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some new dad questions :)

C

chibs

New member
Hey guys...joined the forums a couple of days ago, so just been spending a lot of time reading through all the threads. I don't have so many questions as much as i just want to make sure i'm doing all the right things :shrugs:

Well for starters...i got my first corn ever at the hamburg expo just this past weekend. I was originally looking to get a milksnake, but was blown away by this female charcoal cornsnake that i saw. I got her pretty quickly without much thought about it (and i had been buying some supplies before getting a snake, so i had the basics at home). I forgot to ask a lot of questions...like when she was born, when she was last fed...etc. i was just too excited lol. I'm not sure how old she is...but by looking at her...i'd say she's about a good 2 feet long.

I gave her an entire day to warm up to the new tank, and i'm sure i handled her too much, but she's just so adventurous and curious...i can't help but hold her for a long time.

But anyway...her current setup is a 20 gallon long glass tank with a snapping top that secures pretty strongly. I used aspen bedding, and put an under tank heater on one side. My biggest concern is that when i put the thermometer probe directly above where the heat pad is, the temp always reads 100+ degrees...and i don't want a cooked new corn :( The cooler side reads at almost an always steady 75degrees. I figured that somewhere in between, would be the ideal 80-85 degrees, so i put a hide that extends to halfway above the heat pad...and half off...and she seems to spend a lot of time in the hide that's not directly above the pad. She also has a hide on the cooler side, a water dish on the cooler side, and some plastic plants i have suction cupped to the middle.

I got her saturday, and on sunday afternoon i decided to try to feed her...since i wasn't sure when was the last time she was fed. I thawed a pinky...and used chopsticks (i forgot to get tongs!, lol), and jiggled it in front of her and she imidiately went for it without much hesitation and devoured it in seconds. I figured she was starving...so i thawed another pinky, and she seemed to eat that one just as fast. I looked around for her today (monday) and she hasn't thrown anything up or anything, and is spending a lot of time resting on the warmer side of the tank. I've also made sure to not handle her at all...and i won't until wed.

But that's all for now...sorry for the horribly long post, but i just want to make sure i'm doing everything as best as i can be...i'm still learning the ropes. After reading a lot of posts...i'm going to get a small tupperwear that i'll use to feed her...that's small enough that i can put inside her tank so she can come out of it at her own will, so that i don't handle her after feedings. My biggest concern is really the under tank heating pad...i don't want to cook her. But should i do anything else? Any comments, advice, concerns? I'm not sure how much she weighs, but was the 2 pinkies too much? In the next couple of days, i'll post some pics of my new baby.

But anyway...thx for taking the time to read my experiences so far. any advice would be greatly appreciated!

~Chibs
 
First things first, you need a thermostat. It will keep the heating pad from getting too hot, and 90 and up is too hot.
You can find them online for as low as $20, but some of them are a lot more.
(Don't confuse it with a rheostat/dimmer though. They do roughly the same thing, but the thermostat will do all the work for you to adjust the temps, wheras the dimmers will need to be manually adjusted as the temps fluctuate.)

It's good of you to get a seperate container to feed in, but it's not necissarily to avoid handling. Picking the snake up after feeding to put it back in the tank shouldn't bother it. This only lasts a moment.
The problem lies with overhandling and stressing the snake out.

The biggest concern with feeding the snake inside its viv, is the snake accidently swallowing some substrate along with the mouse, which can cause impaction.
The second concern is with the snake learning to associate your hand coming in to the tank with feeding time, though if you handle the snake on a regular basis, it's not likely to do this. If, however, you only reach in to feed the snake, or to remove it so you can clean the tank occasionally, it may well associate your fingers with food.

As for how much she should be eating, there are certain size charts to go by, though I don't have them. Offhand, if she doesn't have a noticable lump in her belly after eating, she should be eating a bigger meal.

