Looking at buying our first snake

[kylie30]

Lol at the birthdays, I told my daughter that this is her present and thats it Lol! One very expensive one.

Does anyone have any suggestions for the tank? I have one big empty tank right now. I was waiting to see what type of snake we would get first then seeing what we needed to buy.

 

[kakariki]

Anterasia don,t climb as such, so a thick forked branch will suffice. Have it wedged (or glued) to a large rock. Both these things will assist at shedding by giving the snake some nice rough surfaces to rub against. A big water bowl will be required also. As far as substrate goes, newspaper is cheapest, fake gass looks nice. Don't use sand as I have heard it gets in between the scales & causes irritation. Jaxrtfm uses large pebbles in her tank ( pics in her Medusa album should help you I reckon.) Make a wooden lid to put the globe into & Id recommend having a light in or near the tank so you can watch the snake. There are some gorgeous set up pic just search enclosures. The ideas are endless, lol. Ours are basic with branches, newpaper & a rock.

 

[shamous1]

Antaresia

In my opinion Antaresia love climbing. All the Antaresia I have owned love to climb up onto the branches and hang down. They are renowned for climbing up onto cave walls in the natural habitat and having a feed of bats that fly out of the cave's.

Antaresia would make a great first snake. They are small and easily handled by someone who is new, such as yourself. How keen is your daughter on snakes? My reason for asking is kids can want things all the time but when it come to doing the work for them they get bored quickly and you might just end up being ghte one who looks after the snake long term.

I'm sure your whole family will be hooked soon enough and you'll be asking what kind of Dragon, Sking or monitor you should get.:lol:

 

[kylie30]

Sounds great about the enclosures. Can you use pegboard as a lid instead of the glass fish tank lids so that they have good airflow?
My daughter has been mad keen on definately wanting a snake for about 5 years now. She has pleanty of other pets that have to be fed twice a day and cages cleaned out once a week and it always gets done. My rule has always been either look after the pet or it goes. I have never had to get rid of one yet. She is good with her jobs like that.

 

[reptilefan95]

Its great to hear that she is very capalble of looking after a pet, as it can be a full time job! Just make sure that before you get the snake, the breeder should give you some records or logs of feeding and shedding, its important to keep those up.

 

[jamesbecker]

lol, you sound a lot like my mum! not wanting a large snake but will do with a small one. she even thinks a full grown childreni is big haha, so im getting a hatchy... on friday little does she know that it will get to 1m

imo, getting a snake takes a lot of information, as there is quiet a bit you need to know and set up before you get it. you gotta get the enclosure ready first, so a heat lamp, thermostat and thermometer is what you will need, along with hides and stuff. you will also need to have a hot end, and a cool end so the snake can thermoregulate. a water bowl big enough so that the snake can fully imerge its body in the water for a good soaking if it wants to. all that is probably the bare minimum.

when you have all that ready, then you can start thinking of the snake. i reckon get a hatchy of either children, spotted or stimsons python. they are a good first snake, as they dont get to big so you wont feel overwhelmed by it when it does get 2m. you also have to remember that bigger snakes require bigger food which inturn means more money for food. some people feed their 10 foot snakes rabbits, while as a full grown childrens python will eat a rat. people often say that the actual animal is the cheapest part, and that is probably true.

another thing, when you do eventually get a snake, you probably wont be able to touch it for a week, until it settles in otherwise you can stress it.

iv never actually owned a snake, but iv done lots of research and am getting one this comming friday.

anyway, good luck

 

[amy5189]

i think anything between 6 - 12 months old is fine. i have had no problems with any of my five hatchlings. and as long as you have the right temps at around 33 degrees and it already has a good feeding/shedding history you should have no problems.
as for an enclosure for something so tiny, i would suggest just a 10-15 litre Starmaid tub with holes poked it in with a heat stabby thing.... lol. here is a link that will help you out!

http://www.aussiepythons.com/forum/...-to-build-a-click-clack-dial-up-warning-93266

lol i'm like the crazy link lady....

 

[bongie555]

lol amy....'heat stabby thing'.....

 

[amy5189]

psh! bongie as if you could come up with a better name!!! lol. i think everyone would know what i'm talking about when i say heat stabby thing. its so obvious....

 

[Rainbow-Serpent]

I turned 11 two days before Christmas, for my birthday I got a baby jungle carpet python!
Look wise - he tops all.

I speak from experiance when I say that bredli are the best temperament wise, they aren't too big (only about 2.5m), and they're great to keep!

Good Luck!

 

[kylie30]

Just a quick update for you all, We did buy a Stimsons python from mangles on here. He is so cute! Even I who am not a snake lover has handled him.
My daughter absolutley loves him and he seems to like her just as much!
We did have one mishap early on, the snake got out of his tank but a few hours of searching and he was found safe and sound.
We purchased a proper snake enclosure for him but he still managed to find an escape hole
He has fed twice, and shed once already.
I guess now my family are addicted to snakes as well, hubby is already planning our next purchase.
Thankyou all for your help and advice on our first snake purchase. This forum is excellent.

 

[amy5189]

haha awesome!! what did your daughter decide to name him??
hope you patched up the escape route too!! snakes are little escape artists. thats why all my little ones are in little tiny plastic tubs with no chance of escaption in the past year *touch wood*
how big is the enclosure you have him in??

 

[wranga]

its great that your daughter is happy. enjoy the hobby and hope you have lots of spare room in your house cause it sounds as if u will have lots of snakes soon

 

[kylie30]

We bought a tank 70 x 40 x 40. A proper snake tank. We thought we had sealed up all of the holes but there was a little gap at the top of the glass doors we missed. We put foam tape between the doors.
At the moment she has called him Mr Sneaky, due to his escaping antics :lol:
He is very cute though and very placid.

 

[amy5189]

hahaha mr sneaky sounds like a suitable name!! i like it. i'm sure you will end up with plenty more snakes now too... its always the way.
when you get a chance you should post up some pics of your cute new addition! everyone loves seeing baby snakes here.

 

[daniel1234]

Congrats on the snake, well done. If your going to have a vice, this is a great one to have enjoy.
Oh and welcome to APS

 

[kylie30]

Mr Sneaky is going well. His name stuck
This was when he first came home. Chantelle loves him. He has grown a bit since we got him.

 

[kylie30]

This was after he shed.

 

[J-A-X]

I'm so glad you are all happy with your decision for a stimmie, have you decided what your next one will be yet? I bet you've got over your nervousness too, how can you be nervous around something so cute. I see your daughter hasn't stopped smiling :lol:

 

[kylie30]

Hubby is eyeing off a black and yellow python. I think a jungle? They look very nice