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Oh Hai!

Kurogamii

Kurogamii

New member
My name is alex, and I'm just here to read up and find out anything new I might need to know as I am going to be buying my very first corn as soon as I can. I have read up and I'm pretty sure I'm ready but my only problem now is that I am 15, my mom doesn't want the snake in the house so she won't provide any money to help me buy everything I need.

As of now I have $23 and a ten gallon tank from keeping hermit crabs. I was hoping I could use that tank for a baby corn, and go up to a bigger tank as he (I'm wanting a male ._.) gets older. I still need to buy a heating pad, a decent lockable lid, the "bedding" material, and a cute little house for him to hide away in. Plus I have to make sure I have enough money left over from buying all this for pinkies.

Anyway..I already have a source of a breeder (moreptiles) his snakes are really cheap but he looks like a respectable breeder. Plus he is only an hour away, and I hate the thought of sending a live animal through the mail, I know it's not likely anything will happen to the snake, but my luck is really bad and I'm sure I'm the 1 - 1mil that will have something horrible happen to her snake.

Anyway, that's about it for me, you prob will see me lurking a lot, but not posting a terribly lot due to I have no experience to share.

xxoxoxo Kuro.
 
If money is a concern i'm sure you can discover the most absolute economical way to do everything here.
 
Hello Alex!

I'm fairly light on money myself so maybe I can give you some tips. For one thing, newspaper works for bedding material. You can also use belts to lock down the lid, so if you have two old belts you never use... there ya go! Just use one on each end to lock it down. Hides can be made of just about anything. You can use toilet paper rolls if you want.

The most expensive thing you need to worry about is how to heat the tank. An under tank heater really needs a thermostat to keep it from getting too hot. Both of those would be pretty expensive (about $30 for the UTH and another $20 for the thermostat). You could get a heat lamp instead. Heat lamps aren't really ideal, but they work. The bulbs are about $7 or so. The expensive part is the actual lamp. I considered just using a lamp I had in storage and putting the $7 bulb in, but was worried about whether or not that would be safe. Maybe some electrical gurus would be able to answer that for me.

Anyway, good luck with getting everything set up and I hope to see some pics later! :dancer:
 
Hello and Welcome! Here is a thread that has a great idea for a hide/water bowl combo! Its what was in my snakes tank when I got him. It was just the cheap dog bowl (that doubles as a hide on his cool side), his substrate (bedding), and a terra cotta pot with a hole broken into the side of it. Those terra cotta pots are only like $1.50 or so at your local garden center or Walmart or there are many free things you could use as hides (check out that thread I linked you to). Like the previous person said, you can use newspaper or paper towels as a type of bedding. You can start out with just a heat lamp with an incandescet bulb it until you get more money for a better under tank heater (should always be coupled with a thermostat & thermometer so as to not burn your snake).

I found my ZooMed 500R Thermostat (not a rheostat)at www.bigalsonline.com it was only like $27 including shipping. That was the cheapest I found it. A ZooMed UTH for a 10-20 gallon tank was 14.99 also very cheap. You will also need a digital thermometer (w/probe) to be able to accurately tell the exact temp for you snake so you are able to set the thermostat at the right temps.

As for a locking lid you could buy a lid with the locks on it but at first you could just keep really heavy items on top(like text books) so he cant push his way up and out.


I suggest doing some lawn mowing or car washing to earn some extra money to be able to get some of the things you will need to start off with. Oh BTW you could always try looking on craigslist sometimes people are giving away their snakes with their enclosures for just a small rehoming fee.
 
You're so awesome! While most 15 year olds are saving for a car, you're saving for a snake. It's so refreshing to see a teenager with his priorities in order!

Check freecycle.org and craigslist.com in your area and look for at least a 20 long. You're likely to find them much cheaper there. My snake is now in a 40 long that was previously used as a cichlid tank, but I got it on freecylce for nothing!

