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tank size
- Thread starter wavenup
- Start date
princess
Cornaholic
I'm no good at gallons or volume, I work in dimensions in cms.
Wire mesh cages although great for ventilation aren't great for cornsnakes because they tend to rub their nose all over the place looking for an exit and end up with a bunged up nose. They're great for chameleons/anoles and all those kinds of arboreal lizards but not great for snakes.
My hatchling tubs are 17cm x 23cm x 7cm, my 'up to yearling' size tub is about 20% bigger in floor area but about 4 times as tall. I keep most of my adults in underbed rollers that are about a meter long, 25cms high and 40cms wide. My big display viv which houses 5 adults is 120 x 60 x 60cms.
Wire mesh cages although great for ventilation aren't great for cornsnakes because they tend to rub their nose all over the place looking for an exit and end up with a bunged up nose. They're great for chameleons/anoles and all those kinds of arboreal lizards but not great for snakes.
My hatchling tubs are 17cm x 23cm x 7cm, my 'up to yearling' size tub is about 20% bigger in floor area but about 4 times as tall. I keep most of my adults in underbed rollers that are about a meter long, 25cms high and 40cms wide. My big display viv which houses 5 adults is 120 x 60 x 60cms.
fyrefairy
New member
Common practice seems to be 1.5x(snake's length) = perimeter of tank. For example, most captive corns don't exceed 4 feet, and a 20 gallon long tank 12x30x12high is considered big enough. For the snake to get optimal exercise, I've seen up to 3x(snake's length) suggested. A 55 gallon tank is 36x18x18, which gives you 9 feet of floor space - enough for most any full-grown corn to run around to its heart's content. You can always silicone on basking ledges/etc to increase your total floor area and add branches for your animal to climb - both of these routes will gives your animal some places to exercise - if she can be bothered to use them at all.
As for housing multiple snakes together - some people have problems with cannibalism, and I imagine that if you put many males together you might have fighting problems. I would avoid a mixed-sex tank unless everyone in it is big enough to breed, and I wouldn't put little hatchlings in with full-grown cornsnakes. Ultimately, cannibalism in colubrids is supposedly fairly rare, but if you house them together, you must feed them seperately. (It's a good idea to feed in a seperate container anyways.) It all comes down to your discretion. I have friends who house animals together with great success, but all of mine are in individual housing at this point.
As for housing multiple snakes together - some people have problems with cannibalism, and I imagine that if you put many males together you might have fighting problems. I would avoid a mixed-sex tank unless everyone in it is big enough to breed, and I wouldn't put little hatchlings in with full-grown cornsnakes. Ultimately, cannibalism in colubrids is supposedly fairly rare, but if you house them together, you must feed them seperately. (It's a good idea to feed in a seperate container anyways.) It all comes down to your discretion. I have friends who house animals together with great success, but all of mine are in individual housing at this point.
fyrefairy
New member
I've got four snakes that are between 12 and 24 months old (the 2 year olds were a bit underfed by the dealer I got them from) that are in ten gallon tanks. They all seem to be doing fine, though I'll upgrade the 2 year olds to 20L or 30 gallon tanks in the next few weeks. (Waiting for one more shed.)
I've discovered that WalMart is a great source for ten gallon tanks under ten dollars. They have a decent lid for around $3, as well.
I've discovered that WalMart is a great source for ten gallon tanks under ten dollars. They have a decent lid for around $3, as well.
princess
Cornaholic
I have 5 adult males in my dislay viv and they get along great. It had a big floor area, a climbing wall, a tree and lots of hides all over the thermal gradient and they get along beautifully.
I keep 4 sub adult females together too and that works well for them.
It is against standard practice but it works for me with a bit of supervision. It's just like how it's generally recommended to feed pre-killed food but plenty of people feed live...some have problems, others don't. I co-house and feed Frozen/Thawed.
I keep my hatchlings together as a clutch and am finding so far that I'm selling of one or 2, here or there so there's no way they're outgrowing their nursery tub!
I'm going to sepparate off my 2.2 keepers from their respective clutches shortly and co-house them for the first 6 months and then I'll split them into 0.2 and 2.0 tubs once they're about 6-7 months old. Then the girls will stay together until they are brumated for breeding and the boys will probably be housemates for as long as I have them.
I keep 4 sub adult females together too and that works well for them.
It is against standard practice but it works for me with a bit of supervision. It's just like how it's generally recommended to feed pre-killed food but plenty of people feed live...some have problems, others don't. I co-house and feed Frozen/Thawed.
I keep my hatchlings together as a clutch and am finding so far that I'm selling of one or 2, here or there so there's no way they're outgrowing their nursery tub!
I'm going to sepparate off my 2.2 keepers from their respective clutches shortly and co-house them for the first 6 months and then I'll split them into 0.2 and 2.0 tubs once they're about 6-7 months old. Then the girls will stay together until they are brumated for breeding and the boys will probably be housemates for as long as I have them.
fyrefairy
New member
Princess, do you regulate the sizes of the animals you keep together, or are they mixed sizes? I'd love to house a handful of my samsex animals together for diplay purposes. You're the only person I've seen openly talk about keeping them together on here, and your animals are just gorgeous and look incredibly healthy!
colinmcc
McSnake owner
Time for me to chip in on the multiple snakes in one cage debate ....
