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Opinions? Please help!

T

Tr1gg0r

New member
Ok, I've just been down to the local reptile shop, which has confused the hell out of me.

I haven't got my Corn yet but have been reading ALOT into the care of them. When I asked the person in the shop how I'd get a heat mat under a particular viv, she looked at me like I was crazy... She said that Corn Snakes shouldn't have heat mats as they will get burnt. I explained that I'd use a ceramic plate and have the mat under the tank but then she said it wouldn't be warm enough and the snake would end up with a respiratory infection.

She then proceeded to tell me that corn snakes have to have a ceramic heat lamp in order to be able to bask in the mornings... This contradicts most of what I have read so far on the care of corns. I didn't think corn snakes did bask? When I told her I thought they didn't bask she said all reptiles bask, which I admit is what I used to think.

Was the girl in the shop just unsure and winging it? Or is this just another suitable way to keep the snakes?

I know she's worked there quite a while so I'd expect her to know what she's talking about??

PLEASE HELP!!
 
It sounds like the girl at the shop is just regurgitating misinformation. You are correct, Corns don't bask. In the "wild" that leads to predation. I'm pretty sure that no animal likes to be eaten. When it comes to pet stores, take most of what you hear with a grain of salt.

What I would do is get the tank you are looking at. It may be wise to set yourself up with a good heat mat and either a dimmer or thermostat. The ceramic tile is good, but you will still need to monitor temps closely. Left alone, heat mats can have temp spikes. Include a couple of good digital thermometers in your purchase. Those are relatively cheap. Then set it all up.

By setting it up, you can see how things will run, before placing the new snake inside. That way your not on a learning curve that could affect the snake.

Kudos on doing the research and asking the questions before making your purchase.

Wayne
 
Sounds like maybe you know more about snake care than she does. ;)

I can't speak for what it's like in the UK, but in Canada and the US, it seems that most pet stores don't really train their employees very well and it's up to each employee to either train themselves....or not. She may be giving you the information she was given and believes to be true. Years of time there doesn't necessarily mean anything. I've been working with reptiles for a shorter period than some of my co-workers, but they all come asking me when they aren't sure about something, including the person who taught me about snakes....lol.

As for overhead heating, some people do use it, but it has too many drawbacks to be considered the ideal form of heating. It tends to dry out the viv, its hard (impossible?) to control the temperature exactly like you can with a UTH and it can be a fire hazard.

What kind of viv is it that you're having trouble figuring out how to heat it?
 
Sweetseraph said:
What kind of viv is it that you're having trouble figuring out how to heat it?
Click to expand...

It's a long (3-4ft) simple wooden viv with glass sliding doors, it has two vents on the back wall. Would I be best to put the mat under the viv (raising the viv slightly) or put the mat in the viv with a ceramic plate on top, then substrate on top of the plate?

To be honest I don't think the shop are very clued up, they were keeping two yearlings together in a tiny tank with only leafy branches as hides, bark substrate and a water bowl nowhere near big enough for the snakes to cool down in...

Cheers for replies Wayne and Sweet Seraph :)
 
Tr1gg0r said:
It's a long (3-4ft) simple wooden viv with glass sliding doors, it has two vents on the back wall. Would I be best to put the mat under the viv (raising the viv slightly) or put the mat in the viv with a ceramic plate on top, then substrate on top of the plate?

To be honest I don't think the shop are very clued up, they were keeping two yearlings together in a tiny tank with only leafy branches as hides, bark substrate and a water bowl nowhere near big enough for the snakes to cool down in...

Cheers for replies Wayne and Sweet Seraph :)
Click to expand...

In the case of wooden vivs, putting the UTH under it wouldn't do a whole lot of good. You can put it inside, put the ceramic tile over it, and silicone around it effectively sealing off the mat. Doing this will help prevent an electrical shock hazard in the event the water bowl gets tipped over. Just be sure you give the silicone several days to cure before putting the snake in contact with it.
 
Ahh so a glass viv would be better? Could I put a UTH directly under a glass viv?

And thanks SS, bet you get tired of having to search the forums for noobs who don't realise there's a search function :p :)
 
UTH needed?

I'm from a very hot country where normal outside degrees can hit about 30-40 degrees on a normal day.

Do i still need a UTH? The guy tt i bought the corn from told me tt if i sleep in an aircon room, i need the UTH.

I bought a UTH repti-therm.. and it heat the glass until it cracked!! thank god that i placed a 3 mats and a ceramic tile and one more mat over the UTH if not ill have cooked snake for supper. I'm using it with a reptile dimmer. I had set it onto the lowest.. but when i came home today, my corn was hiding in the corner as far as possible away from the UTH as possible. The temp on the hot side registered about 50 degrees( i think its about 110?) while the cool side about 32 degrees!! OMG

should i ditch the UTH altogether?

My corn is in a 1.5 feet by 1.5 feet fish tank. im worried tt my snake will get fried if this carries on.
 
Tr1gg0r said:
Ahh so a glass viv would be better? Could I put a UTH directly under a glass viv?
Click to expand...

Glass would probably be better because you can put the UTH right on the glass under the tank. The UTH will come with little feet to raise the aquarium up slightly.

And thanks SS, bet you get tired of having to search the forums for noobs who don't realise there's a search function :p :)
Click to expand...

Nah, all in a day's work....lol.
 
If they are co habbing yearlings, that pretty much proves that they don't have a clue.....
I would run....not walk...to the nearest exit.....
 
In the case of wooden vivs, putting the UTH under it wouldn't do a whole lot of good.
Click to expand...
I've used UTHs underneath (outside) wooden vivs for years and it works just fine. Wth the thermostat probe inside the viv, on the floor on top of the UTH's position, the temperature at the warm end can easily be kept at the required level.

You just need to make sure that the weight of the viv isn't resting directly on top of the UTH, as that risks damage to the UTH and overheating.
 
Bitsy, that's great. You haven't got any pictures of your set up have you? Would be really helpful :D

Cheers mate.
 
Sorry - photos would just show the vivs standing on cork mats, which isn't very illuminating!
 
Yet another case of a foolish petstore worker. I do use a lamp to help warm up a side at times when it's a bit cool outside, but I mostly depend on my UTH.
 
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