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question about corn snake behavior

JaniNaka

JaniNaka

New member
I recently acquired a baby corn snake and I was not sure if its behavior was "normal." I have heard that corn snakes like to spend most of their time on the hotter side of the tank, but my corn snake tends to spend most of its time on the cool side under the water bowl. I don't often see him out and about either. I am kind of paranoid about the behavior because it has been a long time since I have had a corn snake. Even after the feedings the snake will stay in the hot area for about ten minutes and then go back under the water bowl. When I take it out of the viv it feels cold to touch, but it will move actively when I hold it and when I set it back down. Is this behavior ok? I hope i'm just worrying too much, I tend to do that.
 
Congrats on your baby! What is your thermostat set at for your UTH?

Corns like to burrow and curl up in their hides, they aren't very social creatures. Hiding is totally normal. Especially babies, they are scared to begin with, so you have to let them get used to being handled.

Snakes are cold blooded, so yes, they are cold to the touch. Again, totally normal!

Just let us know what the temps are on each side and we can go from there.
 
Thanks. The thermostat was set on the heat side between 80-87 and on the cool side between 70-76. (obviously no UTH on the cool side, but thought I should say anyway. ok thanks that makes me feel better. Also, one more question that I'm having a hard time finding other places. My snake is eating pinky mice right now, how long should it take it take for the bulge to go away after it eats?
 
JaniNaka said:
Thanks. The thermostat was set on the heat side between 80-87 and on the cool side between 70-76. (obviously no UTH on the cool side, but thought I should say anyway. ok thanks that makes me feel better. Also, one more question that I'm having a hard time finding other places. My snake is eating pinky mice right now, how long should it take it take for the bulge to go away after it eats?
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Is it a digital thermostat? You should have it set at one temp, I don't get the 7° difference. If you set it at 87° the top of the substrate should be around 85°. Set the thermostat and don't change it, just monitor the temps with the thermometer and adjust it accordingly.

After they eat it is 2-3 days before they have digested and pooped, so once you see it has pooped you can hold it again.

"Also, one more question that I'm having a hard time finding other places."

I'm not quite sure what you are asking here! Other places for what?
 
smigon said:
Is it a digital thermostat? You should have it set at one temp, I don't get the 7° difference. If you set it at 87° the top of the substrate should be around 85°. Set the thermostat and don't change it, just monitor the temps with the thermometer and adjust it accordingly.

After they eat it is 2-3 days before they have digested and pooped, so once you see it has pooped you can hold it again.

"Also, one more question that I'm having a hard time finding other places."

I'm not quite sure what you are asking here! Other places for what?
Click to expand...
No, it isn't a digital thermostat. I'm starting to realize the place I got it cared more about making a profit than caring for the snakes. They told me to use a UTH on the side of the viv and a thermal heat lamp for heat in the day so I don't have a "set" temperature. Would it be better to buy a digital? Where can I buy one that would be good? I'm always monitoring the temp in the viv, but it would be much easier if I had something that did it for me, is that what a digital thermostat does?

Also, the bark they sold me I later found out was toxic to corn snakes, luckily I found it out very soon when I was researching some info about corn snakes. One of the sites said that a thick layer of paper towels at the bottom would suffice for a hatchling? I am going to by aspen bark as soon as I can, I can't right now because I am in the process of moving.

The question that I couldn't find other places was when should I start feeding my snake bigger mice? I couldn't find a straight answer when looking it up.

Sorry about it taking so long for me to reply, I haven't been able to access internet in my moving process. Thank you so much for your help
 
I'm currently using the Hydrofarm Digital Thermostat. What it does is regulate the heat mat. If you set it at say 84° it will maintain the temp (measured via a probe that you place inside the viv on the bottom,under the bedding, in the middle of the UTH) it will turn the heat mat off and on keeping the temp between 82° and 86°.

A coupe layers of paper towels is fine, many folks use them.

How much does your snake weigh? I loosely follow the munson plan for feeding, it's a good guide and will get you in the ballpark. If you don't already have one get a digital scale so you can weigh your snake and it's food. You'll want to keep track of these records as it's good information to have and it can come in handy down the road. I also track: blue phase, shed complete and length.
 
drybgerg said:
I'm currently using the Hydrofarm Digital Thermostat. What it does is regulate the heat mat. If you set it at say 84° it will maintain the temp (measured via a probe that you place inside the viv on the bottom,under the bedding, in the middle of the UTH) it will turn the heat mat off and on keeping the temp between 82° and 86°.

A coupe layers of paper towels is fine, many folks use them.

How much does your snake weigh? I loosely follow the munson plan for feeding, it's a good guide and will get you in the ballpark. If you don't already have one get a digital scale so you can weigh your snake and it's food. You'll want to keep track of these records as it's good information to have and it can come in handy down the road. I also track: blue phase, shed complete and length.
Click to expand...

I totally agree with everything above. Ditch the heat lamp, it does nothing but dry out the viv, the UTH regulated with a thermostat (do NOT use it without the thermostat) will keep the temps steady. Without a thermostat the UTH can heat up to 120° and kill or burn your baby!

Definitely get the substrate out of the tank, use paper towels until you can get some aspen.

Good luck, and let us know how everything goes!
 
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