New Hatchling

[Ranman]

I just bought a male snow last week at the show, he is very alert, loves to explore and very docile ( I just raise Bearded Dragons) so this is a little new to me. I just want to make sure I have everything right. Right now he is in a 20 gal. tank, 85.1' on hot side and 72.2' on cool side, 2 hides one in hot and one in cold side. He is on the zoo med eco earth (compressed coconut fibre and has a small water dish, which gets changed every dat with spring water. Thw big question is am I doing things right? and should I change anything?

Second question - how often should I feed him? He ate 1 F/T pinkie Saturday morning with no problems - any special way to prepare his food - just room temp or slightly warmed, I hear some prefer to make a couple slits down the back - and how often should I feed him? I have read many varying opinions - anywhere from 3-5 days to just once a week - and do they prefer mornings or evenings?

Here are a few pics of the little guy;

http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b397/cjrandall/DSC01399.jpg

and his first meal with us;

http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b397/cjrandall/DSC01405.jpg

Any feedback or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks Chris

[bassteck76]

You are on the right track here for sure. I would feed him one pinky once a week till there is some size on him then switch to 2 pinks every two weeks....depending on how fast you want him to grow. I feed my snow 2 pinks every two weeks for nice steady growth without outgrowing the tank....LOL.....Temps are good....20 gallon is a little big for a juvie corn but with plenty of hides he should be fine. Hope this is of some value.

[Ranman]

Thank You for answering - all comments are welcomed - its just so hard to figure out the "right" thing to do - everyone has their own opinion - I just want to make sure the little guy is healthy and happy - I will try that feeding schedule with him to see if that works with him - and what exactly do you mean by bigger size or will I just tell myself when its time.

Thanks Again

Chris

[dannyc]

I got a female that's 15 months and a male that's 14 months. I've been feeding mine a little more than that.

I fed them 1 f/t pinky every 6 days for awhile and then went to every 5 days for awhile. Then after they had some size(about 4 months) and seemed to suck the 1 down pretty fast, I went to 2 every 6 days. They can go a long time without food but I wanted them to grow so I wanted to make sure they were getting all they wanted. I have been told snakes will not over eat so if they will eat more than why not.

On the temp of the prey, I use water that's hot to the touch (not boiling) and let it stay in that untill the water starts to cool(maybe 15 min.). The prey should be thawed by then. Then I put it in hot water again so that the prey is warm (like a live animal), warmer than room temp or slightly warm to the touch.

[new addiction r]

First of all you should feed prey that is suitable size for your snake.as soon as you figure that your snke will take 2 pinkies then I would switch it up to fuzzies and so on . Remember that snake will take prey up to 1 1/2 times their body size. As far as the tank goes YES it is overkill for a baby but your snake will grow fast for the fist year of its life. That tank will most likely last your snake 2 years.The temp is excellent. Your tank sounds like it was done by someone who cares about their animal and the fact that you are asking questions is AWESOME. Keep asking questions and you will learn alot.

[crittermom]

Sure sounds good to me but I'm still a newbie......I am so thankful for these websites. I am getting a snow any second now LOL.....waiting on the UPS truck as I type....I am getting 3 snakes actually.....a snow, anery and a ghost....I currently have an albino (according to the shop I got it....I think he looks more creamsicle but not sure, got to learn that genetic stuff but since this one came from a shop without any paper work I guess I will never know). I chose a breeder for the other 3. I also will be getting 2 normals soon.....I think this is my snake limit!!

[crittermom]

I guess is should say new to CORN snakes lol I do have ball python experience......(1 male)

[snappa]

Looks like you got a nice little snow there.In regards to feeding him I would feed him appropriate sized meals every 3-4 days.If you got a good temp. gradient where the snake can thermoregulate feeding him often will do no damage.Small amounts more often is the safest.I've been breeding snakes for sometime and I like to beef mine up a little quicker but its up to you, either way its all good.The temp.gradient should be 85-88 on the warm end and around room temp. on the cool, but corns really aren't to fussy as long as the place they are in is at least room temp.Don't get me wrong though a thermal gradient is recommended for an optimal set up and will give your new snake the best conditions.They are pretty hardy guys and you should have no problems.Remember your snake might not eat when it's in shed so don't fret.I mention this because I always get calls where people say my snake won''t eat about a month or so after they buy them.As a hatchling and juv. your snake will probably shed about once a month or so ,give or take a few days.Best of luck to you and buy the sounds of it you will do great with him.

[camille]

He is on the zoo med eco earth (compressed coconut fibre and has a small water dish, which gets changed every dat with spring water. Thw big question is am I doing things right? and should I change anything?

Second question - how often should I feed him? He ate 1 F/T pinkie Saturday morning with no problems - any special way to prepare his food - just room temp or slightly warmed, I hear some prefer to make a couple slits down the back - and how often should I feed him? I have read many varying opinions - anywhere from 3-5 days to just once a week - and do they prefer mornings or evenings?



