Ok to leave snakes over Spring Break?

We have spring break coming up in a few weeks and I was wondering if it would be OK to leave the snakes here, unattended for a week? I'm putting them all into a rack before I go so that will be their time to get used to a new home, I just get paranoid about cleaning cages & the such and clean every time I see they have used the bathroom and wanted to know if they'd be fine.

I'd be worried that one got out, or if power was lost :( You couldn't have a family member or close friend check up on them?

i have my heatpads for both my BP and bearded dragon on UPS battery backups. the bearded only has a 8w Heat pad so the thing literally lasts forever.

the BP i bought a little bit bigger 1200va one. the power has went out once and they UPS's chugged along for 1.5H till power was restored.

Personally I wouldn't leave them alone without someone checking. If you don't have anyone close by who would be willing to do so, look for a pet-sitter in your area.

well if you live in tx you have nothing to worry about

Yes it will be fine, stop feeding a week prior your departure (just in case) clean the enclosure the night before and top of the water dish that morning.

I have a few snakes, geckos and rodents :rolleyes: and no one is watching them when I am gone and they are doing just fine.

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Originally Posted by zombie&lemons

well if you live in tx you have nothing to worry about

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dreese88
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I have left my scale kids alone for a week with no issues. Just make sure they have plenty of water and clean homes. The rack was in tact upon our return.:)

Herpstat on APC 1500 RS UPS.

I've left my snakes alone for a week at a time more than once.

You know, Ralph Davis only cleans out his tubs once a week. Why wouldn't we be fine if we left our snakes alone for a week or so?

I've not heard of these "UPS" devices. How much do they cost, how long do they last, and where can they be purchased from?

v

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Originally Posted by Vacado

I've not heard of these "UPS" devices. How much do they cost, how long do they last, and where can they be purchased from?

v

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"Uninterrupted Power Source" can be purchased at most computer retail outlets, and some good A/V Stores.

they have a battery in it and in the event of power failure they pick up with out missing a beat. you can buy them in different sizes for different applications (usually computers and how much they draw) and range from $75-$1000

I wouldn't worrie about a week. Feed them before you leave and when you get back feed again, have their tank/racks clean, water full, and they'll be fine.

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Originally Posted by WizzySRT10

I wouldn't worrie about a week. Feed them before you leave and when you get back feed again, have their tank/racks clean, water full, and they'll be fine.

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You don't want to feed them before he leaves. Stop feeding a week prior.
If they poop in the water bowl, your in trouble.

Also, get aspen if you don't have it already for temporary use, so it won't be a mess for them to lay on if they go on newspaper.

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Originally Posted by Deborah

Yes it will be fine, stop feeding a week prior your departure (just in case) clean the enclosure the night before and top of the water dish that morning.

I have a few snakes, geckos and rodents :rolleyes: and no one is watching them when I am gone and they are doing just fine.

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So if I feed on Wednesdays and I'm going out of town on Saturday, just skip the feeding the Wed. previous to going out of town? This was kinda what I had planned just wanted to make sure.

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Originally Posted by blackcrystal22

You don't want to feed them before he leaves. Stop feeding a week prior.
If they poop in the water bowl, your in trouble.

Also, get aspen if you don't have it already for temporary use, so it won't be a mess for them to lay on if they go on newspaper.

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My male has never pooped in the water bowl so I could get away with it. There's 3 corners he poops in.

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Originally Posted by dreese88

So if I feed on Wednesdays and I'm going out of town on Saturday, just skip the feeding the Wed. previous to going out of town? This was kinda what I had planned just wanted to make sure.

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That is usually what I do and there hasn't been any problems. Although there was one time one of them pooped and urinated while I was gone, wasn't really a big deal. Aspen substrate sucked up the urine and I just cleaned the tubs when I got back.

