My First Snake BRB

[Misk]

Hello everyone, this is my first snake and first post!

I did not intend to own a snake(I am terrified of snakes) but yesterday I went to the local pet shop to look at the salt water fish and as I walked past the reptile aisle I just happened to notice the most beautiful snake sitting in a water dish. I had to have it, so I found some help and they told me that it was a Brazilian Rainbow Boa and that BRBs are a great starter snake. The shop employee gathered some items and told me I had all I needed.

Now a day later after hours and hours of research I'm just confused. Every different web site, has a different care sheet, with different information. also I have come to the conclusion, that the shop employee was just trying to make a sale.

First, I want to let you all know what my snakes home is like and then I have a few question.

10 gal glass tank, 2 inches of cypress mulch, water dish that takes up about 1/3 of the cage, a moisture box with zoo med terrarium moss in it, fake leafs and 2 small sized branches to clime on.

Heat - For heat I have a 60w red bulb and heat pad. On the warm side of the cage its about it at about 82 degrees the cool side is about 76 these numbers went down about 2 degrees last night, but I left the bulb on and there is a branch that lets him bask directly under it.

Humidity - This is where I'm having a problem the guy sold me a glass tank with a screen top. I cut a plastic container lid up and covered the top except for directly under the light. I misted the tank about 4 times yesterday the substrate is wet and the water dish is full. I also set a room humidifier next to the tank. Still the humidity is only at 70-75 in the corner away from the lamp and directly under the lamp its only 55-60. also I cant just mist the tank more if anything I will do it less tomorrow when i have to go to work.

I would like to know if any of you have a glass tank with a screen top and how you keep it humid. If I cant use the glass tank, do you guys have any links to a suitable cage for a BRB that I can buy? Is my heating good, do i need anything else in the cage for my BRB?

Also the very first thing my BRB did yesterday, was burrow under the cypress mulch and stay there all day. I was very worried, but today he was out hanging from the branch, is burrowing normal for a BRB?

[RyanReptile]

I would try getting rid of the heat lamp all together it dries up the air in the tank and your humidity should be much more stable a heat pad should be able to keep the heated needed for a brb.

[Misk]

Thanks for the reply Ryan, so I turned off the lamp and put the thermometer in the substrate. the temp has decreased to 80 and its mid day so I think I'm going to need a better heat mat. Right now I have a Zilla heat mat for 10-20 gallon tanks, Any recommendations on a better one? Also for my fish tanks I have heaters that self regulate and turn on or off if the temperature of the water is to hot or cold, is there anything like that for temperature and humidity in a terrarium? I would be willing to buy a new tank that holds humidity better if anyone has recommendations. But I am a little OCD and don't want to put my BRB in a plastic container.

[TheSuppishOne]

Ultratherm and Euro-Rep's Habistat are the two good UTHs.

[bcr229]

We have a BRB. While he's an awesome little snake, I don't think they're snakes for first-time owners since the young ones can be a little nippy, and as you're finding out it's a bit harder to keep them in the proper environment without the correct enclosure. So as you pointed out, someone was just trying to make a sale at the expense of you and the animal. Please don't go back to that store.

As for your husbandry, you're just fighting the laws of physics here, and losing.

First, I agree with losing the lamp. The only time we use the one on our BRB's enclosure is if we're trying to find him, or we're spot-cleaning. Otherwise it stays off.

Next, I would put a cover on top of the cage, either aluminum foil to slow down the air exchange, or a wet bath towel to slow down the air exchange/heat loss and increase the humidity.

We use a heat pad controlled by a UTH set to 83*F as you don't want it much hotter in there. Our cool side runs 72-74*F at the surface and it's where our BRB spends most of his time.

We also have a "humid hide" on both the warm and cool sides, basically a hide filled with wet spaghnum moss that he can burrow into. Initially we tried using the wooden hides for this but they started to harbor mold after a few weeks, so now we have plastic ones.

We bed all our snakes on cypress, even the older pythons and boas turn into king snakes overnight when we change it out every month - they love it and burrow right down into it.

As you saw in your pics, BRB's climb very well. Ours loves to hang around in the fake vines at night.

[RyanReptile]

Most of my heating is done by either heat tape or cable but I do have a exo terra heat pad controlled by a thermostat and it works pretty good. :) The cage you have now should be fine as it is now as long as you cover up most of the screen to hold the humidity in.

[SnakeyJay]

If your only going to be using a heat matt, please be aware that the cold end temp will be whatever your temp is. Heat matts do nothing to heat the air so I'd worry about ambiant temps..

