Hiding and Shedding Question..

[Coyotemoon]

I have only had my BP for a week now. When I first set up his cage I put a plastic hide on the hot side. He'd stick his head in but would not go in. I moved it to the cooler side and now he hardly comes out of it. Is it normal for BP's to stay in a hide day and night?
OMG, he just came out. Guess he felt me thinking about him. Still is that normal stay in it for extended periods of time?
Next question, how often do BP's shed? According to the friend that gave him to me, he shed about two weeks ago.
Okay, this is weird, he's using his nose to push on the wall of the tank. Is he trying to get out or let me know that he wants out so he can be held?
As you can tell, I'm very, very new at this.

[Simplest_Mistake]

BPs hide alot...they are shy snakes. When he pushes with his nose he is probably trying to get out...about how big is he? What are the temps on the hot/cool side? How big is his enclosure?

[Simplest_Mistake]

BTW, they shed whenever they grow...what are you feeding him, and how often?

[Coyotemoon]

Tank is 36"x15"x16", glass with screen top. I got him on saturday so I haven't had him long. He is about 38" in legth. My friend said that when she rescued him from the previous owner she was told he was approx. 5 yrs old and was being fed once a month. She told me that he should be fed every 7 to 10 days. She fed him a live medium sized rat on the 24th of this month and that I should try to get him on frozen/thawed medium rats if possible. I haven't had the pleasure of feeding hime yet. I'm guessing anytime between this friday and monday.
OMg, he just made the strangest noise. Oh wow, he just pooped. He sounded just like my husband when he's on the can. Yikes.
The tank, given to me by my friend, had a stick on strip thermometer and an analog humidity guage. I removed those cause they were all over the place. I bought an acu-rite digital therm/hygrometer. Current reading is 85.7F on the cool side, 90.4F on the warm side, and 58% humidity.

[olaf]

I am having the same problem. I have a baby BP that is about 18" long in a ten gallon tank. The thermometer is in the middle of the tank in the ground at about 92 degrees. His hide is more towards the side of the tank, which is about 87 degrees. I fed him a small mouse on Saturday, then he went in there and has been there for about 85 hours or so and I have not seen him out of his hide at all. His eyes are not foggy at all, so he is not shedding. I have tried taking out his hide to where it is a bit cooler thinking that it was too hot in his hide, but he'll just stick his head out and watch me. Any suggestions on what's going on?

And by the way, my snake may come out really early in the morning and I'm just not awake to see it, because it looks like he has rearranged in his hide and he has just defecated. So what are the hours that BPs most come out of their hide, so I can see if I'm just asleep when he is out?

[tigerlily]

It sounds like you might want to add another hide. You need one for the hot side and the cold side. (it makes for a happier snake) You might not see them moving back and forth but most likely they are. A small rat is plenty for an adult bp. Make sure to keep a record of when you feed, what you feed, when they shed and when they pass urates or BMs. By doing this you will know when they should shed and such. It's just good information to have!

Remember when feeding your snake to NOT disturb it for 48 hours after feeding. You don't want to have to deal with a reguritated meal! Bps are shy nocturnal creatures. They feel most comfortable all snuggled up in their hides.

[olaf]

I would check to see if your snake is out after it's dark, not necessary at night. I would check on my snake at midnight, but my light was still on, and he'd be in his hide. Last night, I checked at 10:30, but my light was out, (I turned my light out at 10:00) and he was up sitting on the rings hanging from the cage lid. So try checking if your snake is out when it's been dark for about 20 or 30 minutes.

[Coyotemoon]

My light is setup on a timer and comes on at 6am and turns off at 6pm. He does come out around 9-ish for a short time then comes out around midnite for a bit longer. I think it might have been the temps. I moved one of the heat lights so that both are on the hot side. I'm still fiddling with things trying to get temps/humidity just right. I started a log today for that purpose.