Temperature for a baby

[natfoth]

Hey guys. i just got a new baby cornsnake. he is about 4 months old. i was wonder what i should keep the temperature and humidity of the cage at while he is this age. Also any suggestions on what the humidity in the cage should be and some good ways to control it?

 

[bitsy]

Temps for a hatchling should be the same as an adult - low to mid 70s on the cool side, mid to high 80s on the warm side. Use a thermostat with your chosen heat source, to maintain a constant temp & prevent overheating (which can be dangerous to the Corn).

I wouldn't worry about the humidity unless he has a problem shed.

 

[Caryl]

Bitsy's right on with temps. Most corns seems to do fine with a wide humidity range. If yours is in an excessively dry environment, you can increase the humidity several easy ways. You can loosly cover the part of the ventilation area with newspaper or a towel. You can mist the viv lightly with a spray bottle. You can use a water bowl with more surface area.

If your humidity is too high, your snake can have respiratory problems, so don't try to turn the viv into a tropical rain forest. I personally mist and lightly cover the vivs only when the snakes are in shed. That works for us.

Good luck!

 

[abbyraptor]

Hi! I have a new baby corn snake as well. I am using an under tank heating pad, and they told me to put something over it as to not burn the snake (obviously).

I have a 10 gallon glass aquarium for him and I put the heating pad on one side of the tank and I put a rock on top of it. Since it didn't cover it completely, I put the water bowl over it as well. I then put substrate and a small hiding place for him to go, but will he get enough heat from just the heating pad in such a big tank? I also put a towel on top of the tank since it is a little cold here tonight.

I'm just concerned because the rock is "warm" but the rest of the tank doesn't seem that warm to me and I don't know if I need to find a smaller tank for him. I can't really afford a fancy viv for him yet.... Any tips would be greatly appreciated! I did search the thread up to 10 pages ago, but didn't really find anything pertaining directly to this...

 

[Tracee]

Hi! I have a new baby corn snake as well. I am using an under tank heating pad, and they told me to put something over it as to not burn the snake (obviously).

I have a 10 gallon glass aquarium for him and I put the heating pad on one side of the tank and I put a rock on top of it. Since it didn't cover it completely, I put the water bowl over it as well. I then put substrate and a small hiding place for him to go, but will he get enough heat from just the heating pad in such a big tank? I also put a towel on top of the tank since it is a little cold here tonight.

I'm just concerned because the rock is "warm" but the rest of the tank doesn't seem that warm to me and I don't know if I need to find a smaller tank for him. I can't really afford a fancy viv for him yet.... Any tips would be greatly appreciated! I did search the thread up to 10 pages ago, but didn't really find anything pertaining directly to this...

The heat mat should not be inside the vivarium under any circumstances. If it overheats, it will cause serious burns.

What substrate are you using, if any?

You also need to measure the temperature with a 'probe' thermometer, not by what it feels like to you..

You don't need a fancy viv by any means, get the basics right and your snake will be more than happy.

 

[abbyraptor]

The heat mat is stuck directly under the tank, and I felt the area inside the tank where you can see the heat mat under the tank and it is pretty hot. I have it on one side of the tank. I am using "carefresh" pet bedding as that is what he was in at the reptile store.

I'm just concerned that since I do have the 1-5 gallon pad in a 10 gallon tank, maybe its not enough. However, the other pad looks very large and I am just not clear on if I need to put something else on the bottom of the glass over the heating pad or not. Should the water dish not be placed on the heating pad too?

 

[Caryl]

The water dish can go over the heat mat if you want to increase humidity. Do you have a thermometer? Temperatures over 90 F can be a problem. A thermostat is the best and most consistent way to regulate your UTH temperatures, but you can also do things like putting extra substrate over the pad. I'm not sure what "carefresh" bedding is. Check to be sure that there's no pine or cedar in the product. Sad to say, not all pet stores tend to the animals properly and the fact that yours was in it at the store doesn't necessarily mean it's a good choice.

The "gallon" size guide on the heat mats is about the amount of area covered rather than the temperature produced. You should cover 1/3 to 1/2 of the tank's bottom area, ideally. Corn snakes need belly heat to digest properly. With a baby, a smaller area will still be adequate though not ideal.

 

[bitsy]

I felt the area inside the tank where you can see the heat mat under the tank and it is pretty hot

In that case, it will be dangerously hot for the Corn. It should feel warm to the (human) touch, not hot. You urgently need a thermometer to tell you the actual temperature, (which I'll bet from personal experience is way over 90 degrees) and a thermostat to stop the mat getting over 90 degrees.

When you were told to put something over the mat, the shop probably meant substrate like Carefresh, and not rocks, water dish etc. However, this will not prevent the snake burrowing down to the hot surface.

The water dish should be placed in the coolest part of the tank, to minimise evaporation and prevent a build-up of excess humidity.

 

[Tracee]

Thank you bitsy. You cannot read temperature by touch, this is wholly irresponsible of you as an owner.

Now three people have advised you to get a thermometer and thermostat. Let us know if you need help once you have done this and corrected the temperatures inside the viv.