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Home alone

MakersMarked

MakersMarked

On the outside looking in
What's the longest you've ever left your snake home alone without anyone to check on it?

I don't have any concrete plans to leave town just yet, but it just occurred to me that when I do go on vacation, I don't have anyone to come and change the water bowl, much less feed a snake. I'm pretty sure I only have one friend who would be willing to stick his hand in a snake cage, and I'm also pretty sure that friend would think it *really funny* if he, say, hid my snake in my refrigerator or my medicine cabinet. Or filled the viv with corn. "Cuz it's a corn snake, dude."

Even with two extra large water bowls, would 7-10 days be too long to be away? (I have no air conditioner or heater, but I live in LA, so it's never gonna be too cold in my apartment, and I wouldn't leave the snake alone during a really bad heat wave.)
 
I left my snake for 2 weeks without a problem. He's a baby corn but he drinks a lot and he's such a hearty eater so I was worried myself.

My little one is still on Pinkies but I chopped up a f/t Hopper and gave it to him in pieces right before I left, then I took one of those water bowls that refill themselves.

The water bowl is like for dogs, it has an upside down bottle containing water and a bowl. I just cleared some space in my tank and it fit just fine.
 
I've left mine for 9 days. The corn wasn't an issue! The ball python was out of water when I returned... I felt like a first class jack ass. But he was fine (it evaporated because of the higher humidity). Both were left with 2 water bowls. I fed them a few days before leaving to ensure no regurges (not that I've ever had one anyways, but that sounds like something that would happen right before a trip!). I will leave them be again this summer, and this year's Xmas as well when I visit my parents. Shant be an issue.
 
Thanks for the replies.

I like the water bottle idea. I'd never have thought of that. But how sturdy are they? If the snake knocks it over, I'm assuming the water would flood the viv, and possibly cause havoc with the UTH.
 
You would definitely need to be sure there is an adequate supply of water, and that the temp will be reasonable. Going without food for that long is no problem at all.

Those water bottles are intended to be used by dogs & cats mostly, and they are just as likely to knock it over as a snake is, I'd guess, so I'd hope they are built to be pretty safe against being tipped over. You would definitely want to double check that on the particular one you get, though.

When I leave home for more than 24 hours, my concern is more with my rodent colony than my snakes, cuz rodents are much more in need of daily food & water than snakes are. What I do to be sure they'll be ok is a sort of trail run, where I put in extra food & water, and see how long it lasts, and adjust accordingly. For the snake, you only need to check how long the water lasts, but be sure to do this plenty in advance of your planned trip so that if you don't get it right the first time, you have time to try again until you get it right.
 
I would suggest more than one water bowl... Sure as shoot'n, the bugger will poop in one the second you close the door behind you. (grin) You might consider one that's too small for him to try to soak in, to minimize the chances of poop..

Right now, the 'drinking' water in two of my cages are a coffee cup and a heavy glass beer mug.. big enough to get into to drink, but not so easy to poop in.

It sounds like you have a problem similar to the college student: http://www.thamnophis.com/forum/husbandry/13361-college-student-looking-get-garter-need-advice.html

You might try some of the suggestions there.. Finding a local fellow herp person who can 'snake sit' seems to be the best solution... I've housed mine with a couple of different people when I went on vacation.
 
My rodent colony will be fine while I'm away, I'm sure. Their bag stays at or near 0 degrees at all times. :p

I think I may take a short trip and test out the double water bowl thing. If it fails, or if the water bottle thing tips over, I may have to try boarding. I love my friends, but I kinda don't want them to have keys to my apartment for two weeks while I'm gone.

Thanks for the advice, y'all. Much appreciated.
 
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