| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| MurdochP1983 |
Posted - 06/12/2011 : 13:45:39
Hi there
Sorry, just have a couple more questions.
I have been reading up on feeding Corn Snakes and it seems people have different methods. Some folks recommend feeding the Corn Snake in a separate container so that it does not confuse your hand with food when you try and handle it and others are happy to feed it in it's tank and will use a plate to put the food on if the substrate used could cause digestion problems. What method do most board members use?
Also, was just interested in the energy costs. I emailed one website a while ago and they responsed and said that the energy cost of keeping a snake is similar to leaving to the cost of leaving a lightbulb on for most of the day. Is that accurate?
Many thanks for your help
Paul |
| 16 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| kdlang |
Posted - 08/12/2011 : 11:08:57
How I feed mine depends on the snake and how much time I have. Some are fed in their vivs all the time as they wont eat out of it. Some I feed on a sheet on the floor and some in seperate rubs. I have never had a problem with my hand being associated with feeding except for the time I went to remove a piece of kitchen roll that one of my corns had been fed on. Even though it was the following day I was bitten and I'm guessing that moving the kitchen roll wafted the stale smell of mouse off of it |
| MurdochP1983 |
Posted - 07/12/2011 : 16:22:52
Thanks again for the responses guys, very helpful. Cheers for the enery calc formula Eeji, a very affordable final figure :). |
| eeji |
Posted - 06/12/2011 : 21:41:21
none of mine get a separate tub for feeding as they are all on a suitable substrate for their age and size.
A single heat mat costs way less than a single light bulb. One bulb = 60w, one heat mat (17" x 11") = 20w so thats a third less already. Then you need to take the thermostat into account which itself takes negligible power but because of how they work they half the amount of time the mat is on.
If you want to work it out accurately and you know how much a unit of electricity costs you (one unit = 1KWh) its easy to do:
w = your heat mat wattage
c = cost of one unit of electricity
(c / 1000) * w * 12 = total daily cost (the 12 represents 12 hours use because its plugged into the stat)
eg. a 20w mat on a 6p/unit tarriff = around 1.5p a day :) |
| Midge |
Posted - 06/12/2011 : 19:51:26
I used to feed mine on a big piece of cork bark he had in his faun. He's getting more of a forceful strike though so kept knocking it into the substrate. Started to feed him in a tupperware tub and its much better you can see him constrict and really watch him eat clearly. Also stops him eating any substrate by mistake! |
| Vince_the_snake |
Posted - 06/12/2011 : 19:02:29
I feed mine in the viv but I leave it on a large rock so it's safe from substrate. |
| ScalySituation |
Posted - 06/12/2011 : 17:44:15
quote:
Originally posted by nusnakemum
Ernest recognises his faun after feeding in his rub and i gently tip in the corner of the rub and he shoots off to his leaves n warm hide !
i gently tip sonnys feed box (her oold faun) too to get her home, tho she has a habit of tryna get out so we often have to guide her with the stick lol |
| Casta |
Posted - 06/12/2011 : 17:36:51
i feed both mine in a rub. i use their toilet roll tubes etc from their fauns/ RUBs to move them back. their more than happy to wander into them when they're proffered. Easy. |
| Okeetee Mick |
Posted - 06/12/2011 : 17:29:01
All fed in separate containers. |
| nusnakemum |
Posted - 06/12/2011 : 16:36:37
Ernest recognises his faun after feeding in his rub and i gently tip in the corner of the rub and he shoots off to his leaves n warm hide ! |
| Simmy_82 |
Posted - 06/12/2011 : 16:35:07
Like staple i feed mine in a RUB and use that time to weigh, take photos for measuring and give her a good check over. Once shes fed i leave her for 5mins or so, check the faun out, rearrange the mess she's made etc, then just gently tip the RUB back into the faun and let her make her own way out and into her warm hide. |
| Sta~ple |
Posted - 06/12/2011 : 16:29:49
I feed mine in a separate tub, that way I give snake a good look over and stuff before feeding and the amount of times I've put newspaper under mouse and the snake has dragged it off onto the substrate...
I find my corns I pick them up afterwards or 5 mins later and they are fine, or I just kinda gently tip the tub to an open viv door.
Yeah they are bout the same, heatmats are also less electric consuming than reptile bulbs, at least the ones I used. |
| hannah2016 |
Posted - 06/12/2011 : 16:25:20
i feed in the viv, but put a shallow bowl in with the food on it as my corn has never striked. i then get my corn out play with her for a min or two then put her near the bowl. she pretty much knows what to do when she smells/feels the bowl so i just let her get on with it. im pretty successful with it unless she drags it out and on the aspen which doesnt happen very often. she's never mistaken my hand as food and she's never bitten me or striked at me - which i call a win :) |
| MurdochP1983 |
Posted - 06/12/2011 : 15:29:29
Hi guys
Thanks very much for your helpful responses. Will probably get a small tub to feed the snake in as an option. Is it easy enough to get the snake out the viv if they're hungry and likewise back in once they've had a meal.
The energy responses are re-assuring as well, I didn't think it would be too costly, but thought I'd get some more opinions.
Thanks again
Paul |
| Mamma |
Posted - 06/12/2011 : 15:26:13
I have some that feed in the viv (ones that had previou owners) and some that I feed seperately. The ones who eat in vivs, I have tried to rub feed them but they wouldnt eat at all for me, so I eventually left them to viv feed. They started eating again as soon as I did. I havent had any problems with handling them from the viv etc xx |
| Kath |
Posted - 06/12/2011 : 14:53:59
Hi Paul,
We feed Cornelius in a seperate RUB because, as you say, when we put our hand in to pick him up, he won't confuse it with food or being fed & also, we don't want him to swallow any substrate by mistake.
Sometimes when we go in to pick him up, he does have a good sniff at our thumbs first, they'll look a bit like pinkies to him I guess!! 
Yep, my OH said that energy costs of keeping a snake are next to nowt really. |
| a33272 |
Posted - 06/12/2011 : 14:02:35
i feed my corn in a seperate tub that way snake can distinguise whats going on when she gets out. JCP is feed in his viv as he likes to feed hanging off a branch
as for energy cost there right. to give u an idea thermostats are fitted with a 3amp fuse so very low ampage use. a typical size heat mat say 11x17 is 20 watt. i use a 20 watt matt in one viv an 2x60 watt I/R bulbs in another. i looked once at my electric meter to see how much of a differance it made. i turned everything off in the house except the vivs an then turned them off an it barely made any differance to the spinny wheel thing |
