New enclosure for Darwin, feedback appreciated :)

[MissDangerous]

Hi all!

After lots of lurking on this forum as well as talking to lots of keepers and breeders, my boyfriend and I finally went ahead and got our very first snake. Initially looked at Stimsons, however we are now the very proud owners of a beautiful little Darwin hatchy. He hatched on the 18th December, and according to the breeder is feeding very well. He is due for a feed with us on Friday. We have called him Ares, and yes we know he'll never hear his name but it's purely for our sake haha

The set up is a Reptile One RTT450T, with red desert sand as a substrate. We are aware of the dangers of ingestion here, so he will always be fed in a separate tub. Started off with a wooden hide and large stick in case he wanted to climb, with a few artificial vines for something different. Well, he loves his vines, and loves climbing! After observing him spending most of his time in the "treetops", we decided to wire in a u shaped branch and add more vines.

We left his old plastic tub and toilet rolls in with him at first thinking it might help him to have something familiar, however he hasn't looked twice at them so we took them out after a while. Being a hatchy, we were worried he feel too threatened in the big enclosure and were happy to keep in in his click clack, but he really seems at home. I honestly thought being a young hatchling he would spend more time in one of the two wooden hides he has in there (one near the heat source and one near the cool end) but he seems to prefer being on the branches or wrapped in the vines.

He spends most of the day up there, comes down at night to explore and take a drink. Seems very comfortable and not stressed, he doesn't mind motion around the enclosure, and will only start to coil back and look a little concerned when I am changing his water, but doesn't strike.

The first three pics are the initial set up, with his old tub still in. He had been fed the day before by the breeder so you can definitely see his food lump!

Last pic is with the tub removed and new branches in. He's up in the top corner, haven't tried to get any close pics as we want him to settle in as best as possible.. Can't wait to get the good camera and take some decent shots in a few weeks

Just using cardboard to block up the gap between the glass sliding doors for now, off to bunnings today to find some clear hose. The first night he was home he was already sussing out whether he could squeeze past, found him wedged against the cardboard!

The heat section sits around 30-33, with the cool part of the tank going between 25-27. Where he sits most of the day is around the 26-27 mark. Is this a fairly standard range? I have looked it up and seems to be fine, but am open to suggestions if this can be improved.

Oh and for the people on here who seem to be so interested in poop (yes I've seen all the threads lol), he passed urates yesterday but nothing more as of yet

Please feel free to offer opinions, advice and comments. As new snake owners we are looking to learn everything we can to ensure the health and happiness of our new arrival.

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[andynic07]

I try to avoid full glass enclosures because they don't hold heat very well, I used one once but insulated the back and two sides with a fake foam background. Also the open top allows hot air to escape easily as hot air rises.

 

[MissDangerous]

Thanks for that! We had considered insulating the back and sides, but after monitoring temps for a few days we were concerned about it getting too hot... Our unit is quite hot, especially on a day like today and the temperature probe halfway up the enclosure was 28.5 all day. Heated section is consistently over 30, even during the coolest part of the day (checked at 2-3am).

Will definitely keep on eye on the temps, and if it starts to drop and lose heat we will insulate for sure.

Thanks for the input


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[andynic07]

No worries, I know temperatures can still be kept but you are wasting power because of the losses. Maybe re-check during winter as well because that will be the test. Also what are you using to heat the enclosure and is it controlled by a thermostat?

 

[MissDangerous]

Yeah will definitely be watching it in winter... I had bought a set of ceramic heat globes set up with thermostat, however was recommended to go for a small heat mat which is now adhered underneath the enclosure instead. I have ordered a digital thermostat to go with the heat mat, at the moment we are just having to constantly monitor the temps.

I have a probe set halfway up the enclosure under his favourite hanging spot, and do readings with a separate thermometer over the heat mat. Thermostat should be here in the next few days which will give me much better peace of mind that the mat won't overheat!

 

[MissDangerous]

Forgot to mention I have a 3D backing board on order, should help to make the enclosure a little less open and help with heat loss. Will also give him something else to climb around on

 

[Trimeresurus]

I'd switch the substrate is all, aspen or critters crumble would suit the tank better and cause less potential problems.

 

[andynic07]

I think that overhead heat would be better for an arboreal snake and also if your heat mat is getting to 33 at his basking spot how hot is the floor? I also don't think that your heating will be adequate during winter if you are only reaching the required temperature during summer. I take it this is only a temporary enclosure anyway by the size?

 

[MissDangerous]

I'm not sure about temporary, didn't think it was wise to put a small snake in anything bigger than this? I was told by the breeder that I can expect to look at a large enclosure once he reaches between 2-4 years old. We really don't mind upgrading sooner though if he needs it! As for floor temp, it all depends on where I measure. I'd say the average is between 25-27.

I'm worried about the heat mat, checked temps today and it made the hot spot ridiculously hot (like 38-40) while the rest of the tank still sits from about 25 to 28 depending where I measure (floor to ceiling) which is consistent with how it was during the week... I'm afraid he could harm himself with that kind of heat near the hotspot, is this true? I don't think I can wait on the thermostat from online, might have to go pick one up from the pet store instead. Have been thinking of trying to keep the heat at 33 by turning off the heat mat when needed (being a manual thermostat!).

As for the snake himself, he has settled really well and taken his first feed yesterday. I just want to make sure the temps are safe/at the right level for him to digest properly.

