Just making sure I know what I need

[Snake_Griffin]

I just want to list a few things that I have, and what I am getting for my first corn snake, so that maybe some of you more experienced snake handlers can tell me if I need something I haven't thought of, or listed. And what I don't need that I have, or thinking of buying.

The snake will be a Snow corn and its going to be pretty young, I'm getting the closest thing to a hatchling that is feeding properly and regularly. I found a very good breeder not too far from home. All of their snakes look great, and almost all of them where curious as soon as I walked in the room, they're all alert with tongues flicking like mad when I got close.

I have and I'm getting these:

ENCLOSURE
I have:
10gal tank (until he/she is big enough for a custom tank that I am building... probably gonna make it big enough for 2 snakes with a devider since I hear that these things are addictive)

HEATING
I need:
8x8 heating pad
A blacklight for the night time(I'm thinking I'll need this for sure right, so the heat pad isn't on 24/7)
Thermometer, I was thinking of going digital for this one. I just don't trust those $4 analog ones.

DECORATIONS
I need:
2 hideaways one on the hot and one on the cold side
I have:
Branches.. lots and lots of branches(is it ok to use a GTP type branche set up as a base for good stability, like a thick accross the tank branche, not installed yet and the wood I was thinking of using is bambu, could that type wood be harmfull to corns. I have wooden v shapped brackets to hold it up and was thinking of securing it with a hot glue gun, once again could that be harmfull to the snake)
I need:
Some fake plants, vines and trees
Rocks (if its not necessary I won't put any in)
I have:
Water bowl to submerge itself in

Substrate
I was tinking of just using newspaper or paper towel.

Any help, advice, or just stuff I haven't thought of would be very appreciated.

Thanks for reading my post.

[mark129er]

Put some fish in the 10G tank and buy a rubbermaid. Much easier to keep the proper humidity than a tank.

Set the heatpad to a dimmer switch and you can lower it at night. Sounds harder than it is. There is a thread on here somewhere that shows how to do it.

You are right the "4$ analog" thermometers suck.

It's great that you are setting everything up before getting the snake.

Best of luck, Mark

[Invictus]

Given that corns should be kept dry, what is the "proper humidity"? My corns are kept at below 20% humidity, and you know what, they all shed perfectly. Using humidity as a reason to bash the use of tanks for housing this species is a false argument, because humidity is NOT required. I say keep the tank if it is suiting your needs, and the snake's needs.

[madcow]

invictus is right humidity is not that big of a deal with corns i have mine in a 15gal and spray it down here and there if your shed goes worng then rise humidity this is your frist corn so you are not going to have it perfect but its nice to see you getting all the info before hand good luck

[melbatoast]

rocks are a good idea, they give the snake something to rub up against when it is shedding. They look nice too. Just so long as they are not to huge and could possibly get knocked over and crush the snake. :)

[vanderkm]

The most critical thing for a baby corn is a tight fitting lid for your enclosure - that is the big advantage of rubbermaid tubs over tanks from my perspective - but a 10 gallon tank will be fine for a corn until about 4-6 months of age - depending on how much you feed it and how fast it grows. I suggest the screen lids that fit into the top of the tank rather than the wire ones with a door - unless you weight the door down the baby corns can squeeze through. They can easily climb straight up the corners of the tank and often hide under the lip of the tank.

Second most critical thing is an accurate thermometer - the digital indoor-outdoor ones with the probe are great because you can place the probe at various places in the tank to make sure of what the temp is over the hot spot.

An undertank heater on a dimmer switch works great - if they don't have a dimmer they get too hot!! and these don't use much power so can be on for 24 hours. Get one that only covers about 1/3 to half the floor of the tank.

Baby corns love to climb - your idea for branches sounds great and glue guns work fine as long as the glue has time to cure - but silicone for aquariums may give you longer lasting seals. I avoid rocks because if they are uneven there is a chance the little guys can get stuck under one.

Puppy water dishes work great for hides - those with the holes under the side - the snake can easily crawl under them and they curl up wedged into a dark, tight place that helps them feel secure. If you put the water dish half over the head pad, they have a choice of locations under the dish that gives them a good variety of temps.

Paper towel is great for hatchlings - easy to clean and quite absorbant - and mice don't stick to it - so no danger of the snake eating bedding and having problems from that.

Good luck with your new corn - they are great snakes and highly addictive.

mary v.

[Snake_Griffin]

Sorry for not replying in a while, damn internet was down for a couple days!

Thanks for all your helpful tips and ideas.

For a corn would any of you recomend a digi. thermometer with a hygrometer. Or should I just spray the tank down if I see its getting too dry.

I'll probably look for some rocks that have a flat side and can't be tipped over easily if it would help the shedding.

Thanks again everybody fro your help.

[vanderkm]

We don't find humidity to be a big issue for corns - even here were it is very dry most of the time - lucky if we get above 30% in the snake room. We try to make sure there is a moist environment when they are nearing a shed - in those in the rack a large waterdish provides lots of internal humidity. For those in tanks, we provide a humid hide when they are close to shedding. Have never found spraying to help for very long - moisture evaporates very fast from a spray unless the enclosure has limited ventilation.

Rocks have been reported to help with shedding - we find that most of our guys start their shed just fine by rubbing their nose along the corner of the cage or on the waterdish - doesn't need to be a rough surface at all. I try and keep the number of items in a cage to a minimum because it is harder to keep them clean, but rocks can be fine if you like the look - just want to confirm that the snake doesn't need them to shed.

mary v.

[Snake_Griffin]

Thanks mary, now that I think about it I probably won't need the rocks right now, maybe when my bigger tank is set up I'll throw some in for decoration.