Check ebay for heating pads, as you're likely to find some cheaper than at the pet stores. There's rarely something I can't find on ebay.

Kudos to you for researching and preparing before actually going out and getting a snake!
 
Lols, for anyone wondering, I am a girl lol. My parents offered to buy an old car and my dad works on cars so he is going to fix one up. Plus i really don't have very many places to go and my guy friends always take me places.

Throughout the whole summer I'll be babysitting, I get at least $20, sometimes more for overtime) (which isn't a lot at all but she is a single parent so I deal) So hopefully I'll have over $100 buy the end of July.

Right now I'm planning on this, my mom shops around at her little stores, meanwhile I'm going to go into petsmart and buy any reptile based things I can. My main priority right now is the heating pad, thermometer, and the lid. I'd rather just have a lid I know will be secure 24/7 all around then just books.

Considering what you all said, I may just use make-shift hides, watering bowls and bedding for him, then when I get some more cash I'll buy him a nice new home, water bowl, and some good bedding.
 
Hello, welcome, and congrats on having the wisdom to learn before buying. Your future snake will benefit. I think my corn snakes are actually about the most economical pets I have. And the tips you've gotten are quite right; you don't have to spend a fortune. Small boxes make great hides; my anery hurricane much prefers her butter box to any other hide. Paper towel tubes make fine "hollow logs." For small snakes, you've probably got plenty of free things around the house to serve as hides. I picked up ice cream bowls at the whopping price of 4 for $1 at Dollar General. They make great water dishes. Thrift stores and yard sales have fake plants that you can clean up and use in the viv. This forum is a great source for info, advice, and just plain fun. Welcome again!
 
My two-bits...

First of all, welcome! This is an awesome site, especially for new corn owners.

Second, I agree that an excellent heating pad and thermostat/rheostat should be the major priority. To save money on a bigger cage, you can buy a Sterlite plastic storage tub at Wal-Mart, Target, K-Mart, etc. I paid a little over $4 for a 19"x12.5"x5" clear sided one and my corn seems to do quite well in it. You'll want to drill some small holes (from the inside out to eliminate any rough spots) along the top of the tub itself to provide ventilation. Also, pick up a box of binder clips to secure the lid ($0.98 at Wal-Mart) and a bag of aspen chips from a pet store for substrate Usually about $5-$6 for a tightly compressed block that'll expand and be enough for 3-4 cages. I recommend freezing the bag o'chips for a few days first as a precaution against any bugs and/or their eggs. As to a water bowl/shedding aid, this is what I've done.

3CardKnight said:
SnowBoardMoose,

I don't know what you use for a water bowl but a deli cup with a hole cut in the lid works great as a combination water dish and shedding aid. Having a lid on the top helps increase the humidity(within the water dish) and is a private, secluded area for the snake to soak in. When your snake gets bigger, you can use/recycle a butter container or something similar to replace the deli cup. I personally use a cookie dough tub as it is short and wide, which fits nicely into my current viv setup. Just make sure that you sand the edges of the hole you cut in the lid with 220 or finer sandpaper so there are no rough spots for your snake's belly to catch on. My snake loves soaking in her tub and has always smoothly shed in one piece. *knocks on wood*

Hope this helps with Medusa's shedding issues!
Click to expand...
(sorry for quoting one of my previous posts, but it saved typing it again... :) )

Caryl's and kcaven's advice on hides is spot on! Just make sure that anything you put in your snake's viv is washed and sterilized, possibly even baked or microwaved depending on the material. I'll try to find a post that covers the sterilization process in more detail as well as post a pic or two of my snake's setup. I can't wait for you to get your snake and to start posting pics for all of us to see! Keep us updated... :)

P.S. If you're worried about using a plastic tub with the heat pad, put a ceramic tile between the two and not only will it protect the plastic bottom, it'll help spread and diffuse the heat. Home Depot or Lowe's usually has 12"x12" tiles for less than $0.68.
Good Luck!
 
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