Help.

[ColbyKun]

Umm my snake has been completely fine. She's a 6-7 month old hypostripe corn snake. We just found her lying on her back curled up. What does this mean? Shes barely moving.

[eatnom21]

make sure your temps and humidity levels are correct... how often do you feed her and are you feeding her enough. she may just be basking but if you are that concerned research it or take her to a vet....you may find similar cases online

hope this helps.

[Will0W783]

Ok, well let's get the simple stuff out of the way- what's the temperature in the cage at both ends? When is the last time she shed/ate/defecated?
Lying on the back curled up does not sound too good- could be a large number of things. I'm sorry I just noticed this thread now- how is she currently?

[ColbyKun]

Umm she died in my hands when I picked her up. It was really sad. :'( She ate 3-4 days ago. Think she was constipated. Had a huge...crap. Umm Im not sure about tank temps on both side, I just ordered another thermometer 2 weeks ago but there has been a delay. The one in the middle is 20-22 degrees C. It is nice and warm on the warm side and the cool side seems rather nice and cool. I did find mould on the log hide so I cleaned that and sparayed the tank with special reptile friendly disinfectant from the pet shop. She was out at the time. i wiped it and put everything back in. I was a bit worried but not too worried since they live in the wild and stuff with moss and well, mould is everywhere in the wild. Came back in today and she was curled up on her back. I picked her up, she moved a bit then stopped and died. :'( She ate very well and was never vicous to me. Hasn't shed because I've only had her for 2 weeks and seemed completely fine and was so lovely. Im sad shes gone. Beautiful snake. How the hell do all my snakes die or go missing. Everytime I buy a new home for them, they die. Im not doing anything wrong with the vivarium or feeding. I watch how to care for them, how to feed the snake, how to set up their vivariums, and the info. But I do hear shop breeders usually dont give out the best snakes. I don't know. I'm too sad to bother with that.

[Will0W783]

Colby, first of all, I'm so sorry you lost another snake. It is always hard to lose a pet. But I think I do have some advice for you- if the temp 20-22 celsius is in the middle of the tank, that is waaaay too cold. Your cool end should be 24-26, your warm end should be around 30, and you can offer a basking spot of up to 32. Also, mold is a big problem. If your cage developed mold, it means that you were not cleaning it often enough. Corn snakes generally do not need as much humidity as pythons, and if you are misting aspen bedding you need to change it frequently and keep a close eye on it and all furnishings for mold, as aspen molds very easily. I only mist my corns if I see they are in shed. Otherwise, they have their water bowls. Mold can cause fungal infections, although I doubt it was a fungal infection if it was a sudden death thing. Hatchling corns, well hatchling anything, can be very delicate and you can lose them easily. I am very sorry for your loss.

[ColbyKun]

Oh crap. I got told 22. Ah damn it. Well I'm getting a bulb then. Thetank seemed quite warm still. Will a bulb do a lot of difference in heat wise from 22? Will it make it go to 30? I've ordered two faunariums so I can't put a bulb in that. I didnt really get a chance to clean it. I was planning to clean it every 2 and a half weeks. Only been 2 weeks. The aspen didn't mold, the log hide did at the back so i didnt see that. I didn't even realise it would mold. Why does mold effect them that bad by the way? Since they bury in moss and when in wild, they must come across mold? Curious about that, not doubting your info. =] You dont need a lamp for a little plastic faunarium right, just a heat mat? Stupid Supplier shouldn't of delayed or snake would probably be alive. I'll save for a lamp and the accesories for the lamp and that for the wooden vivarium. What humidity should it be at? Fed up of crappy sites with wrong info. Not this one though.

[ColbyKun]

Oh and what is your recommended substrate?

[Insid3r]

Can't mold be prevented if you got good ventilation?

I'm currently using Zoo Med Repti Bark in all my snake terrariums.

[Will0W783]

For corn snakes I do recommend aspen. Repti-bark would also work, but most people I know keep corns on aspen. They really don't require extra humidity. Like I said, I don't mist them unless I see they are in shed, and even then only like once every other day. I don't use log hides, or anything that can mold. If you got mold, you either had too much humidity or too little ventilation, or both. I've had mold problems when I first started, and I clean my rack tubs every week and spot-clean poop and pee out whenever I see it, as the rack tubs tend to hold humidity better than tanks and therefore mold more easily if not kept very clean. Heat is the most important thing to snakes, as they cannot generate their own body heat like we can. They depend completely on you for supplying them with a proper heat source. You should always have a basking spot in a cage; whether it be heated with a lamp or heat tape or UTH, there should always be a small spot of concentrated warmth for the snake to go to heat itself up. Without proper heat gradient, they cannot regulate their temperature, and the enzymes in their bodies will not work properly. They will not be able to digest, or produce the proteins and vitamins and things they need. If you have a plastic cage or something that you cannot use a lamp or other heat source with, do not keep snakes in it. It's just not the best idea. The plastic will not hold the necessary heat for the snake and if you use a lamp it will mold. I would get a few 10-gallon glass aquariums with screen lids.

