First blood~

[Amyfhist]

Alright, so I got my first blood at an expo yesterday and thought I would share a picture of her as well as some comments as a first time blood owner.

Her name is Kali, and she is somewhere around 2 months old, according to the vendor that she was bought from.

Personality wise, she does seem to be a little frisky, but I wouldnt call her mean or aggressive, as I have often heard this species called. As per the person who sold her to me, she wasn't fed this past week because of the expo, and is in shed (how he can tell I have no clue there are no visible signs on her that I can make out) so her.. slightly stand-offish attitude seems justifiable all considering.

I have read that this is an easily excitable snake and that they tend to look like they are hyper-ventilating when stressed, but I was completely unprepared for just how intense that can be to look at.

She is definitely the most vocal snake I have ever had, and makes a quiet little squeaking noise whenever she sees the other snake we have (They are in separate set ups about a foot away from each other).

The only real concern that I have, doesnt lie so much with her but with the set up of her cage. The heating pad doesnt seem to be working right and the area around it is cool to the touch. Much to my dismay, she didn't even really go to her hide or curl up near the "hot" side of her tank. If any of you have an idea of what I can do about that, please let me know. Funds are a little tapped at the moment, but I am most likely going to end up going out to buy a new UTH.

[formica]

congrats :) thats a chunky snake!

blue eyes is just one stage of shed, the eyes clear for a few days just before the actual shed takes place

have you got the UTH on a thermostat, is the area cool directly above the UTH or just around it? how much substrate is above it? I'd recomend <1inch above the UTH to allow the heat to penetrate properly

[kwhitlock]

Congrats on your blood! :)

Seeing that bloods need a pretty warm temperature, I would think maybe the UTH is defective. If that is the case, I would suggest either getting heat tape, or Ultra therm heat pad. They are basically the same thing but the Ulta therm is plug and play while heat tape has a slight amount of putting together. Both are cheap and come in plenty of sizes.

[Amyfhist]

@Formica,

I thought she seemed a little big, for two months but I am not too expereinced with this species. Are you saying that she looks too chunky, or was that a compliment on her physique? I just want to make sure I understand what you are saying here, lol.
Well, yesterday I had put her on .5" of"eco-earth" coconut husk, but after a few hours I decided that I was uncomfortable with how fine it was and ended up taking that out, and putting down newspaper until I can go get a different substrate that isnt as finely ground as that was. She had kind of burrowed into it, and it was caked all on her face which made me wary of possible inhalation or ingestion. I got a hold of a temp gun, and its running about 85 degrees above the UTH, and upper 70's on the cold end. I guess just couldnt feel that with my hand whenever I was checking for a relative temperature.

@kwhitlock

Once I move her up to a bigger cage I was planning on doing the heat tape for her,but with this enclosure being more or less temporary until she outgrows it I am going to avoid doing anything overly complicated. I will definitely look into that Ultra therm though, thank you.


Thank you both for your feedback!

[drumcrush]

congrats! nice looking snake!

[formica]

was a compliment :) i've never owned a blood myself, but i now they are big snakes


85 is probably a bit lower than it should be, i'd expect a bit higher required, closer to 88, but that shuld be confirmed by someone who knows these snakes

[sharthun]

Congrats!!!

[Amyfhist]

Thanks everybody :)

Do you guys think that I am just being overly paranoid about the eco-earth or should I go to a different substrate?

[marvelfreak]

Put a hide over the heat wait a hour and check the temp in the hide. With Blood's you want the warm side around 88 to 90 degrees for babies. This way you can make a hot box to help give it a nice warm hide. What kind of cage do you have it in? You will want to mist at least once a day until it sheds. Babies require high humidity are can be stressed out very easy. So until it sheds and eats a couple time don't' handle it but as needed. Also did the breeder say if it had shed before?

[formica]

eco-earth aka coir is an excellent substrate, if its very wet then it can get stuck to snakes, so probably just needs to dry out a little, i like to have a layer of moss aswell in my enclosures, this also serves to keep snakes a bit cleaner

impaction shouldnt be an issue as long as temps are correct



that said, newspaper is good for the first few weeks at least, easier to spot mites that way

[marvelfreak]

Forgot mention I use Reptile Bark mine love to burrow into it. It hold humidity really well.

[Amyfhist]

Just an update on whats gone on since my last post:
My UTH has definitely started working, and it got up to 105 earlier. I swapped the newspaper back out for the eco-earth, at about .75" deep all around, and then put some shredded newspaper down for her to feel more secure in the cage. The temperature in the hot spot is now fluctuating between 88 and 91, dropping off to 76 down on the cool end.

@ MarvelFreak
The cage itself is just a small 10 gallon, and the vendor said that she was in her first shed. I have misted the cage to help her out.

