new corn snake set up

[poison123]

http://mob1258.photobucket.com/albums/ii533/dr1h/P1020516.jpg

http://mob1258.photobucket.com/albums/ii533/dr1h/P1020517.jpg

http://mob1258.photobucket.com/albums/ii533/dr1h/P1020518.jpg

let me know what you think

[alessia55]

The photos are really small :hmm:
Can't see a water dish..

[poison123]

http://i1258.photobucket.com/albums/ii533/dr1h/P1020516.jpg

[poison123]

http://i1258.photobucket.com/albums/ii533/dr1h/P1020517.jpg
i didnt have the water dish in there. but don't worry he does have on.

[poison123]

http://i1258.photobucket.com/albums/ii533/dr1h/P1020523.jpg

[rmfsnakes32]

Is that sand in there? if so its really hard to keep clean. Or is it a different substrate?

[snake man12]

Are those leaves fake if not where they treated?

[poison123]

Is that sand in there? if so its really hard to keep clean. Or is it a different substrate?

im using a sand/soil mix its bio active to its self cleaning

[poison123]

Are those leaves fake if not where they treated?

they are real dead leaves and no there not treated

[Gungirl]

There is no real need to "treat" leaves and what not. Snakes live in the wild and a few leaves will not harm them. As long as you don't have any mold you are all set.

[snake man12]

Ahh bio-active, this seems to get more and more popular each day.
I was just concerned, It actually looks really natural good job!!

[franks]

Bio-active is the way to go man. Beats newspapper. If anybody is interested in bio-active substrate, check out phillipe de vosjoli and his book "the art of keeping snakes"

[StudentoReptile]

Bio-active is the way to go man. Beats newspapper. If anybody is interested in bio-active substrate, check out phillipe de vosjoli and his book "the art of keeping snakes"

Awesome book. Its what inspired me to start the BSS with some of my critters back in college.

[poison123]

thanks guys :) i have to take more pics and show you how he moved things around on his own lol.

frank ive heard of that book but ive never reed it im definitely gonna look into it.

student i know i know you from some where i think tfo lol

[snake man12]

I just looked it up on amazon. The first few pages are available and I liked what I was reading.

I just ordered me a new book!!

[jarich]

Looks good, and especially impressive for a corn snake setup. Did he dig his own way under there or did you hollow out a space for him?

Have you put any inverts in the substrate?

I keep thinking about doing one for my ball python too...

[poison123]

i started it off for him but he made a little tunnel under it and there a few tunnels in there. the only thing i added were spring tails and the dead leafs already had mites on it and i was going to ad some rollie polies.

and i wish i still had my ball i would love to try this out on one.

[poison123]

and he also has a basking spot of 105F and a cool side of 73F

[Gungirl]

105f is hot for a corn.. you can easily drop that down to 90 with no issues.

[poison123]

im not having any issues :D he is doing much better in this set up

[Jlassiter]

Great set up. The larger the gradient the better. If I could achieve 105 and 50 in the same enclosier it would be ideal.

[poison123]

he has an amazing feeding response in his new set up (not that he didnt before)

[poison123]

just found him peaking out of a burrow that he made.(i need more leaf litter)
imgur: the simple image sharer (http://imgur.com/bOaZ6)

[Wyldrose]

Wow cool set up. I was thinking of doing something like that with my kingsnake. He hates being handled and I don't want to stress him out when I have to clean the newspaper.
I love that they tunnel like that :)

[poison123]

Wow cool set up. I was thinking of doing something like that with my kingsnake. He hates being handled and I don't want to stress him out when I have to clean the newspaper.
I love that they tunnel like that :)

thank you :). sorry i missed this. and i think you should definitely try it out with your king im sure he would love it.

Aren't you on HC?

[poison123]

heres a vid of hes great feeding response
corn snake feeding - YouTube (http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=yXwfKKjR5Bk)

[poison123]

well i added a bit more of substrate sense i see he likes to burrow. and sure enough he did. i haven't seen him in a couple days i knew he was still in the cage because i could see the substrate was lifted up where he had made a burrow.

He made a borrow under this piece of bark
http://i1261.photobucket.com/albums/ii600/poison619/P1030275.jpg

and heres the other end of the burrow
http://i1261.photobucket.com/albums/ii600/poison619/P1030283.jpg

[rmfsnakes32]

Very cool looking set up

[infernalis]

105f is hot for a corn.. you can easily drop that down to 90 with no issues.

Agreed.

I keep my corn snake at normal room temps, never supplied any extra heat at all.

Had him six years now, so it must be working out OK.

[poison123]

Very cool looking set up

Thanks :)....

[poison123]

I haven't had any problems with the extra heat in fact hes had a much better appetite. And he does seek it out.

[jaleely]

That lil snakey seems to be doing fine, to me. Also is that 105 the surface temp under the lamp, or under all the substrate? There is a lot of open air, as long as his humidity is okay, it should be fine. It's good for the bio stuff. *shrug*
Higher metabolism snakes seem to do better with higher heat.

Kat and wayne have been doing snakes for a long time though..

[poison123]

That lil snakey seems to be doing fine, to me. Also is that 105 the surface temp under the lamp, or under all the substrate? There is a lot of open air, as long as his humidity is okay, it should be fine. It's good for the bio stuff. *shrug*
Higher metabolism snakes seem to do better with higher heat.

Kat and wayne have been doing snakes for a long time though..

WOW sorry i missed this. The 105 reading is right under the lamp (basking spot)

And Kat's and Wayne's opinion is very welcomed :)

[poison123]

just snapped these pics today.

http://i1261.photobucket.com/albums/ii600/poison619/P1030618_zps8970b188.jpg

http://i1261.photobucket.com/albums/ii600/poison619/P1030620_zpsab393ea6.jpg

Hes fresh out of hibernation.