[ColbyKun]

It has good ventillation. It actually moulded my the ventillation. I clean poo out whenever I see it so thats daily. When I said I was planning to clean it, I meant take everything out etc. The plastic tank can have a UTH. Thats the main heat sources atm. I am using heat mats with everything. Umm I think 10 gallon tanks are too big for hatchling snakes and probably get stressed. My shipment has evetually been dispatched. Bit late. I tried with fish tanks but really expensive and lots of escape bits. Also, I'm not sure what thermostat to get for bulb or mat from Net Pet Shop Pet Store is the best online Pet Shop for Pet Supplies in the UK thats where i buy my stuff. There okay in the plastic tank because thats made for snakes. =] Can the thermometer tell heat of a heat mat? My thermometer is the exo terra one that you stick on the wall. So I can't take it off. If I buy a thermostat, can I turn up the heat of the heat mat so it is suited for the snake?

[Will0W783]

The stick-on thermometers are crap. They are not at all accurate. Considering the trouble you are having, you really need a digital thermometer or rheostat. And even if the plastic cages are listed as being ok for snakes, they are not good homes for them. I know which cages you are talking about, and they would be ok if you had a fully heated room and only needed to add a little extra heat. But unless you have a whole room temp-controlled for snakes, I would not use them. Buy yourself a proper snake enclosure- melamine or fish tank. Fish tanks are not the best either, but it would be a lot better than what you have. And a hatchling corn would be fine in a 10-gallon tank. Corns are far more active than ball pythons so they can use the extra space. Just make sure you have several hides in there for the snake. If you buy a thermostat, yes, you can turn up the heat of the mat, but it will likely melt the plastic cage. Just get rid of those Faunariums- they are not good for snakes.

[Will0W783]

Something like this would be better: Reptile Vivarium Tough Plastic Easy Clean Vivarium 24", or one of these: Perfecto Glass Reptile Habitats. Please trust me when I say you will not be able to achieve a proper heat gradient in one of those tiny, plastic things you have now. I'm not trying to be tough on you, I'm just telling you what you need to keep your snakes healthy. Obviously what you are doing now is not working.

[ColbyKun]

ahh i see. i havent actually got the faunarium yet. i ordered it but hasnt arrived. im snakeless atm. umm im not sure if it was me cos theres something green inside it which has got bigger. i noticed that when i got her but i thought it was her lung. i havent buried her but i see it has grown. not sure if i bought a ill snake. i dont have the money for another tank butthats okay since i have no snakes but i like the 2nd one, the glass terrerium. and thank you for using that site because i dont have anywhere else to buy stuff from. I do actually have a nice big wooden vivarium that she was in so i did buy a proper snake enclosure. umm yeah, i have a room which i turn the heating up for them. the room is dedicated to snakes so everything is there etc. i dont think fish tank is better than a vivarium that is made for snakes though, right? Fish tanks at the nearest shop i can get to are crap, they will escape. :S I know your not being tough on me, trust me, i appreciate the help. Ill get a digital thermometer as well one as well. thank you for all the info, big help. =]

[CAL]

Colbykun,

Sorry to read about your snake - it must be very distressing.

I picked my digital thermometer up from Ebay. Its only cost about £10 and has two probes on it, one for the hot end and one for the cold.

I have used it with both a heat mat and bulb, and now just a heat mat and they work fine for both. I altered a few things in my viv earlier in the year and realised I didn't need the bulb once I had sorted my heatmat and put it on a thermostat.

I know thermostats can be very expensive. I bought a habistat and needed to send it back for repair (my fault - not the unit). The repair was done FOC and the unit was only missing for 36 hours. Not bad when I live 300miles away from their place and it was posted both ways.

CAL

Forgot to say:

I used to use both a mat and bulb to get 30deg but since I removed some of the substrate off the mat I can get 30deg easily with the mat alone. I did used to use abut 2" of substrate over the mat but dropped it to an inch and got the extra temp. If the mat is on the inside of the viv, i.e. with a wooden viv, then some people cover them with a tile to prevent snake to mat contact. If the mats on the under side of the faunarium then you don't have to worry about that and it shouldn't get hot enough to damage the faun.

The cold end of my viv tends to equalise out with room temp, so 20deg ish. For what its worth my corn spends about 90% of his time there, unless its the first three days after being fed in which he's in the hot end.

Sorry if it appears that I'm trying to teach you suck eggs but I had a few thoughts reading through the posts and I've put them all down...

[kellen]

Do i REALLY need a thermostat? - Reptile Forums UK