newbie snakes

thomas1123 · 04-11-11, 06:05 PM

Hey guys im wanting to get a pet snake and i was thinking of getting a hognose snake. would you guys recomend them for a begginer snake? i have an exo-terra tank that is 36x18x18 that i got from a friend for free. if you guys do recomend them, can y'all give me any tips on them?
Thanks

shaunyboy · 04-11-11, 06:27 PM

hello and welcome

there's a few hoggie keeper's on here so give it time and i'm sure someone will help you out mate

its only carpets i keep only thing i can tell you about hoggie's is they are very very cute little fellow's with their little upturned nose's

cheers shaun

stephanbakir · 04-11-11, 06:48 PM

They puff up and look adorable.

blindfireak40 · 04-11-11, 10:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by thomas1123

Hey guys im wanting to get a pet snake and i was thinking of getting a hognose snake. would you guys recomend them for a begginer snake? i have an exo-terra tank that is 36x18x18 that i got from a friend for free. if you guys do recomend them, can y'all give me any tips on them?
Thanks

That is plenty large enough for a Hognose, even an adult one. You should probably make sure to have plenty of ground cover so he'll feel secure; lots of snakes don't care much for wide-open spaces.

Issues I know about include getting them to eat, but if you buy from a reputable breeder that shouldn't be a problem. As for them being a good beginner snake, I don't know about that, but there are Hoggie people on there that will be better able to advise.

thomas1123 · 04-11-11, 11:33 PM

ok thank you i was thinking about buying one offline at bhb enterprises unless you know any breeders in florida

marvelfreak · 04-12-11, 01:03 AM

Hello and welcome!

NennaMeerkat · 04-12-11, 01:17 AM

Yo! Hognose owner here

Be more than happy to help ya out. Do you know what gallon size that tank is cause I am not familiar with measurements. I know for myself I have a 20 gallon and that is plenty big even for a full grown one. So if you got that you are doing good.

As for hoggies themselves they are quite the character and don't need an overly complex setup. I have just an under tank heater on a thermostat and the ambient temperature of my house this time of year (anywhere from 75-80 degrees) works great. During the winter I had on a low wattage heat lamp just as a precaution. Others have told me to up the temperature but my breeder said she keeps her hogs at a 75-85 degree temp all year round. They require hides, one on the cool side and one on the hot side. Water bowl shallow but big enough that the snake can soak in if it wants. Ground cover should be something like reptile safe wood chips...but I don't know what it is called off hand. If you really want to know let me know and I can find out.

What I have found to be the major concern is eating. Some baby hogs can be very picky eaters. Had one earlier this year I had to give back to the breeder because she wouldn't eat. Got another from her that eats great. But that is the only problem I have seen with them...ever. When they do eat and are full grown they never take anything larger than a full grown mouse (maybe two if you have a little piggy)

As for attitudes they are pretty docile. Babies can be little actors and hiss and flatten their heads, but that is just cause they are little and insecure. Honestly if the snake doesn't put on a show I would worry about it LOL Mine likes to wait until I pick her up then poo in my hands followed by a good amount of squirming that smears it.

Females are larger than males in both width and length.

thomas1123 · 04-12-11, 05:53 PM

thamks for the replys i think the tanki is a 40 gal. its really nice tank imo lol
can i put a baby in here without him getting scared?
any tips on how to help the eat pimkis?
and can i put it on repti bark?
thanks for the info!

NennaMeerkat · 04-12-11, 06:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by thomas1123

thamks for the replys i think the tanki is a 40 gal. its really nice tank imo lol
can i put a baby in here without him getting scared?
any tips on how to help the eat pimkis?
and can i put it on repti bark?
thanks for the info!

If you get a baby you may considering blocking off half the tank until it is a bit bigger. Or you will need a larger area of heat/cold as well as more hides. Easier to just half the tank for a while...even if it looks a bit silly.

If you get the snake from a reputable breeder (only research will help with that) then you need to ask said breeder about when they are feeding the snake, what they are feeding the snake, and how they are feeding the snake. My own little girl has to be put in the original container she was given in and that being placed in an empty butter tub with the butter tub's lid on. If you don't have that lid on she doesn't eat. She eats 2 good sized pinkies (she is still to small for fuzzies) once a week...which is either Monday or Tuesday depending on when her last poo was.