Normally one should leave a new snake alone for at least three days, to let it get used to its new environment, but if she doesn't regurge, then there's no harm, no foul, in this case. :)

Again, the biggest issue is getting a thermostat as soon as possible. As long as the temps in your house are arond 60-70F, I'd actually suggest unplugging the heatpad until you can properly regulate it. Although you may want to wait until 48 hours past feeding have passed. They need the heat for proper digestion, but I'd worry about burning the snake.
If their tummy is empty, then a few degrees too cold won't hurt them. A few degrees too hot on the otherhand, will hurt.

You may want to wait for second opinions on that matter, as I'm pretty new to herp keeping myself.
But Good luck with your new snake. :)
 
Congratulations on your new, and first, Cornsnake. :)

Only guessing, by her length, ... she is, more than likely, a '06 ... or could, ~possibly~, be a smaller '05. That, mind you, is only my guess without having other info to factor in (and assuming she really is 2 ft. long).

A 20 gallon tank should be just fine, for her, and aspen bedding is good. Your having a hide on the warm side, ~and~ the cool side, is very good. The plastic plants <without "cluttering" the tank too much> is an added bonus.:) A water bowl (making sure the snake always has fresh water), in the middle of the tank, is good ... best if it is placed against the side, of the tank, rather than dead in the center of the tank.
BTW It is not necessary to have, and I don't know if your snake can climb on the plants, but ... I have vines (doubled up & twisted) , in my snakes' tanks/enclosures, that the snakes can climb on &/or lay on. I find that my Corns really enjoy climbing on the vines and, many times, I find them just lounging on the vine/s (stretched out or semi curled up). Just a thought.:)

100 degrees is way too hot so you are right to be concerned about it. A very hot UTH can also burn your snake if it burrows and lies directly on top of the glass (where the UTH is) without substrate to act as a kind of barrier. I'd, strongly, suggest that you purchase a rheostat, or a thermostat, for the UTH (to control its output/temp).
Temps should be about 80-85 degrees, on the warm side, and around 75 degrees (or 70-75 degrees) on the cool side (without having temps below 70). Temps should, also, go by what is at (or on) substrate level and not by the ambient air temp. inside the tank (such as midway up the tank, etc.).
Humidity should be about 40-60%. Although, they can have lower humidity, than 40%, without ill effects (except when in blue/shedding). However, avoid its getting so low that it is extremely arid and avoid humidity levels that are too high as this can set the snake up for an upper respiratory infection &/or other problem/s.

Feeding ... could not tell you if you are feeding too much since I do not know the exact size, of your snake, nor the size of the pinkies fed (i.e. small, large) but... I would think that a two foot snake should be able to handle two pinkies without "blinking its eyes" (not that a snake can blink anyway :grin01: ) and should not be too much for it.
The rule of thumb is that the prey size should be about the same size as the thickest part of the snake's body and not more than 1.5 the size of the snake's thickest part. If food item is of appropriate size, you can offer 1 or 2.
A lump, after feeding, should be visible for about 12 to 24 hrs. (otherwise, it is not being fed enough). If the lump is there for a few, or several, days... then you need to reduce the food size/amount (if it is not due to a temperature problem because, if it is a temp. problem, you would need to fix it so the snake has appropriate heat/temps rather than reducing the size/amount fed).
Feeding your snake outside the tank (in an unlined container) is best. If you do line the feed container (such as with paper towels) ... do not take your eyes of of her until she is done eating and she can be removed from the container (This is mostly/only a concern during feeding time).

You are, also, doing good to avoid handling the snake after feeding. After feeding, they should not be handled for about 48 hrs.
It may not be a bad idea for you to, also, give your snake some days (4-5) to acclimate/adjust, to its new home, without the added stress of being handled. I know that the temptation/excitement is great but ... you will have lots of time (years) to enjoy/handle your snake after allowing it this very short time to adjust to its new home. ;)

Congrats again. :)
 
You don't need a thermostat. It's handy and works well but isn't a must.
A dimmer switch can be used to control the temperature of the heat pad. Alternately you could put something under your tank to lift it up and allow some air to move between the heater and the tank to lower the temperature a bit. If you get a thermostat you won't be going wrong but if your house stays about the same temperature a dimmer will do very well.
 
hey guys, thx so much for all the feedback! :wavey:

With the feeding, now i'm kinda iffy about the 2 pinkies. All of you guys have mentioned that there should be a noticeable bump, but after feeding two (small) pinkies, there were no bumps at all...I'll make an extra effort tonight or tomorrow (since i dont' want to handle her after feeding) to take pics of her so you can see how large she is. And the pinkies i'm feeding i got from petsmart, the arctic mice~if that helps for the pinky size.