I keep three adult females in a wooden tank of similar proportions to Princesses display tank. For a good part of the year there is also an adult male in there with them as well. I've never had any problems with these snakes ... they all get along fine.
I have two smaller wooden tanks (30"x12"x18") which house a younger male and the aforementioned male when he's not in the big tank.
I also have a spare 18"x12"x15" glass tank which will be home to one or two of the hatchlings from this year. It'll only be two if they stay size similar, their temperament is right, and I decide to keep both in the long run .... one may yet go.
I have a longer glass tank I use as the nursery.
My three hatchlings are all in shoe-box size tubs in the nursery tank now that the rest of the hatchlings have gone (sniff .... I'd kind of got used to having 30 odd babies for company in here).
Both the 30" tanks will be getting replaced this year with (hopefully) 48" tanks for the two males.
In the even longer term, I'm planning to have the garage (which is built into the house) converted into an extra room which will become the computer/snake room. The plan is to have stacking vivs forming a "snake wall" in there once it's done.
On a darker note ....
I'm fully aware of the cannibalism issue and it's happened to me. (Well, one of my snakes, not me personally)
It was entirely my own fault. I kept two hatchlings from the same clutch in a tank together for about a year and half. One grew at twice the rate of the other and was a VORACIOUS feeder. It never occured to me at the time that the size difference had got a bit much and the smaller one became lunch at 18 months.
I've since been a lot more careful about who lives with who. My younger male is the cannibal and will always be in a tank by himself .... except to breed. I'm happy that the other snakes are all OK with each other. The two oldest have been together for 10+ years without problems, the younger ones about 7 years.
I know there is always a tiny risk but I'm comfortable that the snakes I do house together aren't going to cause me any problems.
I keep three adult females in a wooden tank of similar proportions to Princesses display tank. For a good part of the year there is also an adult male in there with them as well. I've never had any problems with these snakes ... they all get along fine.
I have two smaller wooden tanks (30"x12"x18") which house a younger male and the aforementioned male when he's not in the big tank.
I also have a spare 18"x12"x15" glass tank which will be home to one or two of the hatchlings from this year. It'll only be two if they stay size similar, their temperament is right, and I decide to keep both in the long run .... one may yet go.
I have a longer glass tank I use as the nursery.
My three hatchlings are all in shoe-box size tubs in the nursery tank now that the rest of the hatchlings have gone (sniff .... I'd kind of got used to having 30 odd babies for company in here).
Both the 30" tanks will be getting replaced this year with (hopefully) 48" tanks for the two males.
In the even longer term, I'm planning to have the garage (which is built into the house) converted into an extra room which will become the computer/snake room. The plan is to have stacking vivs forming a "snake wall" in there once it's done.
On a darker note ....
I'm fully aware of the cannibalism issue and it's happened to me. (Well, one of my snakes, not me personally)
It was entirely my own fault. I kept two hatchlings from the same clutch in a tank together for about a year and half. One grew at twice the rate of the other and was a VORACIOUS feeder. It never occured to me at the time that the size difference had got a bit much and the smaller one became lunch at 18 months.
I've since been a lot more careful about who lives with who. My younger male is the cannibal and will always be in a tank by himself .... except to breed. I'm happy that the other snakes are all OK with each other. The two oldest have been together for 10+ years without problems, the younger ones about 7 years.
I know there is always a tiny risk but I'm comfortable that the snakes I do house together aren't going to cause me any problems.
Blue Apple Herps
aka Matthew, PhD
They are not social animals and live alone in the wild. Obviously they hook up for mating but other thant hey live alone.
Regarding keeping snakes together I have two females that were hatched out of the same clutch that have lived together their entire lives (9 years now). I keep them in a 55g tank and only separate them for feeding and have had not one single problem. Just my 2¢
Regarding keeping snakes together I have two females that were hatched out of the same clutch that have lived together their entire lives (9 years now). I keep them in a 55g tank and only separate them for feeding and have had not one single problem. Just my 2¢
colinmcc
McSnake owner
I should have added ...
I always separate to feed.
Apart from the older male, I'll always only house same sex as well. The older male I got at about the same time as the older female .... and was told he was female at the time!
So, I housed them together and they laid eggs .... which gave the game away. I got lucky though and they waited until she was about 4 before she actually produced any eggs.
Now I have any new snakes probed before I'll put them together once they're over 12 months old.
I always separate to feed.
Apart from the older male, I'll always only house same sex as well. The older male I got at about the same time as the older female .... and was told he was female at the time!
So, I housed them together and they laid eggs .... which gave the game away. I got lucky though and they waited until she was about 4 before she actually produced any eggs.
Now I have any new snakes probed before I'll put them together once they're over 12 months old.