New Corn - RE-ASSURANCE NEEDED

[EeZee]

Hi there, i've picked up a 3 year old corn female yesterday. She was being rehomed so i also purchased the same vivarium she used with the previous owners (a 36inchx18). The snake hasn't moved out of her hide apart from for an hour or two lastnight. They said she was due a feed and to try her when i got home so i give her the night to rest and fed her this morning. She was in her hide so i pushed the mouse with the tongs near the entrance and she struck it and took it from me. I am however not sure whether shes actually eaten it or not, would it be wise to check at some point tonight just by lifting the lid on the hide or will this stress her too much?

I just want to make sure there isn't a mouse going rotten as its at the hot end of the viv.

Also, if i wait 3 days (if she has eaten) should she be ok to handle? or will i have to wait a full week even thought it is the same viv she has always lived in (so shouldn't need too much time to get used to it).

First time owner so tell me off if i've done anythgin wrong! :awcrap:

 

[bitsy]

We usually recommend that new arrivals are left completely alone - not handled or fed - for at least a week after they arrive. Some don't take kindly to change and will need to get used to the sounds and smells of their new home before they're relaxed enough to eat. Even in the same viv, things will be noticably different. Missing one feed wouldn't have harmed a healthy adult, as nature designs them to go for weeks or months without food in the wild.

As you've offered the food, I think you're right that it's best to check that it's gone by very quickly and gently looking and then replacing the hide. If she has eaten (as I suspect she has), it's now especially important that she's not disturbed for a week. You're right that an uneaten mouse would be best removed.

After the initial settling-in period, you should be safe to handle about 48 hours after feeding. Sooner than that and you risk the food being regurgitated.

Just a side note - you mention that she's in a hide on the warm side. Does she also have a hide on the cool side? It's important that they can thermoregulate, and as they prefer to remain out of sight (they retain a strong instinct to avoid being seen by predators), having hides in both the warm and cool temperature zones are important. If she only has a hide on the warm side, then this survival instinct will take over and she could remain in that position even when it's too hot for her.

Welcome to the world of Corn ownership! It won't be too long before you're considering another, but we usually recommend not keeping more than one per viv. Time to start planning where that second viv is going!

 

[EeZee]

Yeah, well when would you recommend checking if she has eaten the mouse? After that i won't disturb her apart from changing the water daily. She is still noticebly nervous, she will pop her head out of the hide and as soon as i walk past she'll pop back in.

Another question, he said he was feeding her on one large mouse per week, to me that seemed a little much and i was thinking about pushing it back to 10 days. I know that without measuring it is hard to say but she is 3 years old and around 6 ft. (He measured her last skin against his body)

Yes i've got two hides, both fit her comfortably. The only problem is that i have the entrances facing the glass front of the viv, would it be better to turn the entrances facing away so she has complete privacy?

I've got the heatmat on a thermostat at 28c. Its varying between 27-28c. Does that seem like a good temp to you? The owner said i wouldn't need the heat mat on during the summer as the air temp is pretty hot anyhow, but they were using a long light on the roof of the viv which i've decided against using (especially since it doesn't have a guard). To me, the heatmat seems like a much more ideal way to regulate the vivs temp!

 

[bitsy]

I'd check now - a festering mouse corpse isn't the best way to welcome her to your home for either of you My bet is that you won't find one though.

She'll be very nervous for a while yet. It usually takes them weeks or months to settle in. Also, they're naturally active at times of low or no light - dawn, dusk and overnight. You're not likely to see very much movement from her during the day anyway.

One large mouse a week is OK for some, but for my lot it would be a bit too much. I feed one large mouse every 14-21 days. 10 days should be fine for her while you get to know each other better.

Measuring the shed skin can be deceptive, as it stretches as it comes off. To get a more accurate guesstimate at the snake's length, take the length of the shed skin and deduct a third. Not accurate, but a reasonable indicator. Six foot Corns are pretty rare. At three years old she's pretty much fully grown, although they never really stop growing.

If you're concerned about the position of the hide entrances, you could always turn them so that they face into the viv rather than at the back. That way she's not peeking out directly at you, but she can still see you if she wants to and you can still peek in at a bit of an angle.

