Always trying to escape

When your snake is not constantly exploring....will it spend more time on the Hot Side, or the Cool Side, or utilize both sides?

My snake would do the same, and then I saw him spending more time on the cold side, so I bought new temp gun and sure enough, I was running a couple degrees hotter than I wanted.

Your temps may be right...but a 2nd opinion couldn't hurt.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Andiamo

When your snake is not constantly exploring....will it spend more time on the Hot Side, or the Cool Side, or utilize both sides?

My snake would do the same, and then I saw him spending more time on the cold side, so I bought new temp gun and sure enough, I was running a couple degrees hotter than I wanted.

Your temps may be right...but a 2nd opinion couldn't hurt.

---

He is often on the hot side, though I also find him on the cool side sometimes

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by nikkubus

In my experience BPs don't do it because they want to explore. In every situation I've encountered this with BP's it has been because the enclosure was too big or temps were off. What is the height in this enclosure? Even more than floor space, too much vertical space really tends to trigger this behavior, though a 20g is already pretty tall for a 6 month old BP. It still throws me off because he seemed fine in it for a while, but it very well could be that the initial move freaked him out enough to stay as hidden as possible, and he has now gained the bravery to try and escape to a more suitable environment. It may be worth just putting him back in his old enclosure to see if that makes the behavior stop, but before you resort to that, I'd go ahead and try to add a lot more clutter to see if that is good enough for him to calm down. You want almost every part of the floor covered with something he can be hiding in rather than spots that are bare and he feels exposed.

---

For sure! I bought some fake vines off of amazon to see how they are. If I like them I plan on buying a few more and covering them in those leaf garland things. I think adding more cover and height might help him feel more secure, while supplying him something to climb on and explore!
I might get some cork logs for him too but I am afraid of bugs and mold (a branch I had in the cage previously had to be thrown away because of mold) any tips on this?

I found a slight solution for now, while I wait for the vines and décor to arrive, I stuffed rolled up paper towel in the cracks where the door opens. He has been rubbing his nose less but still pokes his nose up and down the door

Sounds like you're on the right track. I've never had cork get moldy, & the imitation vines/plants shouldn't either, but branches or some substrates sure do- it's asking a lot, since the heat & humidity needed for BPs is just what helps mold to flourish also.

I tend to avoid natural wood in enclosures that aren't bioactive because of the mold thing. I'm a big fan of DIY stuff for branches and other decor. PVC pipe makes really durable, easy to wash jungle gyms for snakes to climb on. If you want it natural looking, there are ways to accomplish that, but you would need the tools and make sure to be safe. I knew a guy on FB at one point that did the fancy scorching in a way that looks really realistic and sold them, but I can't find his info :(

EDIT!

I got the decor (vines, plants, logs) and he likes it!! I've noticed him exploring around his cage more than he is bumping his nose on the glass (he still does time to time, but MUCH less than he used to)
Glad I could make my little guy happy :3

Post a picture of what your enclosure looks like. Do you have a heat gun to detect what your actual temperature is just above the hot spot? Also do you have a humidity temperature gauge inside your enclosure? Make sure your ambient heat is at 80 degrees and your hotspot is at 89 degrees.