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MightyMouse
Snake Mite
United Kingdom
43 Posts |
 Posted - 05/04/2011 : 09:41:40
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This is Matilda, ive had her for 3 days now. She is apparently 5-ish years old, 3-ish foot long, female corn snake.
I got her off my nephew who has had her for about a year and is now bored an cant be bothered. Shes in a 3 foot viv. Ive been doing a bit of reserch cuz im not clued up on snakes much at all. I have changed the wood shavings for aspen yesterday. and bought a heat mat and stat to use instead of the 40w wilkos bulb. (will replace the lighting for a LED strip soon as i can fugure out how the wires work (or ill have to buy a car battery to run em off lol)
So a few questions...
Is she about to shed? Her eyes look a funny colour to me ive read they go milky blue before a shed but since ive only had her 3 days i dont know what colour her eyes are usually? Apparently she had a mouse 2 days before i picked her up an my nephew said he feeds her once a month, ive read it should be every 2 weeks? should i try her again in 2 weeks after she has possably shed?
Shes real nervous hiding in her log constantly. she came out for 5 mins to have a warm the first night here an thats all we have seen of her. (she did come out in the night last night cuz i got up this morning to some right smelly poop. Im guessing pooping is a good sign lol
My biggest question really is the heat mat set up. running it without the aspen on top it was a nice consistant temp of 30 with the aspen ontop of it the thermomiter (lay on top of the aspen) reads lower, if i turn the mat up to about 32 or 33 so it reads 30 ontop on the aspen would it burn her if the substrate moves an she lays directly on the mat?
Or would it be even better to lay a sanded smooth slate roofing tile directly ontop of the mat an read the temp from the slate surface that was she wont be able to directly touch the mat regardless of how hot that has to be to get the right surface temp?
I really dont want to burn her but at the same time i dont want her to be too cold. what should i do for the best?
Sorry for the long post. normally i would have reserched like mad before getting her but i didnt know i was getting her till i had her.
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Spreebok
Sub Adult
United Kingdom
1135 Posts |
Posted - 05/04/2011 : 10:45:16
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Mat heat: Heat it so the mat itself is 30, and sprinkle a thin layer of aspen on top. If she's not getting enough heat with the apsen on it, she'll move it out the way :)
From the picture she looks like she might shed, the eyes have gone cloudy, so she could be about to. Some morphs of corn dont go 'in blue' as such, like my Snow Corn, instead he goes slightly pinker, especially behind his eyes.
Hiding: Thats pretty much normal! Snakes aren't massively active, so you wont see so much of them, like you would a gerbil or something. Have you got a hide on both the warm and cold end? They need somewhere to hide on both ends, so they can warm up/cool down and feel safe whilst doing so :) My corn has 2 coconut hides, an exoterra hide and a long kitchen roll tube at the back (he prefers the roll of course lol!)
As for feeding, I'd see if she takes it every two weeks, and moniter her weight. If she starts piling on the pounds quite rapidly, decrease it again. 2 weeks is a good time, thats how often I feed mine :) |
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Mamma
Fully Grown Corn
United Kingdom
4494 Posts |
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MightyMouse
Snake Mite
United Kingdom
43 Posts |
Posted - 05/04/2011 : 11:45:49
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| Thanks for the replys. She has 3 hides, one on the mat one at the cold end an one in the middle. an yeah shs come out of her box an moved the aspen an is lay directly on the heat pad now lol think im gonna use some slate with aspen around it. I might try picking her up today, ive not touched her yet been trying to let her settle in. |
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mikerichards
don't say the 'M' word!
United Kingdom
2901 Posts |
Posted - 05/04/2011 : 16:53:30
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Whats your heatmat setup? do you have a stat on it? 30 isnt the end of the world, but a better all round temp is about 28, 30 is a bit hot for a permanent setup.