As long as you don't feed the snake in the tank you can put anything down that DOESNT hold moisture. Hognose are not needing a humid environment and generally do better with a more dry one (with water bowl accessible). So you could consider anything loose that the snake can bury in...cause hoggies LOVE to burrow.

I use "Sani-Chips" (http://www.chicagoreptile.net/crh-cm...Sani-Chips.jpg) because it is absorbent to hold poo really well, doesn't smell, and allows my snake to burrow easily. There is no chance of harm to my snake since she does not eat in her tank.

Keep the questions coming!!

thomas1123 · 04-12-11, 08:40 PM

ok well i went to the pet store today and bought this repti bark stuff but i just read the post that said dont get anything that hold humidity. so should i take it back and get a different bedding? could i use sand or would my snake get impaction? i wouldnt be feeding my snake in the cage also. are they fairly easy to tame down? my friend has a kingsnake that always bites him and i dont wont a snake that will bite me everytime i try to hold it. lol how long does it take for them to get full grown? i think i will be getting a baby or juvenile from the website. would you recomend buying a snake of a breeders website? thank you for the answers i will post some more when i can think of more lol

NennaMeerkat · 04-12-11, 09:04 PM

ok well i went to the pet store today and bought this repti bark stuff but i just read the post that said dont get anything that hold humidity. so should i take it back and get a different bedding? could i use sand or would my snake get impaction?

I would take it back and go get what I posted in my previous post. The "Sani-Chips". Any competent pet store will have them. I don't like sand personally and have had to many various bad experiences with it...so I tend to veer away from its use.

are they fairly easy to tame down? my friend has a kingsnake that always bites him and i dont wont a snake that will bite me everytime i try to hold it.

Keep in mind that every individual snake is different...so just because his kingsnake bites doesn't mean every kingsnake will. That said however I will say that hoggies are pretty mild mannered and they are more likely to just bluff at you (hiss, flatten head/neck, poop, strike without opening mouth) before right out striking you. If you feel nervous around the snake it will be able to tell. Once you get your snake and you see "attitude problem" then I can help you out from there if need be.

how long does it take for them to get full grown?

Not sure! I have had a baby or adults, never raised one from start to end. But they will do their growing gradually over time and eventually peter off as they get older. Keep in mind hoggies are thicker than they are longer so you generally won't get a long wirey snake like a corn snake or king snake.

would you recomend buying a snake of a breeders website?

It is a personal preference but I like to have a breeder that is nearby. So I would say wait until you can go to a reptile expo or find a breeder nearby. If you end up having a snake that won't eat, or you discover other problems and the breeder isn't nearby...how are you going to contact them to help you with these problems? As I said before I had one that would not eat and ended up having to trade it out with the breeder for the one I have now. If she did not live nearby (about an hour away) how in the world would I have taken care of the problem? Just something to think about.

infernalis · 04-12-11, 09:15 PM

I find the average for small colubrids to be 2-3 years from birth to adulthood.

The first year growth is directly proportional to the amount you feed it.

Well really that's true it's whole life, but the first year growth is usually the most rapid, I have seen some that stay smallish and suddenly develop bigger appetites then shoot up after a slower start. but most do the big growth spurt in year one.

NennaMeerkat · 04-12-11, 09:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by infernalis

I find the average for small colubrids to be 2-3 years from birth to adulthood.

The first year growth is directly proportional to the amount you feed it.

Thanks as always...I have learned a lot but that was something I didn't generally know.

thomas1123 · 04-12-11, 11:27 PM

thanks for the info im going to take the substrate i bought today and take it back tomorrow and try to get

thomas1123 · 04-12-11, 11:36 PM

thanks im taking my bark back tomorrow and im going to get some sani-chips lol for some reason it posted before i was done lol but is $80.00 a good price for a captive bred male het western hognose? and also what does "het" mean lol is it like a color morph or something? would have to put a heat lamp on my tank? i live in florida and it is fairly warm for almost the whole year. i think the coldest it got here last winter was like 32F lol i know im going to need a heat mat and also i read that you shouldnt put your tank near a window? why is that?