I don't think my temps are right...?

[Ladyhawk]

Hello,

I just purchased a yearling male Western hognose. I thought I had all the temps right, but the little guys seems to think otherwise. I tried to feed him yesterday, but he wanted nothing more than to escape, so this morning, after some reading, I turned off the heat tape for the time being. I think he was way too hot.

I left the UVB light on. It generates some heat, but it doesn't make the tank too hot by itself. It heats the back of the tank to about 86.6 degrees Fahrenheit. I know he doesn't need a UVB light, but I wanted some way to light things up. The heat it generates could definitely be an issue.

I found a place in this forum where some people said they kept their hognoses without any heating at all:

http://www.ssnakess.com/forums/heter...oses-heat.html

So, I'm perplexed. Obviously, I don't want to bake him, but I also don't want him too cold. He's not used to his new environment, but I'm wondering how much of that is due to possibly incorrect temperatures.

He is in an Exo-Terra 18" X 18" X 12" with an 11" X 8-10ish" piece of heat tape under the right back corner. I spent days making sure there was a hot spot of 90 degrees on the bottom, that temps were 85-90 in the warm area. The other side of the terrarium seems to stay at around 80, except for the part where the UVB light shines down in the left back. That leaves the front part mostly cool. Ambient temps in the house are between 76-80 degrees, so he's certainly not going to get too cold. I'm using a temp gun, BTW.

I'm also wondering if an under-the-tank heater might be a bad solution for a hognose. When you burrow, it should get cooler, not hotter, right?

Years ago, I kept a cadre of corns, kings, milks. They seemed to do better when I wrapped the heat tape around the outside of the enclosure, rather than keep it directly under.

I would like to keep the UVB light with hood, but fixing the temperatures is way more important.

Keep in mind that an Exo-Terra lid has a plastic support piece in the middle. If I put some kind of heat lamp on him, I'll have to get rid of the hood with UVB. I will do that if it's necessary.

I just looked over there and he's still trying to get out. But it doesn't seem as frantic. When I approached, he looked at me and said, "Aw hell, naw!" and headed toward the back.

I'm completely new to this species. I would very much like some guidance, please. Right now, he's my only "pet." I care a lot about what happens to him.