And can i ask a stupid question? I looked online for the thermostat...and maybe it's cause i just woke up and am still groggy, but how do the thermostats work? Right now i'm using the Zoomed UTH, that's turned on and off by unplugging it. How do the thermostats work? Does it go into a special plug that turns off when the thermometer hits a certain temp? If so...where should i keep the probes for my thermometer? Like, just on top of the substrate, or under it since they like to burrow?

~Chibs
 
The thermostat will have an outlet to plug your UTH in. The thermostat itself is plugged into the electrical outlet. With the UTH plugged into the thermostat, your UTH will be regulated to a constant(within a degree or 2) temp. It does take awhile to get the correct temp but just keep turning the knob slightly till you get the correct temps.

Congrats on your new baby and good luck!
 
There are two kinds of thermostats. The cheaper kind are "on/off" meaning when they reach the temp you have set, they turn off. When the temp falls below what you have set, they turn the mat back on. This allows some fluctuation in temps- the temp will continue to rise a bit after the mat is shut off, and the temp will fall a little bit below what the thermostat is set before the thermostat turns the mat back on. This is why it is nice to have a good thermometer that stores max/min temps.

On/off thermostat I like: http://tinyurl.com/ypgu4s BAH-1000
Thermometer I like: http://tinyurl.com/yqd3xt (Dual temp probe)

The second kind of thermostat is proportional. They generally run $100 or more. You set the temp, the thermostat supplies full power to the mat, till it nears the set temp. As it nears the set temp, it reduces the amount of power supplied, slowing the heating, and when it reaches the set point, it supplies a trickle charge to hold that temp, and supplies no power if the temp goes over. The mat will still continue to raise the temp slightly after it is shut off, but it doesn't fall very much below the set point at all.

Proportional thermostat I like: http://tinyurl.com/2b7dgr Herpstat

Over the 15-20 year lifetime of the snake, an initial investment in good heating control will save you a lot of trouble.

Nanci
 
You’ve received a lot of good information so far, so I’ll only add the following.

I have used both an analog (on/off) thermostat and a digitally proportional thermostat.

My analog thermostat is a Big Apple Herps BAH-1000. It took a couple of days to get it dialed in but did a fine job of regulating my UTH.

Big Apple Herp BAH-1000

The thermostat I use now is a Spyder Robotics Herpstat II. I use this to regulate my UTH as well as my Ceramic Heat Emitter that I need to keep the ambient air temperature of my cool side at 75 degrees via the dual temperature probes on the thermostat.

Herpstat II

Is it overkill to use a Herpstat II on one enclosure…probably, but to know me is to appreciate the fact that I over engineer everything :)

Please let us know if you have any other questions.

Nanci, how is your Herpstat working out for you?

Regards,
Steve
 
Love it. I really, really like the BAH-1000, too. I have that digital dual-probe thermometer on it all the time, so I have a really good idea of what is going on in there at any moment. I just noticed that heat mat end of the viv is right above the AC vent- (it hangs over the edge of its cabinet a couple inches) so it's really getting a good workout! I haven't seen the temp fall below 82 or so. With an ExoTerra Desert mat.

Nanci
 
[QUOTEwhere should i keep the probes for my thermometer? Like, just on top of the substrate, or under it since they like to burrow? [/QUOTE]


Place it/them level with the substrate surface or directly on the substrate surface.
 
I just wanted to throw in that empty paper towel and toilet paper tubes make great hides that give the snake a choice of gradient. Not the prettiest things but they work really well (my leopard geckos love them too).

~Katie
 
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