Diamond python heating

[Skeptic]

But getting back to original statement that got me involved in this thread in the first place, to suggest that diamonds don`t know to move out of a basking spot that is too hot is just ridiculous. And I`m sure Nick would agree.

How is it ridiculous? A python won't even move off a surface that will literally physically burn it until damage is done. Why would a diamond move away from a basking spot of 32?

The point was that the temperature and duration of the basking spot should be controlled and not left up to the snake. This seems to be of particular importance with diamonds as long term exposure to warmer temps is correlated with DPS, while other carpets seem to do perfectly well with 24/7 heat.

 

[Norm]

Andy, that enclosure looks great IMO, exactly what I was talking about.
Skeptic, if a diamond isn`t moving away from a basking spot maybe its because it doesn`t want to, or feels it hasn`t had enough warmth yet? I haven`t had any experience with burnt snakes ( touch wood) but I`ve lost count of the number of times I`ve layed out in the sun thinking how nice it was only to find that night that I`m burnt to a crisp. Felt good at the time though! Probably totally different, I don`t know. Of the 3 pure diamonds I have they all get the same heat for the same duration and they all use it differently. They all move in and out of the basking spot as they please and rarely stay under it for the duration it is on. Most times my two females only bask for an hour or two and retreat back to their cool hide.
I don`t want to get in a debate about it, its just my opinion that if a snake doesn't move out of a basking spot its because it needs/wants to be there.

 

[Bart70]

Trust me, I have diamonds that are given a basking spot of 32 for 4-6hrs during winter and most of the time they`ll only use it for an hour or two and then go back in their cooler hide for the rest of the day. Some days they don`t even bother coming out.

This is an interesting point....

I have an adult MD who does exactly that.......Heat is on for around 8 hrs a day but often she will bask for less than 2 hours then retreat back into her cool hide and curl up for the day, or go curl up in her log in the cool with her head poking out. Sometimes she might come out again later.....other times not.

Whilst I am relatively new to the game, I put it down to them being a 'cooler climate' snake and have adapted over time to not require long heat cycles - Much like the Diamond which is also a cool climate snake.

 

[Norm]

I think we need to give our snakes more credit, Bart. I don't agree with baking a diamond at say 34 for 12 hours a day with a cool end of the hide at say 28! Its logical that we need to provide all our snakes with a decent cool retreat. But sometimes maybe we think we know what the snakes needs more than it does. Whether a snake has a basking spot of 30 or 32 probably means it will spend a little less or more time basking, we`re not talking about a bask of 40 degrees, we`re talking about a difference of 2 degrees.