of Keeping Snakes" by Phillippe de Vosjoli). Corns will squash them, climb on them, tip them over and get compost everywhere. Also plants need UV light and Corns don't, meaning that you'd have to keep swapping plants out to a better environment in order to keep them alive.

We're always keen to recommend two books that will tell you pretty much everything you'll ever want to know - and which are just a joy to read! "Corns Snakes: The Comprehensive Owner's Guide" by Kathy and Bill Love, and "Corn Snakes in Captivity" by Don Soderberg.