New Hognose Need Advice

[Lankyrob]

Glad she had eaten, probably wasnt starving, with all my snakes once they have taken one prey item they will eat anyhing else that is available (watch out for your fingers!!)

Eating the first one probably just switched on the feed response.

Hope she continues to eat for you, personally i would still not handle her until she has eaten at least another two times so that she is a "regular" feeder before the stress of handling commences.

[NennaMeerkat]

Originally Posted by Lankyrob

Hope she continues to eat for you, personally i would still not handle her until she has eaten at least another two times so that she is a "regular" feeder before the stress of handling commences.

So I should wait another week or so before handling her? She is getting so jumpy I am a little worried that she might get to shy to be handled at all. That happened to one of our corn snakes. He turned into a striker...where he would strike at anything that comes near the aquarium. Don't want that to happen to her. Maybe handling her just a little two time a week maybe?

[Reptile_Reptile]

she is probably jumpy because you have had her for a very short time and keeps getting food shoved in her face. but dont worry im sure once she has a few good meals in her and she is confident that she is boss in that viv she will be cool and comfortable. btw what is her viv setup like. pics? (i'd wait on the pics till sunday)

[NennaMeerkat]

I dont have a working camera at the moment but its kinda basic right now, slowly building up a comfy home for her. Basically it is a 15 gallon (longer than it is tall) latch down lid aquarium. Inside is the reptile carpet (tan brown in color) lining the bottom with two half log hiding places. On one half of the aquarium is a heating pad underneath where on half log hiding place is and then on the other half is the other half log hiding place that doesn't have the heating pad (a cool and warm side so to speak). Then in the middle towards the back is a water basin type thing big enough for her to soak in and still easily get out.

Since I didn't think hognose snakes were good at climbing I didn't think to get any "branches" or climbing type areas. I have been debating getting a loose type of bedding but considering nothing holds the heat from the pad that is underneath well (from experience with our corn snakes) the carpet seemed like the best choice. I do know that hognoses like to bury but from talking to people in the pet store and the breeder they said there was nothing really wrong with just using the reptile carpet.

Anyways eventually I am thinking of getting a rock that could fit in a corner of the aquarium to lounge on or around as well as a longer log that she could easily hide in without curling up or chill on top of. But basically that is it for now. 2 hiding holes, half the place warm other half cooler and a water basin between. OH! And a low watt heat lamp that I turn on in the morning (around 9am) and turn off in the evening (around 6pm).

[Reptile_Reptile]

a good idea is to get a ceramic heating bulb and just keep it on all the time. because it doesnt actually emit light it wont stress your snake out. and unless you have your reptile room completely sealed from outside light the snakes does not think your heat lamp controls night and day they do know day night from the sun out a window. and i would get a substrate your hognose can tunnel into (their nose is evidence that they naturally burrow also their name because hogs use their noses to dig for roots and such) coconut shavings and reptibark mix is what is usually suggested for that but i just use aspen but as said the reptile carpet would suffice if you wanted it to. either way sounds like the hoggy got a great home with a great caretaker congratulations

[NennaMeerkat]

Thanks Reptile Reptile After working in a zoo for 5 years (before getting married) I worked with many different snakes. Though what the smaller snakes were kept in over night were basically large Tupperware containers and newspaper. Learned a lot since then about all the "domestic" or more common breeds that people keep to give them a good home if I ever got them.

I know that the snake doesn't really get the true event of daylight and night from the heat lamp but I do keep it on for 8 hours regardless simply since it isn't overly hot this time of year and I wouldn't want her to get to chilled. More of a precaution than a true need. During the summer months I don't even plan to use it. Living here in Texas warrants hot days as you can well imagine.

Does the coconut and such hold the heat of a heating pad well or at least radiate the heat even through a decent layer as to allow burrowing? That is what I am most concerned about overall.

[Reptile_Reptile]

yea the substrate will be heated by the pad and in some cases this is better then geing right on it with only a little glass in between and if it isnt warm enough she can just burrow down and get warmer and it will take in some heat from the bulb. so when she burrows she will be nice and warm and feeling safe cause she is "out of sight" although you can normally still see them

[NennaMeerkat]

I will probably get some substrate once I know she will eat outside of her aquarium. Right now she seems most comfy eating in there and not in a separate place. Wouldn't want any substrate being ingested accidentally ya know? But it will be something I plan on

[Reptile_Reptile]

in most cases when feeding in tank that has lose substrate just put a little plate in the tank with the dead mouse on it to avoid the eating of substrate

[NennaMeerkat]

Dually noted. Though for now, to get a good feeding response, we are feeding her live pinkies. Eventually we will hopefully be feeding stunned or frozen/thawed since I know hognoses don't constrict. So yeah. I will remember the plate if we are still feeding her in the main aquarium.

[Lankyrob]

Originally Posted by NennaMeerkat

So I should wait another week or so before handling her? She is getting so jumpy I am a little worried that she might get to shy to be handled at all. That happened to one of our corn snakes. He turned into a striker...where he would strike at anything that comes near the aquarium. Don't want that to happen to her. Maybe handling her just a little two time a week maybe?

Personally i would rather have a strikey snake that eats than a calm snake that doesnt but that is a decision for you to make. Your snake your rules.

I also appreciate how difficult it is having a new baby and not holding it!!

Good luck whatever you decide.

[NennaMeerkat]

Thanks muchly Lankyrob (love the name btw) I will wait a few days for sure before doing anything with her and when I do handle her it will be within her aquarium and being gentle like. Certainly I will take it easy and work with her slowly, but you are right I would much rather have a stikey snake than a snake that won't eat.

[Ch^4]

Originally Posted by NennaMeerkat

Big Big Update
Our local home owned pet store finally got in some live pinkies today and called me right before closing for the holidays saying they had held 2 for me. Nice 2 fat ones and very lively. Anyways he suggested, from owning several hognose, to just put both pinkies in the aquarium with her. I had been taking her out. So came back home and found her all out and about curled up outside of her hide. I put a pinkie on either side of her and covered her up with a thick blanket. No stimuli no nothing, just the blanket covering her aquarium and me sitting in the dark quietly watching TV.

45 min. later (after an episode of Bones...great show must watch) I check on her with a red light from a tiny flashlight and to my amazement I don't see either pinkie! Checked all the hiding spots, under the reptile carpet, and I can't find anything! She is under her hide that has the heating pad beneath it and though she doesn't look lumpy I can only assume she ate BOTH of them. She ate BOTH! My poor baby must have been starving to eat both right? So for now I am assuming she has eaten and tomorrow morning I will remove the blanket and check the entire aquarium to make doubly sure. But if she has eaten them I don't want her to regurg...thus waiting until tomorrow to check anything.

KEEP FINGERS CROSSED! Its possible its a freaking xmas miracle!!

Congratulations, that is great news! As Rob mentioned, try to get her to feed at least one more time before you start your handling regime. It is going to be extremely difficult, but well worth the wait! My baby JCP, as with others, was very defensive, but I still gave her some stress-free time before the training began. I am now happy to say that after 2 months of "training," she is becoming very tolerable to handling and rarely bites! Good luck and keep us updated!

[NennaMeerkat]

Thanks as always Ch^4