Heatmats are recommended for Corns, as they provide belly heat which is ideal for their digestion. 28 (82-3 for the US contingent here) is OK but only if you're measuring the floor surface temperature immediately above the heatmat, and with a digital or infra-red thermometer. If you're measuring the air temp, or using the cardboard strip or plastic dial-type thermometers, you might find the floor surface is very much hotter. Anything over 90 for any length of time can be dangerous for a Corn. Their safe maximum is surprisingly cool - as a very rough guide, the floor surface will feel lukewarm if you put your hand on it above the heatmat!

However, they do need that level of warm area constantly and I wouldn't agree with switching the heatmat off. Night time temps will drop even in the summer in the UK and the extra heat will be needed. If it's on a thermostat, then it will be automatically turned off during hot weather anyway. If you don't have one, a thermostat is a very good investment. Not only will it keep the heatmat at a safe temperature for the Corn, it will prevent you wasting electricity by switching it off when it's already warm enough.

I agree that leaving the light off is a good way forward. Corns don't need artificial light and unguarded lights can cause burns (for some reason, a Corn doesn't react to sitting on a dangerously hot surface, by moving away from it).

 

[EeZee]

Brilliant, i just entered the viv there and turned the hide a little so its on an angle away from the glass of the cage. Hopefully she won't be as aware of my presence now and a little more relaxed.

I opened the top of the hide whilst she was still in it, and unless shes laying on top of the mouse (common behaviour ha?) it isn't there. It was only quite small aswell, they said to feed her large but it didnt seem very big to me when i fed her, certainly wouldn't cause a bulge in her if she has eaten it. I'll double check the hide later on tonight when she goes for a mooch about!

Shes probably more around the 5FT mark then, he said almost up to his height (around 6ft) so probably somewhere between 4.5-5.5. I will begin to do monthly weigh ins etc once she is settled.

The final question i've got is what is your experience with feeding them? I've done my research into it and heard very mixed reports.

If you feed them in an external box, are you not risking regurgitation by picking them back up to put them in the viv?

I'm using hemp substrate and the previous owner said hes never had any problems feeding her directly in the viv, i mentioned a feeding platform and he said it probably wouldn't help as 'it all happens so quick theres a good chance the prey will be dragged through the substrate anyhow'. Obviously i don't want to take her out of her usual routine rightaway, but i have noticed most people feed their snakes out of the viv and this is something i'm looking into doing!!

Finally, one last little thing, when i cleaned the viv out when i bought it yesterday, there was a flat mouse hidden in the substrate. Hard to say how old it was although it didn't smelly or anything, could this be a sign of a bad owner or can they go 'missing' quite often lol!

Thanks for the help bitsy, i've done extensive research but every owner has a different ways of doing things and i just want to make sure i do everything correctly first time

 

[EeZee]

Picture of hide box (With potential mouse somewhere haha)

 

[bitsy]

Well, I've been keeping (and feeding!) Corns since 1991, so I'd say I have some pretty solid experience

I feed in a separate feeding tub and the quick gentle movement back to the home viv isn't a regurge risk. It's certainly never caused mine an issue. With most, I tend to take the lid off the feeding tank, then tip it very slowly and gently through the open doors of the viv, so that the Corn slides back into the home viv - no handling involved. Advice against handling after feeding more refers to periods of "recreational" handling.

Having said that, plenty of people feed in the home viv and don't have issues, although substrate stuck to the food and being accidentally swallowed, is what usually puts me off. I'd stick to the technique she knows while she's settling in, then try it the way you prefer in a few months' time.

A flat mouse hidden in the viv is a pretty bad sign. Presumably it must be near mummified by now, but when freshly dead it would have stunk to high heaven for days or weeks. They definitely do not "go missing". It really points to the previous owner not checking for uneaten food, not spot cleaning properly and not doing a complete clean-out often enough. And possibly that they have a very severe sinus problem that prevents their sense of smell from detecting rotting rodents!

I'm glad to help, but I'm afraid (as you've already found) there are as many ways of doing things for a Corn, as there are Corn owners doing them! Sometimes there are no hard-and-fast rules. You just have to try a few things that work for other people, then figure out which ones best suit your snake and you.