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First time viv set up - help!

H

her0n

New member
Hi all, firstly I'm new here so... hi :D

Ok so I have been reading these forums and researching for a while now and have decided that I would like a corn snake. I used to keep Giant African Land Snails a few years ago and have always wanted a snake (just I wasn't allowed when i was at school) :mad: I've been reading various caresheets on vivarium set up and have a couple of books but just want to clarify with you lovely experts here :D
I'm looking at a 3ftx1.5ftx1.5ft tank which I understand should see a yearling or so through to adulthood.. thing is though I want to make sure I don't forget anything when I go out to buy all the stuff to go in the viv.
So far my list consists of:

Substrate (newspaper, astro, aspen, other suggestions?)
Water Dish
Hide(s)
Feeding container (tupperware is ok?)
Heat mat
Thermometer (hot end of viv?)
Lighting (Not a heat lamp but what kind do you suggest?)
Frozen mice(!) \o/
Reptile disinfectants (brand names?)

Also fake plants and stuff but they aren't really essentials.

Anyone have any other suggestions to what I have listed above? I'm from the UK so any links of online shops or even reptile shops (Hampshire and the South thx) would be great!

her0n
 
Tupperware will be ok as a feeding container. The Thermometer you may want to have 2, one on hot end and one on cool end, just so that you know the temps of both. As for lighting, you may want to have a lamp to give off heat. The heat mat will heat up the substrate right above it, while the lamp will heat up the ambient air, and help get temps more stable. Also, Corn Snakes don't need to have UV lighting like some of the other reptiles do, although you can supply it to make your viv look a little better...I do. You might also look into a small humidity gage. Reptile disinfectants...I guess this is for cleaning the cage? If so, warm water and antibacterial soap will work just as well and not cost as much. You have pretty much covered the substrate ideas. But if you do a search on them, I know that you will come up with a lot of threads that talk about the pros and cons of what you have listed above and some other.

Hope all this helps out.
 
also something to consider is whether or not you want to put something in there for your snake to climb. They are a climbing snake but don't necessarily need it. Mine find a way to climb up the cage walls but I don't have a glass tank either. If you're on a tight budget, you can also consider getting a tupperwear container, a big one, and setting it up. I have a huge container for one of my guys and its better than a tank cause I have set more ventilation in it that would otherwise be possible. Its easier to make holes to thread cords through too if you end up putting something like a heating rock in the cage. Have fun with your new addition!
 
Don't use a heating rock! Snakes often get severly burned by heating rocks! Use a heatmat that you place *under* the viv. And make sure it doesn't get to hot either if the snakes lies directly on it. I taped a paper towel on the bottom just to make sure nothing can happen.
 
I think it depends on the snake a little bit too. I ended up having to put in a heat rock because I was away when my heat pad broke and my parents bought the heat rock. I am not particularily fond of them because of, yes burn problems but also electric shock. However, I have not had any problems with my heat rock or snake so I guess my lucks held out so far. there may be other reasons you want to put holes in your tank though, the heating rock was just an example :)
 
Cheers guys that's brilliant help.
Money isn't too much of an issue because i've just got a full time job to fill my time (doing a gap year before I go to Uni next september) so this snake isn't going to miss out on anything. Might see if they have fake branches or something similar around.. not going to go with real because I can't be bothered with all the disinfecting etc when the snake really cant tell the difference :p
Am tempted to go with astro turf.. what do people think? Can you just get it from your standard garden centre/DIY shop? Also how easy is it to clean? I'm just thinking I don't really want bits of snake poo etc getting stuck in the bristles and going all gross :)
As for the snake itself, is this still an OK time to buy? I like the look of Okeetee's but obviously character comes first over colouring. Would you recommend a first time snake owner start with a hatchling or maybe a yearling or so?

Sooo many questions I do apologise! However I do think it's better to ask these things now and get advice before jumping straight into the deep end and finding myself in a world of trouble :)

her0n
 
What you start out with is up to you. Hatchlings are fun and you get to watch them grow from really small to Adult. However, they can be picky sometimes. What I mean by this is that some hatchlings can be problem feeders. A yearling is usually 100% eating. They should be on Fuzzies if not hoppers by this time. The problem with getting yearlings, and you may not think this is bad, is that you have missed out on a full year of the snakes life. So, the age of the snake that you go with is totally up to you. I know that everyone has their own opinions and ideas. my first 2 snakes were hatchlings, and the most recent one, the ghost, that I got is a yearling.
 
Hi there. Couple of good shops in your area:

* South Coast Exotics in Portsmouth
http://www.southcoastexotics.com/index.htm
Just bought a smashing pair of Butter Motleys from them - excellent service.

* Reptiles Plus in Bournemouth
No web site, but they're my local shop where I buy all my food and kit. They've also supplied most of my Corns and I sell them my Corn hatchlings (hint hint!). Very knowledgable staff who can talk you through all you need to know (and who are happy to keep a shop-ful of customers waiting while they do it).

I'm a member of the Corn Snake Fan Club. Great people and run by a real enthusiast (hi Tanya!) - see sickboy's link above.

Plus there's the Portsmouth Reptile & Amphibian Society, which might be worth joining if you're local to them:
http://www.pras-uk.co.uk/
 
Rar great stuff! All those places are fairy equal distance to me as I live right near Southampton.

You got the address of that Bournemouth Place? A guy I know from school (ohh happy days) who keeps loads of reptiles and spiders, snails etc said there was a good shop in Emsworth, Portsmouth. Emsworth reptile and aqari.. ohh I dunno, it was something like that..

her0n
 
I used astro-turf for a while but as it is not absorbent water was sitting in the bottom of the tank when my pal decided to go for a pre shed soak in her dish and it overflowed. I had to strip the tank completely to get it dry or get any poop up, as, like you said, it does get trapped in the bristles. With wood chipping you can spot clean. Just don't feed on the wood chip. So my opinion Astro-turf looks good but not as good as wood chips.
 
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