How am i doing?

I just got that after he got the other one stuck to his face im going to go to wall mart to get a better one tonight and something to block out the sides of the tank i have been putting a small blanket over half at night. I was going to try see if i could get a baby rat at the reptile store ive also heard that rats are more fating he was thin when i got him and hasn't eaten sense he has been shedding but im going to try again tonight. i have a heat pad should i just use that and not the heat light. But i heard to use those all the time to hook it to a thermostat and i need to get one perhaps at wall mart as well or one off of the internet. I'm also going to order a temperature gun. Ill take a look at new hides to i tried box shaped things he seams to prefer tubes.

Don't use your heat mat without a thermostat. When you use your heat meat, it should be on all the time, but it is dangerous to use without a thermostat and you have far too much substrate to use a heat mat. Your heat lamp should also be regulated somehow, even a simple dimmer switch is better than nothing. And keeping your humidity up is as simple as misting your substrate with a spray bottle. How much depends on a lot of factors. Usually once or twice a day.

For a cheap thermostat, this works: http://www.amazon.com/Hydrofarm-MTPR...arm+thermostat

But... If you can afford it, these are top notch: http://spyderrobotics.com/home/products.html

Im going to go to wall mart tonight and get a new thermometer/hygrometer the vet just told me to get strips when i took him. I also typical put a small blanket over half of his tank but i will find something to block out the side's perhaps aquarium backgrounds. I would really like to build him a better home but i had to get a car this week mine broke down so moneys tight. I'm planing to going to the reptile store in a little bit and see if they have baby rats i heard they are more fating and he has been skinny since the day i got him and hasn't been eating since he started shedding.Im hopping he will tonight. Oh and i have a heat pad but no thermostat i need to order one should i stop using the heat lamp?Also i will look in to hides but unfortunately that may have to wait a week.:(


What should i do if he wont eat? I read somewhere that if you take the pray and rub it on there nose there instincts will kick and they will eat but im not so sure of that?

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Originally Posted by Lenny's mom

Im going to go to wall mart tonight and get a new thermometer/hygrometer the vet just told me to get strips when i took him. I also typical put a small blanket over half of his tank but i will find something to block out the side's perhaps aquarium backgrounds. I would really like to build him a better home but i had to get a car this week mine broke down so moneys tight. I'm planing to going to the reptile store in a little bit and see if they have baby rats i heard they are more fating and he has been skinny since the day i got him and hasn't been eating since he started shedding.Im hopping he will tonight. Oh and i have a heat pad but no thermostat i need to order one should i stop using the heat lamp?Also i will look in to hides but unfortunately that may have to wait a week.:(


What should i do if he wont eat? I read somewhere that if you take the pray and rub it on there nose there instincts will kick and they will eat but im not so sure of that?

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Do you have a way of raising/lowering your heat lamp's height? That will probably suffice in the mean time as a crude way of regulating your temps. I've had to do this in a pinch before. Just keep an eye on it and you should be just fine.

Refusal to eat is generally a husbandry issue, which you're in the process of working on, so once your husbandry is spot on, he should eat. A skipped meal or two, even at his size, isn't the end of the world and no reason to panic just yet. You mentioned rubbing the prey's nose. I think you are thinking about how some folks "brain" their prey items, which is essentially opening up the skulls of the mouse/rat so that brains and blood leak out. This creates more smell and it can help trigger a stronger feeding response. This is definitely worth a try. Live feeding also helps a lot too. There are a million methods out there, but I would start simple and you're on the right track so far.

Hides don't have to be anything fancy. I'd be willing to bet you have great hides just laying around your house. They can be anything from empty tissue boxes to plastic ice cream tubs, flower pots or bowls with a hole cut out. As long as it is dark and tight, your ball will love it!

Aquarium background is perfect for blacking out the sides of your tank, but anything your snake can't see through would work just fine. Be creative.

He ate Friday live pray after following it around for a bit :P

X2

If I want to assist with a bad shed AFTER, I usually take a one of those snake bags (burlap, or something a bit rough to the touch), and run it under hot water as hot as I can stand.

I quickly wring it out just enough so that is doesn't drip much, and put the snake inside it soaking, and in it's tub. By the time crawls out, the remaining skin usually sloughs right off! Works for me whenever I have the problem, which is rare.

Don't worry about the temp of the water being too hot for your snake. The 10 secs it take you to wring the bag, and get the snake in it allows it to cool down to the point where it's safe for the animal.