New jungle carpet and getting a little worried

Mikeyv2009 · 03-28-19, 08:04 PM

Hello guys . So I just bought my first ever jungle carpet female 2018 (I believe it was a 18 and not 19 because it is really small still) . Let me tell you about my setup first. I have her in a ten gallon enclosure with lots of plants, drift wood and two hides. Hot side is 86, ambient temp is 80-82 with the help from a ceramic heat emitter placed over the middle of the enclosure and cool side is about 74 with 45% humidity. Since bringing her home she has not moved from her hide on the cool side with the exception of two nights right after she ate 2 frozen thawed pinkies then went right back to the cool side ever since until now . She has also not defecated since feeding her almost a week ago on wed March 20th. I also fed her again Tuesday March 26th and still has not defecated or moved back to hot side again. Is this normal of carpet pythons because in starting to get a little worried I have a kingsnake that usually passes it's food within two days of eating. I'm wondering if this is regular behavior for young jungle carpets or if there is something I'm doing wrong.

Thank you and hope to hear from you soon !

craigafrechette · 03-29-19, 06:18 AM

I don't keep carpets, but I have two other python species and two colubrids including a King.

Colubrids generally have faster metabolisms than pythons, so you can't compare one to the other.

Your snake will poop when ready. As long as you don't see "sausage butt" you're fine.

**EL Ziggy** · 03-29-19, 10:13 AM

Your temps are on point if accurately measured. I wouldn't be worried about anything just yet. She could be prepping for a shed or just acclimating to her new home. Are you feeding her rat or mice pinks? Mice pinks are kinda small even for hatching carpets. They can take mice fuzzys if not hoppers as first meals. Can you share a picture of your snake and setup?

toddnbecka · 03-29-19, 03:23 PM

One thing I've noticed about many snakes, they tend to hang out on the cooler end most often. Your new one may be slipping over to the warm side when you aren't watching, but as long as he/she can move freely to regulate their body temp don't worry. I have 3 carpet pythons, 2 spotted and 2 savu pythons, one woma python, and a couple dozen assorted boas. I have found that they all poop less often than my colubrids, but tend to make a larger deposit when they do, lol.

A few weeks ago I picked up a baby Amazon tree boa at a reptile show. Set up a tub with a heat mat on the bottom and a CHE hanging above it to provide a vertical temp gradient. The wee one spends all day on the substrate, where the temp is the low end of their scale, even after eating. I have a ceramic cave set near the top of the tub, where the temp is warmer from the CHE hanging above, that hasn't been used yet. This one did hang out in the lower hide for a few days before shedding, but now spends every day on the cypress mulch out in the open. I figure he/she has settled in and feels comfortable enough that the hide isn't necessary.