new guy from az. lets try this again.

[the baPhoon]

Posting from a cell phone sucks. Anyway try number two.

Hi. New to the forum but not to reptiles.

I've owned many lizards and such but this is a new one to me.
4 days ago I saved this little guy from a camel spider during a heavy monsoon.
Baby banded king. The winds were so strong after I mashed the camel spider wanting to make a meal outa him he started blowing across my driveway. So I swooped him up and got him in a small terrarium with a heater and reptisand.

So far he hasn't eaten. And there's little to no chance he will make it in the wild.

His size has really got me stumped on what yo feed it. The (dreaded) pet shop recommended minnows. No go. He appears healthy and happy despite his lack of eating.

I've read multiple conflicting statements on multiple sites about feeding. One site recommends panfish worms while another says no insects.

He must have just hatched when I found him. Any feeding tips are greatly appreciated!

Now a few pics.

http://i305.photobucket.com/albums/nn215/dAshisse/IMG_20120821_214949.jpg

http://i305.photobucket.com/albums/nn215/dAshisse/IMG_20120826_145549.jpg

http://i305.photobucket.com/albums/nn215/dAshisse/IMG_20120821_220224.jpg

The attacker. No harm was done to the little king thanks to a quick boot stomp.

http://i305.photobucket.com/albums/nn215/dAshisse/IMG_20120822_194156.jpg

[infernalis]

sSnakeSs.com - Rules (http://www.ssnakess.com/index.php?page=rules)

http://www.thamfriends.com/mat.jpg

[infernalis]

Your first post worked, all new posts have to be proof read and approved prior to displaying.

It keeps the viagra ads off our boards.

[alessia55]

Welcome, welcome. Try half a mouse pinky.

[the baPhoon]

Gona try that tonight. Should I warm the pinky half up a bit first? I have a bit of experience with cornys.
This little guy is from a 3 foot king that lives in an olive tree out front of my house. Only one I have seen. It rained hard that night, 2 inches in an hour and the mothers den is in the roots, I'm hoping the rest of the clutch didn't drown.

Yeah my phone refreshed the post info so fast i couldn't read the admin required attentions. Sorry for the double post.

[infernalis]

Yeah my phone refreshed the post info so fast i couldn't read the admin required attentions. Sorry for the double post.

No problems.. it happens to a lot of people.

There is another forum that I am on from time to time, and they don't have this policy.. one night I logged on to see what was up, and there were 30-40 spam posts advertising junk.

It was there all night before one of the mods cleaned it up.

[Rogue628]

Welcome to the forum! Good luck with your little guy (or girl).

You can warm it up with tap water or warm it with a hair dryer.

Don't be alarmed if it doesn't eat. Even at that size, they can go for an amazingly long time before they'll actually eat. You may have better luck with the wee one eating if you leave it alone for a few days and let it get used to it's new environment.

What are you keeping it in? What's it's set up like? Have water and hides? What about heat and at what temp if you do? This information will help us help you with your new charge. And, in the end, will hopefully help you get him eating. :)

[the baPhoon]

Plenty of burrowing room, using reptile sand, I figured its use to the desert sand and I'll feed him/her in another box to prevent sand impaction.

Nice large water dish on one half, half log hide on the other. Small Reptile heater under tank on the log side.
He seems too enjoy his new habitat. Loves to held. I use natural light from near windows in the house rather than artificial lighting.

Once he grows a bit.I will transfer him to a 20 gallon tank.

[the baPhoon]

Got my pinkys tonight. Thawing one out currently. Gona probly quarter it and get some grey matter on the parts I feed him.

Hope I don't have to agitate him to get him to eat dead food.
Don't think he's old enough to be set in his ways. I'm guessing he was no more then a few hours old when I caught him.

[the baPhoon]

Few shots of his current home.

http://i305.photobucket.com/albums/nn215/dAshisse/IMG_20120826_214855.jpg

http://i305.photobucket.com/albums/nn215/dAshisse/IMG_20120826_214914.jpg

Heater is under the hide side.
Still no dice on it eating. Its just soo small. Maybe after his first molt it'll get some hunger.