She definitely seems more irritable today then she had yesterday, and struck out at me earlier when I was moving her into a smaller container to make the changes in her cage.


Thank you everyone for you input, as well as the compliments on Kali. I appreciate it.

[marvelfreak]

She is a beauty. To help keep the humidity up I would cover about half of the top of the cage. I have found baby Blood s do better in plastic totes or tubs. Just a suggest but it make keeping them a lot easier.

I would get a new UTH if the temp spiked like that sounds defective. Last thing you want to do is have it cook her or star a fire.

[formica]

you need to get a thermostat in there to avoid 105 spikes, pulse-proportional will keep it nice and steady - a heat mat can reach 105/40C if its not controlled by a thermostat - also do you have an air-gap below it? if not, raise the enclosure up a couple of milimeters, and tape the UTH to the bottom of the enclosure (on the outside)

yeah wouldnt worry to much about strikes, hissing and posturing, she's young and nervous, just needs handling, but give her a little while now, 2-3 weeks, to settle in and get used to her new home

if she is 2 months old, i very much doubt this is her first shed, I would imagine its her 2nd or 3rd at least, including her first which would have occurred within days of hatching

[Amyfhist]

I have about half of the screen covered with a folded up towel.

If I were to move her to say a shoe box sized plastic tub, would I still use a UTH for warmth? I am just worried that the plastic would get hot and melt, or release fumes into the container.

Also, I am getting new UTH.



@Formica
I ordered a thermostat online, and I am just waiting for it to come in the mail, it should be here on Tuesday. There is a gap under the tank, and nice airflow under there. The vendor probably had meant that it was the first shed that he had her. I am assuming that he hadnt bred the snake himself, but rather bought it from a breeder to sell at the expo.

[marvelfreak]

Yeah you can use a UTH with the shoe box size plastic tub but I would wait till you get the new uth and thermostat. Just to be safe.

[LadyWraith]

If I were to move her to say a shoe box sized plastic tub, would I still use a UTH for warmth? I am just worried that the plastic would get hot and melt, or release fumes into the container.

Yes, you can still use the UTH. 90 degrees is not hot enough to come close to melting the plastic. However, I would also wait until you have it hooked up to a thermostat. You will find a tub much easier to maintain humidity. It's worth the switch, IMO.

[formica]

105F is not a massively high temperature for a heat mat, that is the kind of temperature I would expect to see without a thermostat, and that is why I always recommend a thermostat - perhaps there are brands which are lower power, or lower efficiency, but its really not worth the risk

[marvelfreak]

105F is not a massively high temperature for a heat mat, that is the kind of temperature I would expect to see without a thermostat, and that is why I always recommend a thermostat - perhaps there are brands which are lower power, or lower efficiency, but its really not worth the risk
The kind i use will not go above 95 degrees with out a thermostat. Plus with Bloods you have to be extra care of temperature spikes and drops. Baby Bloods can be super touchy. I learn that the hard way years ago. My first three Bloods didn't live pass 3 months. Until they hit around 6 months to a year you want to have everything perfect. As they get older they become a little more tolerable of mistakes.

[formica]

The kind i use will not go above 95 degrees with out a thermostat. Plus with Bloods you have to be extra care of temperature spikes and drops. Baby Bloods can be super touchy. I learn that the hard way years ago. My first three Bloods didn't live pass 3 months. Until they hit around 6 months to a year you want to have everything perfect. As they get older they become a little more tolerable of mistakes.

which brand do you use? I've not found a UK brand which does not require a thermostat to stay within a safe temperature range - although I understand that heat tape has less heat output per W input (we dont have heat tape here in the UK so i dont know how true that actually it)

[Amyfhist]

MarvelFreak, you seem to be pretty experienced with keeping these as babies, so could you give me a rough idea of how I should do the set up for her?

Most of the information I have come across has been geared at a more mature snake, and not so much having a baby. What would you say the honey spot is for temperature and humidity when they are this young?

Also, how can I know that she is in shed? I am not seeing any of the signs I have with other snakes, and I am not too sure that the vendor was right when he said she was in shed.



Also I ordered the thermostat, but it probably wont be here until Wednesday or Thursday since the post office and a lot of businesses are closed for the holiday.

[marvelfreak]

which brand do you use? I've not found a UK brand which does not require a thermostat to stay within a safe temperature range - although I understand that heat tape has less heat output per W input (we dont have heat tape here in the UK so i dont know how true that actually it)
Ultratherm Undertank Heater (UTH)- 11"x23" - Reptile Basics Inc (http://www.reptilebasics.com/ultratherm-undertank-heater-uth-11-x23)

I have used this for a few years and can honestly that i have never had them get above 95 degrees without a thermostat hooked up to them.