[Misk]

Alright so I bought a Ultratherm heat mat(thanks TheSuppishOne), along with a thermostat that I will set at 83. Also I got a room thermostat to control my space heater I will keep that next to my tank set at 74 thanks for the heads up about my room temp Snakey-Jay. I also added a humid-hide to the cool side, as I only had one on the warm side thanks bcr229 for letting me know how you are set up.

To bcr229 thanks for all the info, when you say aluminum would I poke holes in the aluminum? or with a towel would it cover the entire top of the tank or would I leave a bit of space for air to move in and out? I realize I want to keep moisture in but I also don't really know how much fresh air a snake needs.

All the stuff i ordered will be in on Thursday, so for the time being i'm still using the lamp since i'm afraid of the temp dropping to low with out it. but the humidity has stabilized at about 78ish.

So I am anxiously waiting to see my BRB eat its first meal this Saturday. But before the time comes I need to know, I have read on all the care sheets to feed frozen or fresh killed, but when I was at the store the guy told me they have only fed all their snakes live food. So should I try feeding dead mice and then if its denied try live, or just avoid live food altogether?

[bcr229]

I would just foil the whole top. It won't make a tight enough seal that he'll suffocate.

Can't help on the feeding, ours came eating f/t and we never deviated from it. There are tons of threads on transitioning from feeding live to f/t.

I can say that mine only eats every 10-14 days so don't worry if he doesn't eat immediately.

[RyanReptile]

You should always try feeding f/t first make sure the rodent is warm when you offer it to him and if he is hesitant you could try exposing some of the brain sometimes this works. Another method I have heard is to just leave the rodent in the cage over night and most of the time they will eat. Best of luck :)

[Trollbie]

I had mine in a glass tank with a screen top for a year. What I did is got a sheet of plexi glass that fits the top and drilled 10 air holes on each side. Worked like a charm! I also had a couple live terrarium plants in there. That might have helped. But I only had to mist like once a week

[Snakesitter]

Welcome Misk, and congrats on the acquisition. I breed rainbows, and can tell you they make wonderful pets…but are not usually the best choice for someone just getting their first snake, unless they have done the research and prep first.

You are correct that the care sheets on the web all tend to contradict each other. Thankfully, you seem to have figured out the right ranges for temp and humidity, so are in good shape.

Temps should range from a high end of 82F to a low end of 72F, and as several other commenters have pointed out, are best provided by a device other than bulb. In addition to undercage options, radiant heat panels also work. I use 82F to give me a safety buffer – temps of over 85F can kill this species if the animal cannot escape, so I leave a margin of error in case something goes wrong.

Humidity for a baby rainbow should be over 90%. You can get there with your setup, but will need to modify a few things. One, get a piece of plexiglass from the store cut to the same size as your lid. Use this as your new top from then on. You should not need holes, but if you feel better with them, add a pair every few days -- it’s much easier to add than take away. Two, move the water dish (which you correctly used a large model for!) so that is partly over the heat, as this will promote evaporation. Three, try and find sphagnum moss for the moist hide. It holds up better than any other type in the humid conditions this species likes. You substrate choice is find; when the rest of these variables are improved, you should only have to mist it every now and then. I mist mine twice a week. When you do mist, aim for damp, not wet.

It is perfectly normal for a rainbow -- especially a nervous new arrival -- to burrow and hide.

Try offering frozen thawed food and see if he will take it. Most rainbows will. Just make sure to heat it up (put it in a bag in hot water) until piping hot and offer on tongs so you can wiggle it. You may get a better response if you offer meals at dusk or dawn, which is when these snakes are most active.

Good luck, and again congrats!

[Misk]

Hey, thanks for the welcoming post and wealth of information Snakesitter! A big thanks to you and Trollbie for the plexiglass idea, I read your posts earlier this week but was just to busy to thank you guys at the time. So i did order the plexiglass and it came in today, along with my heat mat and thermostat!

I think I finally have a suitable home for my BRB! I took it out and held it for a about 25 mins and then put it in a box to feed while I set up the upgraded home! The f/t was snatched from the tweezers without a moments hesitation, so i guess that settles the feeding issue.

I have read all over the internet that BRBs are nippy at a young age but mine did not show any signs of it tonight. I'm not sure my snake has much practice climbing, it would not hold on to my fingers or arm tight enough and kept almost sliding off!

Anyways the temperature on the warm side is 82 and the cool side is 74 right now. the Humidity is still a little low but its at 80 and slowly rising as the water evaporates. I have not misted it yet it just went from 50 to 80 by closing the lid and turning on the heat mat! I also set a lamp to the side of the tank on a 12 hour cycle to emulate night and day.

