Can snakes soak too much?

[MoonMoon]

This might be a super silly thought but recently my Coastal Carpet Python has been spending 70% of his time just chilling in his water bowl for the past couple weeks and I'm wondering if this in any way could be bad?

Ive read heaps of threads on what it could be and im fairly certain it's not anything bad like mites. I think it just might be because its currently very dry and hot.

Im not too worried because hes always loved bathing since I got him just never this excessively.

 

[Sdaji]

If it's very dry and hot that's probably the explanation. It's possibly a concern if it's hot enough for him to be needing to spend so much time in the water.

 

[MoonMoon]

If it's very dry and hot that's probably the explanation. It's possibly a concern if it's hot enough for him to be needing to spend so much time in the water.

Its hot but his enclosure is only ever around 29-31⁰C. Just concerned humidity is a bit low. But I've tried misting it and stuff but he still won't leave his water bowl.

 

[user 43767]

If it's very dry and hot that's probably the explanation. It's possibly a concern if it's hot enough for him to be needing to spend so much time in the water.

Hi, can you show the whole enclosure including the top?

 

[Herpetology]

Its hot but his enclosure is only ever around 29-31⁰C. Just concerned humidity is a bit low. But I've tried misting it and stuff but he still won't leave his water bowl.

How are you measuring the temperatures? What kind of heat source? Where is probe/have you used a tempGun etc

 

[MoonMoon]

How are you measuring the temperatures? What kind of heat source? Where is probe/have you used a tempGun etc

The tank has a built in temp gauge which measures the hottest side of the tank above the heat cables.

I don't often have the cables on atm though bc days here are already 30-35⁰C. I haven't used a temp gun but ive tried out my other temperature gauges from my other snakes enclosures and they've read the same.

I'm honestly just concerned if anything bad can come of him soaking too often.

 

[Sdaji]

Soaking too much in itself probably won't cause any problems but it is likely indicative of a problem. You aren't checking the temperatures properly and this is definitely something you should do.Temperature is by far the most important aspect of keeping snakes.

 

[MoonMoon]

Soaking too much in itself probably won't cause any problems but it is likely indicative of a problem. You aren't checking the temperatures properly and this is definitely something you should do.Temperature is by far the most important aspect of keeping snakes.

How am I not checking the temperatures properly? I use reptile one thermostats in both of my enclosures and they've worked fine for over a year.

I don't have both a hot and cood side thermostat but often will temporarily place one in to check the cool side as well

 

[user 43767]

Its hot but his enclosure is only ever around 29-31⁰C. Just concerned humidity is a bit low. But I've tried misting it and stuff but he still won't leave his water bowl.

Hi, sorry to ask again, but it might help if we could see the enclosure in full, perhaps there may be a few modifications to be made that will help with the humidity, can you show a couple of photos? Misting will usually only raise the humidity for a very short time... Note: I believe you`ve checked the temps properly!

 

[Sdaji]

How am I not checking the temperatures properly? I use reptile one thermostats in both of my enclosures and they've worked fine for over a year.

I don't have both a hot and cood side thermostat but often will temporarily place one in to check the cool side as well

Your thermometer is only reading the temperature of the thing it is attached to, presumably a cage wall. This is not necessarily the same temperature that your reptile is experiencing, because it is not attached to the cage wall. Many snakes get chilled because the thermometer gets mounted half way up the wall and says things are nice, but the snake is on the floor which is a different temperature. Sometimes snakes get cooked because the thermometer half way up the wall says it's comfortable but the heat mat is cooking the floor. One thermometer in a fixed position which is not where the snake is typically sitting (or can't sit even if it wants to) is not an appropriate way to measure your enclosure's temperature.

 

[user 43767]

If your assumptions are correct re thermometer placement, why not inform the OP of the most appropriate way to measure the areas the snake spends much of it`s time in (obviously the actual basking surface, too)?

 

[Sdaji]

If your assumptions are correct re thermometer placement, why not inform the OP of the most appropriate way to measure the areas the snake spends much of it`s time in (obviously the actual basking surface, too)?

It was covered in a couple of recent threads by someone else, it seemed repetitive but sure. Probe thermometers are good, you can stick the probes wherever you like including the actual places the snake can and does spend most of its time. They also have max/min functions so you can see what range of temperatures the snake has the option of using rather than just what the temperature happens to be at the moment you're looking (I've had plenty of people buy snakes from me then say it fed when it arrived but not for weeks after that, then it turns out that overnight the cage gets too cold and when this is rectified the snake eats again). An infrared thermometer is also extremely useful because it allows you to instantly measure surface temperatures of any place so you can scan all over the enclosure. This is especially useful if you are unfamiliar with thermal environments or if you have a complex setup rather than a simple tub setup.