[alessia55]

I have a few suggestions, if you don't mind. :)
The little snake will probably do better on aspen or reptibark than sand.
He needs two SMALL hides, one on each side of the enclosure. That log hide is too big... snakes like to hide in small, cramped spaces that will give them a sense of security.
Is that heat mat attached to a thermostat? A thermostat is what will allow you to control the temperature of the heat mat. Without a thermostat, a heat mat can accidentally cook your snake.
Give the snake time to adjust to his new home. He is getting used to knew sights and smells, and the process can be very stressful. Wait 7 days before you offer food again. Offering food any more often than that can lead to more stress. In the meantime, don't handle him at all, so that he has time to relax.
Good luck, keep us posted. Let us know if you have any more questions :)

[the baPhoon]

Next time I'm in town I'll change the substrate and get smaller hides and a smaller bowl. This was just what we had available at the time.

No thermostat on the heater pad, it doesn't get all that warm stuck to the bottom of the outside of the tank but I'll definitely look into a controlled heat source.

Thanks for all the suggestions. I'd really like to keep this guy for a while so any suggestions are welcome!

[marvelfreak]

20387
Nice to have you join us.

[the baPhoon]

Why thank you sir.

[shaunyboy]

hello and welcome

what a tiny wee beasty you have there mate

he's a cute wee dude

the spider was pretty gross,i'm scared of spiders though :D

cheers shaun

[Ivalynfyre]

Hello and welcome!
This looks like some sort of shovelnose snake, not a king, and from the few minutes of googling I did they are insectivores...?

[the baPhoon]

It seems that way. Rather odd. We've got a pair of banded kings one in our front yard and one out back.
I just assumed it was king offspring. From the research I've done they look cheaper to care for. Crickets centipedes scorpions. He's got a ways to go before he's dining on stinging land crab but crickets and meal worms should hopefully get him to size.
I'm trying not to handle him and let him get use to his new enclosure but its so damn hard cause he's so small and cute haha. I :think: he's eaten two moths I caught for him. Just tossed them into his terrarium.
From here on out I plan on feeding him in a separate critter carrier so he doesn't strike at hands that enter his new habitat.

I'll update his progress as he grows.

Also thanks for the warm welcomes. I'm on quite a few automotive forums and those groups can be tough on the newbies. Haha

[gareth.hooper]

I have seen some go as far as cut up pinks and feed the legs only for a while, perhaps rat pinkie legs.

[Lankyrob]

It seems that way. Rather odd. We've got a pair of banded kings one in our front yard and one out back.
I just assumed it was king offspring. From the research I've done they look cheaper to care for. Crickets centipedes scorpions. He's got a ways to go before he's dining on stinging land crab but crickets and meal worms should hopefully get him to size.
I'm trying not to handle him and let him get use to his new enclosure but its so damn hard cause he's so small and cute haha. I :think: he's eaten two moths I caught for him. Just tossed them into his terrarium.
From here on out I plan on feeding him in a separate critter carrier so he doesn't strike at hands that enter his new habitat.

I'll update his progress as he grows.

Also thanks for the warm welcomes. I'm on quite a few automotive forums and those groups can be tough on the newbies. Haha

This is a popular myth that most newbies get caught up in (including me), however think about it logically.

If feeding in the enclosure means that they think each time someone reaches into the viv there is food then feeding out of the viv means each time you take them out they will think there is food. :)

I feed all mine in the vivs now and have had no issues - just makes sure you havent handled anything that smells of food before putting your hand in :)

[the baPhoon]

That sounds pretty logical. Makes feeding less of a hassle as well. Thanks for the tip!

[Lankyrob]

That sounds pretty logical. Makes feeding less of a hassle as well. Thanks for the tip!

No worries, once you move onto larger snakes like retics and carpets going near them at feeding time becomes dangerous and feeding in the viv is definitely sasfer too :)