Bedding wise, easiest way is the place the heatmat on the base, cover the mat with aspen, then have a digi thermometer and the stat probe elastic banded together, and placed directly on the mat, dont use any kind of sellotape or similar, it will cause issues!
Shes in blue, she will clear up first, then she will shed a couple of days later, once she has done that, you can think about fedding her again.
You are right though, every 2 weeks is ideal, once a month is a little too sporadic.
Hiding away, thats normal for any snake really, doesnt matter what species, corns are most active at dusk and dawn, they are the hunting hours, and their basking hours too, so i would expect slightly more activity about that sort of time.
I personally wouldnt cover the mat with the slate, for a start you dont need to, and secondly, more importantly, heat mats are designed to work with airflow, taking that away can cause some serious hotspots which might not be controllable with the stat. |
Location : Worthing, West Sussex
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eeji
The Morph Master
United Kingdom
4335 Posts |
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Newbie
Yearling
950 Posts |
Posted - 05/04/2011 : 19:25:52
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| Bonny girl |
1.0.0 Carolina Motley Cornsnake - Vin, 0.1.0 Brazilian Rainbow Boa - Rio, 0.1.0 IJJ Carpet Python - Luna, 0.1.0 Dwarf Sunfire Reticulated Python - Helia, 1.0.0 Royal Python - Jasper, 0.1.0 Spaniel - Jess; RIP Gypsy - a beautiful girl through and through, 0.1.0 Rabbit - Binky, RIP Indy, Jan 2010 - Aug 2011, and Ace, Jan 2009 - Aug 2011 |
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lotabob
Fully Grown Corn
United Kingdom
4334 Posts |
Posted - 05/04/2011 : 19:45:56
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Beautiful snake and well done you giving it a new home and changing the setup to better suit the snakes needs.
I too would suggest that 28 degrees seems to be the better temperature for the heat mat, I find anything hotter than that and the snake will just spend all its time in the cold end and that causes problems with digestion etc and I'm sure you've done your research and know the importance of a thermostat to help you achieve the right temperature and also to protect the snake from burns. Be aware that shops for some reason play down the importance of this essential piece of equipment, don't let them talk you out of it (they may try).
Shedding is an amazing process, but the first time is all about been dragged along for the ride, just make a note of key changes you notice and next time you'll be able to spot them and know whats coming next. And as always have a good read through all the stickies in each subject, they are full of info you need to know or may need to know in the future.
Good luck with the set up and the shed. I'll look forward to shiny snake pics soon enough. |
Anery Corn snake SPOT. Royal Python, DUKE. Hogg Island Boa, SANKE. Albino House Snake, HAL.
Harlequin Crested Gecko HARLEY
Albino Horned Frog WAKA
Chilean Rose Tarantula TRIXIE. Brazilian Salmon Pink Bird-eating Tarantula SAM. Orange Baboon Tarantula BORIS.
Giant Asian Forest Scorpion, SALLY.
Giant African Land Snails, SHELDON & MICHELLE.
Budwing Mantis, MAIA
Dubia Roach Colony. Silkworm Colony. Mealworm Colony. Waxworm Colony. Fruit Beetle Colony.
MY YOUTUBE CHANNEL http://www.youtube.com/user/alocheeky |
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MightyMouse
Snake Mite
United Kingdom
43 Posts |
Posted - 05/04/2011 : 19:56:21
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Bought a new 17x11 mat and pulse stat. mats running at about 28 now without any slate. ill invest ina digital thermometer very soon an do the laggy band thing an use the needle arm thermometer at the cool end. I wont use the slate ontop of the mat i didnt realise about the air flow thing.