Any help would be greatly appreciated, as I'm a bit worried. All the research I did suggested a max of 33-35 in the hotspot, and while this worked fine at first, the temp increase today has me concerned. Rest of the tank seems fine temp wise.

[edit: going to get a digital thermostat today, hopefully this will fix the hot spot issue.. Would still love opinions/help though!]

 

[MissDangerous]

I'd switch the substrate is all, aspen or critters crumble would suit the tank better and cause less potential problems.

Thanks for that, will definitely be switching when I can. Heard a lot of good things about critters crumble

 

[andynic07]

I'm not sure about temporary, didn't think it was wise to put a small snake in anything bigger than this? I was told by the breeder that I can expect to look at a large enclosure once he reaches between 2-4 years old. We really don't mind upgrading sooner though if he needs it! As for floor temp, it all depends on where I measure. I'd say the average is between 25-27.

I'm worried about the heat mat, checked temps today and it made the hot spot ridiculously hot (like 38-40) while the rest of the tank still sits from about 25 to 28 depending where I measure (floor to ceiling) which is consistent with how it was during the week... I'm afraid he could harm himself with that kind of heat near the hotspot, is this true? I don't think I can wait on the thermostat from online, might have to go pick one up from the pet store instead. Have been thinking of trying to keep the heat at 33 by turning off the heat mat when needed (being a manual thermostat!).

As for the snake himself, he has settled really well and taken his first feed yesterday. I just want to make sure the temps are safe/at the right level for him to digest properly.

Any help would be greatly appreciated, as I'm a bit worried. All the research I did suggested a max of 33-35 in the hotspot, and while this worked fine at first, the temp increase today has me concerned. Rest of the tank seems fine temp wise.

[edit: going to get a digital thermostat today, hopefully this will fix the hot spot issue.. Would still love opinions/help though!]

Yeah I should have stated that by temporary I meant not the one it will live in all of its life. I think it will do for a year before needing to be upgraded and you are kind of right that it is too small to be in a larger enclosure but they will do ok in one provided that you give them plenty of hides and cover from plain sight. You will find that if you move the sand from over the heat mat that the glass will be quite higher temperature than the top of the sand so just be careful. What location are you? It is probably safer to have no heat over a few days than have too much heat depending on how cold it gets where you live. It is a sign that you are doing things right overall if your snake has settled.

Cheers
Andy

 

[MissDangerous]

Hey Andy, sorry just realised there was another reply here. A year is good, we would like to build his next enclosure so that gives us enough time to get started! Seen some amazing tv cabinet/dresser conversions and are planning to give this a try.

I am in Noosaville, QLD, so am definitely prepared to switch off the heat when the temps start to climb (like today!). I have the probe for the thermostat settled in the sand over the hot spot, not quite touching the glass but close. Thermostat is set for 34, so I hope that keeps him in a safe range. There is about another 0.5-0.75 centimetre of sand covering the probe. He seems to have no interest in burrowing into the substrate at all, and is either in his log hide or climbing the branches. At night he cruises around everywhere. Still getting between 26-28 as ambient temp during the day, I'm guessing today will be far hotter unfortunately.

I have added more hides and plants, as well as the artificial wall, and am about to do a big clean of the enclosure & get rid of the sand in the next few days. Bought some aspen, so will update this thread with more pics once I have changed the substrate over. I've heard they like to dig through the aspen, so will have to watch the glass temp more in the hotspot, as you suggested, to avoid him burning himself or overheating.

He has fed twice, is handling very well and seems relaxed either in his enclosure or out. Will be his third fuzzy rat with us today, so I'm really happy with how he is going

Thanks again for the input!

 

[pythonsalive]

He or she is going to out grow that tank pretty fast and you should get a lock for the glass doors as soon as he gets used to his home he will spend a lot of time trying to get out you can get a lock at bunnings pretty cheap




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[Virides]

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[MissDangerous]

He or she is going to out grow that tank pretty fast and you should get a lock for the glass doors as soon as he gets used to his home he will spend a lot of time trying to get out you can get a lock at bunnings pretty cheap




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That's ok, we knew he wouldn't be in here all that long
As for a lock, we had one on there it made the gap in the glass worse. We removed the lock and now have a length of clear tubing blocking the gap between the panes. It is dual purpose as it makes it impossible to slide the doors while it is on, and stops him squeezing through the gap. He has already spent several nights checking out his possible escape routes so we wanted to make sure he couldn't get out!

 

[Sutra]

Looks like one happy snake Well Done!

 

[MissDangerous]

Thanks [MENTION=39892]Sutra[/MENTION], he is feeding really well and shed a few days ago so we are very happy

Here is an updated pic, with the back wall fitted and Aspen bedding in place. Bad quality again unfortunately, haven't uploaded pics from the good camera yet.

Temps are sorted, and the thermostat is really easy to use. Now to start planning construction of his next enclosure!

 

[MissDangerous]

 

[86JAP]

Wow, that looks tops

Where did you get the artificial plants and vines from?

Cheers Sam.

 

[MissDangerous]

Thanks!

The green vines are from the local dollar tree store, the red vines are from a pet shop (aquarium plants) and the big plant on the left is from eBay I really love it, the quality is amazing.. They have a really good range. PM me if you want the seller, not sure I can post it up on here without breaking the advertising rule. I got the background from them too, and they have thermostats/tongs/substrate/enclosures etc all at good prices