Ok here are some ofmy suggestions. first dont use coconut mulch. it could cause some rotting on the scales(i will get some people arguing with me but hey). The best you can use is aspen shaving or just putting him on paper towel. its safer that way. Also you can feed him in the tank when on paper towel or newspaper.You should feed him every 6-7 days since hes a baby. I also suggest a humidity hide. Some people dont use it but ihave NEVER had a bad shed and lots of the snakes i have came here with a black tail due to bad sheds. Just put a plastic container with a hole in the top and cut some blocks of thick sponge and place them into the container and spray with water. They will soak in there and get the humidity they need and you dont have to spray the tank all the time. I even have a pic of mine here(the container doesent have to be very big either

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v398/Camilles_home/digital%20camera/IMAGE089.jpg

Also for the feeding. you can feed every 5 days but under that it will be OVERKILL. 6 days is recomended because its not too high or too low. For the slits down the back you dont need to. and the size of brey si the roundness of the biggest part of the snakes body. What i do to thaw my mice is put the in a bowl with hot water and let them thaw then i take the water out when its thawed and put more warm water for a minut or two and then dry the mouse with a paper towel and then feed to snake. ANd day or night doesent matter unless your snake is a picky eater. Again as i always say. I suggest you buy the cornsnake manual by kathy love. EVERYTHING is covered in that book

here are some pictures ofmy set-up.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v398/Camilles_home/digital%20camera/IMAGE086.jpg

and my snakes ;)(have to show them off)

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v398/Camilles_home/digital%20camera/IMAGE084.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v398/Camilles_home/digital%20camera/IMAGE073.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v398/Camilles_home/digital%20camera/IMAGE099.jpg

And getting 2 more corns and a 2 kingsnakes soon.

[jkitchens1980]

I agree with camille on aspen bedding. In my experience, corns seem to do great on aspen and usually like to borrow in it. It's just my opinion and maybe it's something you may want to try. I buy a package that is 20 liters and expands to 50 liters and it costs about $10. It will do your 20gal about 6 times. I also do the humidity hide @ shed time. Goodluck with your corn..........

[camille]

I have the humidity hide there all the time. it helps with prevention of dehydration.But make shure to clean it from time to time. they like to pee and deffecate in it.

[jkitchens1980]

I've never had a dehydration problem with corns. I keep the humidity @ 40-50%........seems to work well for me..... :sun:

[camille]

Yeah but with a humidity hide you dont need to worry about spraying the tank all the time. if they want humidity theill just go into their hide

[NYPD70]

I think for the most part you're doing fine, with the exception of the coconut fibre substrate. I personally prefer paper towels or newspaper which isn't the nicest to look at but they're practical, inexpensive and you'll never have to worry about the risk of ingestion causing impaction. As far as feeding frequency I usually feed once every four to five days (pinkies, fuzzies, crawlers then hoppers). When the animal is large enough to take small weanling mice I switch to once every seven days. When he can take medium to large mice I then switch to once every fourteen days. With regards to humidity, just use a good size water dish and the evaporation will provide sufficient humidity. A humidity hide, or spraying the enclosure as mentioned in a previous post is completely unnecessary for corn snakes. They do not require the high humidity some other species do. These things will only serve to promote bacterial and fungal growth. If the humidity is too low in the enclosure, the animal will soak in the water dish. Good Luck!

[camille]

I just prefer to use a humidity hide so as to be 100% shure i wont have a bad shed. as ive said before 2 out of the 3 snakes i bought had a black tipped tail due to bad sheds because the owners used a water bowl and sprayed from when they were about to shed. The third one was in a rack system in a plastic tub wich keeps humidity up a bit more (I bought her from a breeder). You dont NEED to use a humidity hide. i just find it guarentees you a perfect shed. And who can go wrong with a perfect shed?.

I think for the most part you're doing fine, with the exception of the coconut fibre substrate. I personally prefer paper towels or newspaper which isn't the nicest to look at but they're practical, inexpensive and you'll never have to worry about the risk of ingestion causing impaction. As far as feeding frequency I usually feed once every four to five days (pinkies, fuzzies, crawlers then hoppers). When the animal is large enough to take small weanling mice I switch to once every seven days. When he can take medium to large mice I then switch to once every fourteen days. With regards to humidity, just use a good size water dish and the evaporation will provide sufficient humidity. A humidity hide, or spraying the enclosure as mentioned in a previous post is completely unnecessary for corn snakes. They do not require the high humidity some other species do. These things will only serve to promote bacterial and fungal growth. If the humidity is too low in the enclosure, the animal will soak in the water dish. Good Luck!

[NYPD70]

I have been keeping and breeding snakes for about 15 years now. My collection currently includes 24 corn snakes. I've never had one of my corns have a bad shed. I do agree that high humidity is important for some species (I have my emerald tree boa enclosures on a timed misting system), but cornsnakes will do just fine with nothing more than a decent sized water dish. Maybe the individuals you received your animals from kept their enclosure temperatures too high, or in a location with excessively dry air possibly due to forced air heat or A/C. Whatever the case, if it works for you great! I'm just offering my advice as well and in my opinion a humidity hide for corns is not necessary. I like to keep my set ups as simple as possible, it makes life a whole lot easier. Nice chatting, enjoy your corns!

[camille]

The people i know kept them in tanks. So probably didnt keep in as much humidity when it comes time to shed. *shrugs* I probably wont have humidity hides when i convert my snakes to tubs though. since those are pretty good for humidity

[jkitchens1980]

Quote:
"A humidity hide, or spraying the enclosure as mentioned in a previous post is completely unnecessary for corn snakes. They do not require the high humidity some other species do."


IMO there is nothing wrong with offering a snake a humidity hide as long as it doesn't raise the ambient humidity of the enclosure beyond suggested levels, it's kept clean, and the snake enters and leaves at it's descretion. I also don't recall anyone saying or suggesting that they spray/mist thier enclosure or keeping humidity high. As Camille said "You dont NEED to use a humidity hide. i just find it guarentees you a perfect shed. And who can go wrong with a perfect shed?." Shed time is the only time I use the humidity hide and my corn uses it everytime.
I have been keeping snakes for around 15 years and I do not claim to be a expert,
just a seasoned reptile enthusiast.

Everyone has different results/experiences and I think we are all just trying to share knowledge........or at least that's my intention............

[camille]

Of course. Im just sharing my experrience too.Hope you didnt think i was saying you were wrong in any way.Sometimes i can sand that way but im seriously not :)