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I have been told that if you buy a hatchling then you can keep them in a very small and plain enclosure, what i was wondering was that can u buy a hatchling but put it in a vivarium that would suit it when it is fully growen. If so how big should it be?
africancichlidau
Almost Legendary
Welcome aboard ether, and welcome to a great hobby too. As to Childreni being snappy, I have a pair around a metre long that are the most docile snakes I have ever come across, real pussy cats they are 
Handling is the key to a well adjusted snake in my opinion.
As for lings in large enclosures you will hear a lot saying not to do it as it stresses the animal but, personally, I don't hold with this idea, sure, a hatchling in a pretty bare enclosure will stress but if you put enough hides etc in then they will love it. They may not fully utilise the full area available to them but it will certainly not worry them to have too much room. While on the subject of large enclosures with small snakes bear in mind the fact that young / small snakes are veritable houdinis and will escape if you do not ensure that the cage is escape proof. For evidence of this you just have to look back through the old posts on this site to see how many people have had snakes escape on them. The last thing you want starting out in a hobby like ours is for one of your charges to escape as very often people get their snakes back but also there are many times when they don't! Loss of your first snake COULD be enough to put you off trying again and you would lose out on a very rewarding hobby.
Handling is the key to a well adjusted snake in my opinion.As for lings in large enclosures you will hear a lot saying not to do it as it stresses the animal but, personally, I don't hold with this idea, sure, a hatchling in a pretty bare enclosure will stress but if you put enough hides etc in then they will love it. They may not fully utilise the full area available to them but it will certainly not worry them to have too much room. While on the subject of large enclosures with small snakes bear in mind the fact that young / small snakes are veritable houdinis and will escape if you do not ensure that the cage is escape proof. For evidence of this you just have to look back through the old posts on this site to see how many people have had snakes escape on them. The last thing you want starting out in a hobby like ours is for one of your charges to escape as very often people get their snakes back but also there are many times when they don't! Loss of your first snake COULD be enough to put you off trying again and you would lose out on a very rewarding hobby.
stockeh
Very Well-Known Member
started with a coastal carpet python, enclosure was an old converted cabinet which measured 6ft x 2ft x 2ft as africa said i had heaps of hides in it to stop an possible stress,
as for substrate well i have tried them all i have had pebbles, reptile sand, shredded paper but now i use good old news paper,
its easy to clean up after your snake and keeps it plain and simple i have one show tank that is set up like a rain forest though and that has chip bark in the bottom and heaps of ferns etc.
any other questions feel free to ask
as for substrate well i have tried them all i have had pebbles, reptile sand, shredded paper but now i use good old news paper,
its easy to clean up after your snake and keeps it plain and simple i have one show tank that is set up like a rain forest though and that has chip bark in the bottom and heaps of ferns etc.
any other questions feel free to ask
diamond, small 30cm x 20cm plastic container type cage but shortly moved to a 2 foot enclosure which he's still in. newspaper is the best substrate i have found - i used polished stones for a while which he liked cos they hold heat well but too hard to notice any messes. indoor/outdoor thermometer from dick smiths is great. toilet rolls make great hide boxes but not as good as a light globe box! branch and log for climbing and helping with shedding.
Hi Ether and welcome to the site
My first snake, not very long ago, (only 2 years, so I'm by no means an expert) was a Coastal Carpet hatchling. He was and still is the most placid of all my snakes, and an absolute darling.
He was first housed in a regular critter cage (approx 60cms in length) with a heat mat under one third (connected to a thermostat and timer), a hide cave, water bowl, small branch, and breeder's choice (kitty litter) for substrate.
He moved into a larger enclosure at about 1 year of age, with dimensions of 1200mm H x 800mm W x 650mm D. This enclosure has overhead ceramic heat emitter (connected to a thermostat and timer), two hide caves, one at ground and one at ceiling level, a water bowl, many branches, and breeder's choice over newspaper as substrate.
This is by no means the only way, just what I have used, which seems to have kept my Baby happy.
Here are a couple of pics:
My first snake, not very long ago, (only 2 years, so I'm by no means an expert) was a Coastal Carpet hatchling. He was and still is the most placid of all my snakes, and an absolute darling.