Thank you all for helping me get set up! My BRB and I are extremely grateful!

For my question of the day is it hard to sex a baby BRB, I would love to learn the sex so I can name it and start saying he or she. Oh also about how long would you all say is to long to handle a baby brb? I was unsure and did not keep it out as long as I would have liked, since i did not want to cause unnecessary stress.

[Trollbie]

Hey, thanks for the welcoming post and wealth of information Snakesitter! A big thanks to you and Trollbie for the plexiglass idea, I read your posts earlier this week but was just to busy to thank you guys at the time. So i did order the plexiglass and it came in today, along with my heat mat and thermostat!

I think I finally have a suitable home for my BRB! I took it out and held it for a about 25 mins and then put it in a box to feed while I set up the upgraded home! The f/t was snatched from the tweezers without a moments hesitation, so i guess that settles the feeding issue.

I have read all over the internet that BRBs are nippy at a young age but mine did not show any signs of it tonight. I'm not sure my snake has much practice climbing, it would not hold on to my fingers or arm tight enough and kept almost sliding off!

Anyways the temperature on the warm side is 82 and the cool side is 74 right now. the Humidity is still a little low but its at 80 and slowly rising as the water evaporates. I have not misted it yet it just went from 50 to 80 by closing the lid and turning on the heat mat! I also set a lamp to the side of the tank on a 12 hour cycle to emulate night and day.

Thank you all for helping me get set up! My BRB and I are extremely grateful!

For my question of the day is it hard to sex a baby BRB, I would love to learn the sex so I can name it and start saying he or she. Oh also about how long would you all say is to long to handle a baby brb? I was unsure and did not keep it out as long as I would have liked, since i did not want to cause unnecessary stress.

I got my BRB as a baby, and he was the sweetest and most previous little thing. A year later, he's my smallest snake but the only one I have to use a hook with. He turned sketchy on me lol. He's fine once he's out though.

[Snakesitter]

Like any pet, each rainbow has its own distinct personality. Some start and stay bitey, some never are, and most are nippy for the first few weeks and then learn hands are not a bad thing.

I've also learned that some babies have a much better sense of self-preservation (holding on) than others...lol! Just be careful and he/she will be fine.

Your setup sounds good, and the addition of the lamp to mimic the daylight cycle is sound. However, I'd set it across the room rather than right next to the tank, as this species does not like bright light.

There are three main ways to sex baby snakes: probing (dangerous in the wrong hands), popping (safer, but still somewhat invasive), and palpitating (the least invasive of the three). All three, however, require a fair bit of practice to get them down for certain. I would ask a local store or herp club to check for you. Failing that, I would search for a Youtube clip on palpitating and (carefully) follow its advice.

Handling for short periods is fine, though I would avoid doing so the day before and several days after feeding. Your snake will let you know when it is "done" via its behavior -- getting flighty/squirmy or even bitey are all signs. Ten to fifteen minutes is usually a good starting length, which can be built on over time.

Good luck!

[Misk]

Hey guys, it has been a while since my last post and i just want to make an update post. So far so good, my BRB has eaten 3 meals and I just switched it to a rat pinkie for the last feeding. The humidity stays a constant 85 and more in the 2 humid hides. Also my BRB just had its first shed about 2 nights ago! The skin was looking kind of shiny and fake that day and when I woke up in the morning there were 2 peices of shed one next to the water bowl and the other in the fake leafs.

I am now seeing why brbs have a reputation for being nippy at young ages, I have been struck at 3 times twice while trying to pick it up and once when it was in my hands and I made to quick of a movement. but I do not think any of the times it meant to latch on they were just quick nips to scare me off.

[Misk]

Oh also here are a few pictures, they are not the best quality and don't do much justice, but they will do.

[smy_749]

Oh also here are a few pictures, they are not the best quality and don't do much justice, but they will do.

He is very pretty, and lighter than alot of the ones I've seen. I don't know much about BRBs for the people who see the post, thats my disclaimer. But does he not look almost like a hypo in that first pic?

[Valvaren]

He is very pretty, and lighter than alot of the ones I've seen. I don't know much about BRBs for the people who see the post, thats my disclaimer. But does he not look almost like a hypo in that first pic?

And as you can see everything else in the first pic is terrible discolored. Hypos have no black.

Nice looking brb he'll get darker as he grows, I remember when I brought mine home they were very light, now they are more dark and rich.

[Snakesitter]

Yes, baby rainbows can be bitey little things. The snake will outgrow it quickly though, so long as you continue to handle regularly and without fear. Great-looking animal, by the way!!!