[Corey209]

How often do you need to change bio active substrate and where could I get my hands on some?

[poison123]

How often do you need to change bio active substrate and where could I get my hands on some?

The whole point of bio active substrate is to never have to change it or at least go a long time with out. And the "bio-active" part is from the tiny bugs that live in the substrate with out them its just normal substrate. You can turn Almost anything into Bio-Active substrate from bark to soil to moss to aspen. Just colect items from outside like bark,wood and leaf litter. Or you can add your own bugs like spring tail and isopods. I believe "BarelyBreathing" Has a thread up about the different types she uses search her threads and you should find it.

Also im using top soil and Childrens washed play sand. You can also dig up you own substrate.

[Corey209]

The whole point of bio active substrate is to never have to change it or at least go a long time with out. And the "bio-active" part is from the tiny bugs that live in the substrate with out them its just normal substrate. You can turn Almost anything into Bio-Active substrate from bark to soil to moss to aspen. Just colect items from outside like bark,wood and leaf litter. Or you can add your own bugs like spring tail and isopods. I believe "BarelyBreathing" Has a thread up about the different types she uses search her threads and you should find it.

Also im using top soil and Childrens washed play sand. You can also dig up you own substrate.

I'm thinking about mixing coco fiber and reptibark as it looks nice and seems to hold humidity well from what I've been told. I don't really like the idea of isopods in my enclosures but I'll definitely try out springtails if I can find some.

Bio-active Substrate | Gecko Time (http://www.geckotime.com/bio-active-reptile-substrate/)

Just found this and they use top soil with sand from the beach.

[poison123]

I'm thinking about mixing coco fiber and reptibark as it looks nice and seems to hold humidity well from what I've been told. I don't really like the idea of isopods in my enclosures but I'll definitely try out springtails if I can find some.

Bio-active Substrate | Gecko Time (http://www.geckotime.com/bio-active-reptile-substrate/)

Just found this and they use top soil with sand from the beach.

What will you be using it for? For the ball id suggest DEEP burrowable substrate. coco fiber and bark cant hold strong burrows. And i believe play sand is sand from the beach.

[Corey209]

What will you be using it for? For the ball id suggest DEEP burrowable substrate. coco fiber and bark cant hold strong burrows. And i believe play sand is sand from the beach.

I want to try and do it for both my boas and the ball. Any specific recommendations for both?

[poison123]

I want to try and do it for both my boas and the ball. Any specific recommendations for both?

From my understanding of bci's is there not burrowers there are often found in trees though that doesnt mean they wont hide in a burrow thats already made by something else. So i guess mixing sand/soil until it looks right to you would be the best way to go and top it off with leaf litter. i didn't use bio-active substrate when i had my boas so im not to sure what they would prefer but i would definitely take that rout now if i had them.

[Jason_Hood]

Agreed.

I keep my corn snake at normal room temps, never supplied any extra heat at all.

Had him six years now, so it must be working out OK.


You are asking for trouble. Heat is needed for proper body functions including immune response. You may have just been free of issues for 6 years by luck, a temp of 105 for basking (which wild snakes use frequently) takes away the need for luck.

Jason

[poison123]

Look at this great looking burrow he made
http://i1261.photobucket.com/albums/ii600/poison619/P1030694_zps8afa7230.jpg
http://i1261.photobucket.com/albums/ii600/poison619/P1030696_zps06aad838.jpg

Its pretty big around and deep.

[poison123]

I cant seem to get a good pic of how deep it is but trust me it is much deeper.

[poison123]

http://i1261.photobucket.com/albums/ii600/poison619/P1030700_zps9cac11c0.jpg

[poison123]

Making a new home.
http://i1261.photobucket.com/albums/ii600/poison619/P1030860_zps9867cf77.jpg

http://i1261.photobucket.com/albums/ii600/poison619/P1030859_zps56ad6e97.jpg

[poison123]

http://i1261.photobucket.com/albums/ii600/poison619/P1030876_zps3c3fad2f.jpg

http://i1261.photobucket.com/albums/ii600/poison619/P1030877_zps8ad5dd7e.jpg

http://i1261.photobucket.com/albums/ii600/poison619/P1030881_zps7a1b514b.jpg

http://i1261.photobucket.com/albums/ii600/poison619/P1030882_zps5610c7ec.jpg

[poison123]

Basking with his whole body at 109F
http://i1261.photobucket.com/albums/ii600/poison619/P1030992_zpse9229c47-1_zpsea1e473a.jpg

And part of his upper body at 117F Pic isnt clear but you can see him in the background
http://i1261.photobucket.com/albums/ii600/poison619/P1030994_zps975b9dc2.jpg

[reptimama]

That is a great set up! I want to do that for my Fl. king and Ball :)

[poison123]

That is a great set up! I want to do that for my Fl. king and Ball :)

That would be great!

And thanks :)

[Chu'Wuti]

I kept my first BP in a natural viv for several years; it worked out beautifully. Only reason he isn't in one now is because we've been remodeling and there's been a huge amount of construction dust. The worst is over, though, so I'm hoping to get him back into a natural viv and get my other BPs and milk snakes into natural vivs as well. Philippe De Vosjoli's book is a fantastic resource. I used a sterile potting mixture without perlite (you don't want them to ingest perlite, but you want organic matter for the plants) and incorporated pothos, ZZ plant, and Sansevieria into the viv. Springtails are good to help decompose leftover snake feces. The key to making this work is to clean out large fecal deposits and stir the soil every week with a fork or something--in nature, earthworms and other burrowing insects/critters stir the soil up and aerate it, but in a viv, you have to do it or you can get a nonaerobic bacterial colony going, which isn't good.

Beautiful work, poison123!