Her eyes cleared up this afternoon and yes they are now orange/red.
not so sure shes a dusk /dawn girl more like a 10am /5pm lol im sure it will settle down now her light wont be on 24/7
How do i weigh her? is it a pillow case on the kitchen scales job? or will this scare her? is there a less stressful way? |
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Edited by - MightyMouse on 05/04/2011 19:57:53 |
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lotabob
Fully Grown Corn
United Kingdom
4334 Posts |
Posted - 05/04/2011 : 21:00:54
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| You can use a pillow but all mine just sit in a plastic tub while been weighed. If you use the same tub and lid you can weigh it, write its weight on the side and then you just stick tub and snake on the scales and deduct the tub weight away, saves any faffing zeroing the scales with the tub and lid (if they are digital scales they tend to switch off if left). |
Anery Corn snake SPOT. Royal Python, DUKE. Hogg Island Boa, SANKE. Albino House Snake, HAL.
Harlequin Crested Gecko HARLEY
Albino Horned Frog WAKA
Chilean Rose Tarantula TRIXIE. Brazilian Salmon Pink Bird-eating Tarantula SAM. Orange Baboon Tarantula BORIS.
Giant Asian Forest Scorpion, SALLY.
Giant African Land Snails, SHELDON & MICHELLE.
Budwing Mantis, MAIA
Dubia Roach Colony. Silkworm Colony. Mealworm Colony. Waxworm Colony. Fruit Beetle Colony.
MY YOUTUBE CHANNEL http://www.youtube.com/user/alocheeky |
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Mort13
Fully Grown Corn
United Kingdom
5599 Posts |
Posted - 05/04/2011 : 21:23:15
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I too put mine in a tub for weighing. I use the same tub for feeding them in too so I can weigh them and then follow on with the feed.
Congrats on your new addition by the way.  |
      
3.1.0 Corn snakes, 1.0.0 T-Albino Cape House Snake, 0.1.0 Western Hognose,
1.0.0 MBK, 0.1.0 Childrens Python, 1.0.0 Nicaraguan Dwarf Boas
0.0.1 Occelated Skink, 1.0.0 Leopard Gecko, 1.0.3 Tarantulas, 0.0.2 Damon diadema
1.0.0 C0ckatiel,
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MightyMouse
Snake Mite
United Kingdom
43 Posts |
Posted - 08/04/2011 : 14:48:10
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| Hahaha im such a girl an subsequently have no idea about lengths!! Since my origional post Matilda has settled in more and stretched out the full length of her viv an a bit around the corner so i can now say she is about 4.5 feet almost a 5 footer. Thats a bit more then i was expecting lol |
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mikerichards
don't say the 'M' word!
United Kingdom
2901 Posts |
Posted - 11/04/2011 : 20:36:15
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quote:
Originally posted by MightyMouse
Hahaha im such a girl an subsequently have no idea about lengths!! Since my origional post Matilda has settled in more and stretched out the full length of her viv an a bit around the corner so i can now say she is about 4.5 feet almost a 5 footer. Thats a bit more then i was expecting lol
froma blokes perspective, all i can say is 6 inches is more than you think  |
Location : Worthing, West Sussex
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gingerpony
Queen Bee
United Kingdom
10455 Posts |
Posted - 11/04/2011 : 21:20:23
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quote:
Originally posted by mikerichards
froma blokes perspective, all i can say is 6 inches is more than you think
from a girls perspective, 6" is probably about 15cms.........and men are disappointing  |
cornsnakes, ratsnakes, bullsnakes, boas and day geckos
Location:Leeds/York/Selby area |
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Mole
Hatchling
United Kingdom
121 Posts |
Posted - 11/04/2011 : 22:40:02
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| Ha ha I dont know the most innocent of posts can be turned around to play out the best inuendo's (excuse the spelling) Congrats on your new addition and glad your enjoying the experience of being a new snake keeper Im sure you will find out that one inevitably leads to another and maybe you will have more before you know it and hi to the forum too |
1.0.0 corn snake Striker
1.0.0 dog Merlo
0.1.0 rabbit Sparkle
0.2.0 Cats Skid and Whizz |
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DJRenegade
Egg
United Kingdom
80 Posts |
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mewbie needing advice.