He was first housed in a regular critter cage (approx 60cms in length) with a heat mat under one third (connected to a thermostat and timer), a hide cave, water bowl, small branch, and breeder's choice (kitty litter) for substrate.
He moved into a larger enclosure at about 1 year of age, with dimensions of 1200mm H x 800mm W x 650mm D. This enclosure has overhead ceramic heat emitter (connected to a thermostat and timer), two hide caves, one at ground and one at ceiling level, a water bowl, many branches, and breeder's choice over newspaper as substrate.
This is by no means the only way, just what I have used, which seems to have kept my Baby happy.
Here are a couple of pics:
stockeh
Very Well-Known Member
wattso it is always in use what i do with the ferns is take them out of the pot they come in and place them flat on the bottom of the enclosure sitting only in the tray that you are supposed to put under normal pots (so when i water them it doesnt go all over the cage).... cover the base with chip bark and there you go instant rain forest...
Good to boost humidity especially when coming up for a shed and looks great
So far i havent had a problem with them being pulled out or broken (touch wood) but i have heard that many people have so i am waiting
Good to boost humidity especially when coming up for a shed and looks great
So far i havent had a problem with them being pulled out or broken (touch wood) but i have heard that many people have so i am waiting
hey nicole how do u find the ceramit heat emitter works in the larger enclosure? i have a 5ft H x 3ft W x about 1.5-2ft D wardrobe im converting to an enclosure and im not sure how a ceramic would go...
africancichlidau
Almost Legendary
My first pythons were Bredls and I kept a pair of hatchies in 450 x 350 critter keepers for about six months before moving them into a 1200x450x450 melamine enclosure with marine carpet substrate. A further six months on I moved them into individual 900x600x600 enclosures still with marine carpet. they are now about 2 1/2 years old and one is still in this enclosure with the female in a 1200x450x450. they are due to be moved again in the next six months or so into what will probably be 1200x600x600 enclosures. They have always had permanent access to fresh water, hide boxbranches and artificial greenery. Hope this helps
I think they are great Zo - they last forever (years), give off plenty of heat, and there is no uneccessary light to mess up photo periods. I wouldn't go back to globes - always blowing and bound to cost more in the long run, besides them being unreliable... never would trust them enough to go away for a couple of days.
Have also heard that panel heaters can be good, but havn't used these myself.
Have also heard that panel heaters can be good, but havn't used these myself.
In the Coastal and Diamond enclosures, I ceramic up top only.
In my Olive's house 1500mm W x 1200mm H x 650mm D I have two ceramics up top and a heat mat on the floor, between 2 tiles to make a ground level hot spot, all in the hot end.
Yep, I check temps as a matter of getting up in the morning and when I get home from work, so I'd know pretty quickly if it had blown. I use a couple of thermometres per enclosure, (actually 4 in the Olive's house), they are all clearly visable at a glance, so checking out the temps has become routine, just like stumbling out of bed and into the shower in the mornings.
In my Olive's house 1500mm W x 1200mm H x 650mm D I have two ceramics up top and a heat mat on the floor, between 2 tiles to make a ground level hot spot, all in the hot end.
Yep, I check temps as a matter of getting up in the morning and when I get home from work, so I'd know pretty quickly if it had blown. I use a couple of thermometres per enclosure, (actually 4 in the Olive's house), they are all clearly visable at a glance, so checking out the temps has become routine, just like stumbling out of bed and into the shower in the mornings.
africancichlidau
Almost Legendary
I have a similar size enclosure Zoe, also a converted wardrobe, and I use one of each, a blue globe, ared spot and a ceramic in it Don't ask me why it just happened that way, lol Anyway there is no bottom heat source and I have a hide box on the wall of the enclosure about 300mm below the spot to give her a basking area. The thermal gradient in this cage is a vertical one and she makes full use of it therefore also being forced to take some needed excercise to climb up and down the branch to thermoregulate her body temperature. She also has a hide box on the floor of the enclosure in addition to the high one.
Don't ask me why it just happened that way, lol Anyway there is no bottom heat source and I have a hide box on the wall of the enclosure about 300mm below the spot to give her a basking area. The thermal gradient in this cage is a vertical one and she makes full use of it therefore also being forced to take some needed excercise to climb up and down the branch to thermoregulate her body temperature. She also has a hide box on the floor of the enclosure in addition to the high one.- Status
