New owner jitters - Page 2

jarich · 10-28-11, 06:53 AM

This is true especially for meat. Freezing doesnt kill many bacteria, it just slows them dramatically. So when you thaw it, they start producing again. This is especially true of bacteria that were in the stomach and intestines of the mice/rats. By the time you thaw them a second time you are really pushing it with the bacterial growth. Also, the freezing process turns water in the cells into ice crystals, which are incredibly damaging to the cell walls in animals. Thats why when you thaw meat out you notice it is very watery compared to its fresh counterpart. Freezing it again can leave you with a gross watery mess of a feeder animal. And lastly, freezing meat causes fat to oxidize; repeated freezing can make the fat in the animal turn rancid.

Teckdragon · 10-31-11, 09:17 AM

Slightly offtopic here, but you're going to want to add at least 2 more branches/perches. Your snake needs to be able to thermoregulate and will often move to a lower branch to "hunt."

Also, what time of the day are you attempting to feed? Is it right at dusk when the animal is waking up?

jarich · 10-31-11, 09:24 AM

At first I didnt try to feed during dusk, as the previous owner said she fed it during the day. The last couple times though I waited until just after the lights went out.

As far as the thermoregulation goes, he does that a lot with his movements. Ill try to put in another perch though. As it stands he moves around throughout the day from perch to perch, and side to side, and even comes down occasionally to lay on the ground. (my animal room has a lot of windows so during a sunny afternoon the ambient temp can rise by as much as 4 degrees). Im not sure if it comes out in the picture as much but the one large perch is purposely on an angle so that from side to side there is a good temp gradient.

Teckdragon · 10-31-11, 09:28 AM

The fact that your animal is active during the day is concerning. GTP's are generally nocturnal. It could be indicative that you don't have enough of a gradient in your enclosure.

Gungirl · 10-31-11, 10:03 AM

I agree with Techdragon. Your GTP shouldn't be all over the place during the day. I think mine will move a tiny bit once over the day but at night he roams around quite a bit and then around 3am he goes back to his fav spot.

**lady_bug87** · 10-31-11, 10:11 AM

Mine just changes the direction of her head lol she starts backwards then half way through the day her head is facing forward or if we make a lot of noise she tucks her head inside her coils

jarich · 10-31-11, 10:11 AM

Sorry, I guess I communicated that poorly. He usually moves once or twice a day, and it seems to be because of the temperature gradient. He will usually stay on the highest perch until mid afternoon, at which time I think the temperature gets a little too warm for his preferences. (it gets up to about 93) He then will come down to one of the lower perches or even sometimes all the way down to the ground. Often he will then go back up to the higher perch towards evening. I may be wrong about the gradient but the tank is large and there seems to be a good gradient of temperatures from perch to perch and side to side. The highest perch is directly under the light, so gets up to about 93. The second perch is about 85 on the warm side and 82 on the cool side. The ground is about 78 on the warm side and 76 on the cool side. Does this seem like a reasonable gradient or should I change this?

Gungirl · 10-31-11, 10:13 AM

Do you have your heat source on a thermostat? My temps never change more than 1 degree.. I have thermostats set to the temp and they stay there.

jarich · 10-31-11, 10:17 AM

The only heat source are the lights, which are on timers. I keep the room itself at 76, which is thermostat controlled so thats constant. The change in temp comes from the sun streaming into the room, so its a natural cycle that gradually increases throughout the day.

Gungirl · 10-31-11, 10:27 AM

I would never run any heat source without a thermostat. You are going to freeze or cook your GTP...

jarich · 10-31-11, 10:36 AM

Im not sure I see the point of running a light on a thermostat. Unlike a heat tape or pad, it cant possibly cook anything as it can only go on or off (it cant surge or increase like other heat sources). If its on, its on, and I know the top temp it gets to while on. If it does go out (as bulbs do sometimes) the coolest the tank could get is 76-78, which is acceptable for GTPs. Is there a different variable Im not thinking of?

**millertime89** · 10-31-11, 07:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jarich

Im not sure I see the point of running a light on a thermostat. Unlike a heat tape or pad, it cant possibly cook anything

WRONG. Check the temp on your bulb when it first turns on, then check it again 10 minutes later and tell me that sucker isn't hot.

youngster · 10-31-11, 07:49 PM

Kyle is right. Many pet specified bulbs can be put on a thermostat and be varied. I have my baby corn on an infrared and I can change the wattage output with the thermo.

ladyjustice33 · 10-31-11, 08:09 PM

A friend of mine had a GTP that went off food for a while. He finally put a little chic in there and wham, he went right for it!! Glad I wasn't there, chics are sooo cute! He has finally gotten him on f/t rodents and now picks up f/t chics and gives him one every so often.

jarich · 11-01-11, 06:35 AM

Ok yes, I shouldve been more specific in my wording, but look at the context of the conversation. Yes a bulb warms up, and yes, if you are not aware of the maximum temperature that is reached under the bulb you should not put your reptile anywhere near it. However, neither of those things was what we were talking about here. I was trying to make the point that unlike a heat tape or pad, there is no worry that the bulb will have a surge or malfunction and therefore somehow grossly increase in temperature. A light bulb is, itself, a sort of fuse (100 watt, 75 watt, etc). Unlike a heat tape or pad, if it gets pushed beyond its output it will immediately burn out, not increase the temperature. In fact, you bring up a good point for the opposite argument Youngster. The thermostat your using does have the capacity to malfunction, and therefore cook your reptile, if you are using it to limit your bulbs output. (its very unlikely of course, but the possibility does exist) Merely moving it to the distance away from your reptile's basking spot that achieves the desired temperature would technically be a safer way of regulating this. As you have it set up with your infrared now a malfunction could occur and increase the wattage of your bulb, therefore cooking your herp. Again, the possibility of a thermostat going haywire is very very slim, so Im not saying anyone should remove them. Merely if you are wanting the maximum temperature a bulb reaches, like in this situation, I dont see the point of the thermostat.