heating/first snake

[man_u_fan]

:D hi all,just a couple of questions,i got my first king snake yesterday it's a mexican black.it's a beautiful little girl.the breeder who i bought it from sold it 2 me in a big plastic container,he also sold me a heat pad is this going to be enough to heat the container?the heat pad has no regulater or dimmer will this make it harder to keep the right tempreture?i know i should keep the temp about 80-84 how much variation is allowed.any help would be gratefully recieved thanks rob

[Pinto2]

I don't mean to take over this thread with my own question(hate when that happens), but it will help with your heating problems. Would a black snake need as much heat as a different coloured one, becuase black is the hottest colour?

[Jeff_Favelle]

Would a black snake need as much heat as a different coloured one, becuase black is the hottest colour?


That would only work if the snake were getting its heat radiently from a full spectrum. Colour is the light that YOU see that ISN'T absorbed by the object. Black is the ABSENCE of colour, therefore, objects that appear black are NOT reflecting ANY colour. Meaning, they are absorbing every single wavelength of light. That's why your black T-shirt gets so frickin' hot in the summer sun.

Back to snakes. If you are heating by conduction (ie, heat pad under the cage), then colour doesn't do a damn thing.

Furthermore, black snakes are black to get MORE heat from their environment. They aren't hotter snakes. They can just get hotter faster, which is what black snakes have evolved to do (for whatever reason - there are MANY).

To answer the first thread, I don't mean to be a jerk, but these are really questions you should have asked BEFORE getting the snake, don't you think? Now the snake is basically a "lab rat" until you get things right. Sucks to be that snake.

The gradient that snake needs is 85-87F warm end, 77-79F cool end. Calibrate those temps in a cage BEFORE you put the snake in. It doesn't need to live in sub par conditions until YOU can get it right.

Preaching over. ;)

[Boakid]

Yes also you need a thermostat connected to your heat pad so you can set the right temps, 2 hiding places so it can thermoregulate, water bowl, describe your plastic container please.

[man_u_fan]

thanks for the advice but i've got it sorted now.thanks for the lecture jeff but i did ask all those questions and read all the books,but as it's my first snake i'm trying to make sure that everything is perfect and worrying that i've forgotten something.

[malcontent]

Originally posted by Boakid
Yes also you need a thermostat connected to your heat pad so you can set the right temps, 2 hiding places so it can thermoregulate, water bowl, describe your plastic container please.

where can i get a thermostat and how would i connect it to the heat pad? my temps are fine though should i even bother??

[thunder]

i use, and love http://www.aaareptilesupply.com/merchant.mv?Screen=PROD&Product_Code=AE-261000&Category_Code=A4

[malcontent]

sweet thank you very much.