MarvelFreak, you seem to be pretty experienced with keeping these as babies, so could you give me a rough idea of how I should do the set up for her?

Most of the information I have come across has been geared at a more mature snake, and not so much having a baby. What would you say the honey spot is for temperature and humidity when they are this young?

Also, how can I know that she is in shed? I am not seeing any of the signs I have with other snakes, and I am not too sure that the vendor was right when he said she was in shed.



Also I ordered the thermostat, but it probably wont be here until Wednesday or Thursday since the post office and a lot of businesses are closed for the holiday.

The break down of how i do cages for baby bloods. Note it wasn't till i was told to keep them in totes that i finally had one make it past the three month mark. That would be my big fat four year old Borneo.

Things you need.

1. Plastic tote or tub with locking lid.
2. At least 3 hides. hot end, middle and cool end. This way you give them plenty of secure hiding spots. So they can feel secure and regulate their body temperature.
3. A water bowl big enough that they can soak. This needs to be place towards the heat to help keep up the humidity. Plus being they like to soak so much having it by the heat will keep the water temp up so they aren't soaking to cold of water.
4. Coverage either news paper or i use Reptile Bark deep enough they can cover at least half they body. I found they like to be able to watch everything but feel like they are hiding from you.


Your temps should be hot side between 90 to 95 and cool side 80 to 85. Humidity between 65 to 85. I always would mist in the morning to raise it then let it slowly drop some through out the day. For shedding look at the belly it will look pinkish but clear up right before shed. Also until it settles in don't handle much for the first month Bloods stress super easy.

[Amyfhist]

Ultratherm Undertank Heater (UTH)- 11"x23" - Reptile Basics Inc (http://www.reptilebasics.com/ultratherm-undertank-heater-uth-11-x23)

I have used this for a few years and can honestly that i have never had them get above 95 degrees without a thermostat hooked up to them.





The break down of how i do cages for baby bloods. Note it wasn't till i was told to keep them in totes that i finally had one make it past the three month mark. That would be my big fat four year old Borneo.

Things you need.

1. Plastic tote or tub with locking lid.
2. At least 3 hides. hot end, middle and cool end. This way you give them plenty of secure hiding spots. So they can feel secure and regulate their body temperature.
3. A water bowl big enough that they can soak. This needs to be place towards the heat to help keep up the humidity. Plus being they like to soak so much having it by the heat will keep the water temp up so they aren't soaking to cold of water.
4. Coverage either news paper or i use Reptile Bark deep enough they can cover at least half they body. I found they like to be able to watch everything but feel like they are hiding from you.


Your temps should be hot side between 90 to 95 and cool side 80 to 85. Humidity between 65 to 85. I always would mist in the morning to raise it then let it slowly drop some through out the day. For shedding look at the belly it will look pinkish but clear up right before shed. Also until it settles in don't handle much for the first month Bloods stress super easy.

Okay so the Thermostat came in the mail and I just set up the shoe box sized tote for her. None of the items from her cage really fit in there, so we are just kind of improvising for her at the moment (small round lid for water, etc.)

She wasnt too happy being relocated yet again and struck out at me when she was being moved to the tote, but this will be the last time for awhile that she is disturbed (with the exception of feeding), so she should be able to settle in.


Thank you, for walking me through the setup.

[marvelfreak]

No problem. If you have any other questions just ask.

[formica]

ordered an ultratherm, intrigued by their claims of not needing a thermostat (although i did note a disclaimer at the bottom saying that they may need a thermostat LOL - but 95F is reasonable for a start)

[MizCandice]

She looks great! Congrats!
If you had to move hre to a plastic enclosure shed still need the warmth but you want to cover the plastic with aluminum tape first to make sure it doesnt melt, or so I was informed when exploring my options prior to getting my rack.

[marvelfreak]

She looks great! Congrats!
If you had to move hre to a plastic enclosure shed still need the warmth but you want to cover the plastic with aluminum tape first to make sure it doesnt melt, or so I was informed when exploring my options prior to getting my rack.
I have never heard of that or ever done it. And i have yet to a problem with it in over 10 years of using totes. Plus i never us any kind of tape in my snake room.

[robertjnovak59]

Am I the only one that thinks everyone's first blood should be named Rambo?

[marvelfreak]

Am I the only one that thinks everyone's first blood should be named Rambo?
LOL i have never even thought about that before. My first Blood was named Big Bertha.

[Sublimeballs]

if she is 2 months old, i very much doubt this is her first shed, I would imagine its her 2nd or 3rd at least, including her first which would have occurred within days of hatching

No that sounds right. Bloods don't shed for the first time as quick as other snakes; it can take up to 3 months. Unlike other babies there's no waiting til they've shed to feed them their first meal.