In regards to the other options that were mention think about this. If your power went out today, what would you do? There probably wouldn't be too that you needed to do, as your power would probably be restored by morning (unless you are hit by extreme weather that knocks out power for half your town), and one night at room temperature, shouldn't be that big of a deal. That being said, if you did have one of those UPS things, those things don't last forever and unless you got a really expensive one, it may only last a few hours. Those things are made to give a computer user enough time to save what he is working on and do a proper shut down.

finding a pet sitter for reptiles can be hard and expensive. There are still alot of people out their that are scared of snakes

Yea...I'm really not too worried about the power going out as it should warm up some and the coldest my snake room really gets is about 75, and that's been during the winter(My room doesn't have any outside contact and nor does my closet(where the snakes will be, so very steady temps.) The thing about a friend pet sitting is that everybody is leaving, so not feasible at all and family is either 1 1/2 hours or 4 so it would be easier to just come back from the beach to check on them than having someone else do it.

I wouldn't worry about them. Just give them water. Double check that they can't get out and check the temps of the hot spots.

Waiting a week to clean cages is no big deal. Even when I am around I don't normally spot clean my cages more than twice a week. And usually only once unless there is water spillage or wet conditions.

Enjoy your spring break .. they will live. They will probably enjoy the quiet time.

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Originally Posted by Hyper Joe

I wouldn't worry about them. Just give them water. Double check that they can't get out and check the temps of the hot spots.

Waiting a week to clean cages is no big deal. Even when I am around I don't normally spot clean my cages more than twice a week. And usually only once unless there is water spillage or wet conditions.

Enjoy your spring break .. they will live. They will probably enjoy the quiet time.

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They'll be in a RBI rack so those locking pins will hopefully do their jobs..I'll try to enjoy it. It's definitely a week that I need, that's for sure.

Don't worry about it! Everyone's given you good advice... the snakes will live..

I'm actually leaving for spring break also in a few weeks... and I have the same snakes as you! :banana:

Where you vacationing?

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Originally Posted by Mitch21

Don't worry about it! Everyone's given you good advice... the snakes will live..

I'm actually leaving for spring break also in a few weeks... and I have the same snakes as you! :banana:

Where you vacationing?

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My roommates GF's family has a beach house in Surfside Beach, it's about 15-20 minutes south of Myrtle Beach. Not my first choice of where to go, but it's free, which means I'll be able to get my pewter sooner!

I just got back from 8 days in Orlando, I cleaned cages and fed prior to my leaving and padlocked my cages (I have a roomate with kids and didn't want any unfortunate accidents). All was well upon return :)

Only thing I would really worry about is the water bowls. I'm gone two days for a reptile show and I have at least 5 bowls tipped. That's one thing I love about my ARS rack, impossible to tip the bowls. What kind of water bowls are you using?

prolly like a 4 or 5 " crock the only time anybody's tipped one is whenever my big normal pees

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Originally Posted by dreese88

So if I feed on Wednesdays and I'm going out of town on Saturday, just skip the feeding the Wed. previous to going out of town? This was kinda what I had planned just wanted to make sure.

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Yes never can be too cautious should something happen like a regurgitation (which yes I know it is rare) it would not happen in your absence.

I agree with the posters above, your snakes will be fine. Just make sure that they have clean cages and enough water.

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Originally Posted by Vacado

I've not heard of these "UPS" devices. How much do they cost, how long do they last, and where can they be purchased from?

v

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newegg.com
and many other places also if you want to figure how long it will last look on apc.com they have a calulator to figure run time

Wow, those UPS devices sound really cool! I just ordered some ram from newegg, I'll have to go back and check out these devices.

v

They really come in handy in locations where power loss is a common thing due to bad weather, etc. I really like the peace of mind and the run time on my setup is rediculous for a single rack. Its like 27.5 hrs (with the extra battery attached). Good luck. :)

Yeah, I live in a crappy campus-owned house with old radiators and no thermostats. The boiler went out last winter and my room was in the low 40's for a week while they fixed it. Luckily I didn't have snakes at the time, but now that I do those kinds of things are always on my mind. Having one of these UPS devices would give me a day to work out transporting them elsewhere with power in the event of an emergency, or give me time to get back to campus to "rescue" them if something happens while I'm gone. GREAT idea!

Also, if you plan on leaving your snakes alone for a while, the Herpstat II and Pro come with a software that will alert you via phone if something goes haywire with your heating. I believe there are other devices for this as well, that are less expensive. I'm also considering getting this software because a friend of mine had his heating in his herp room fail a few weeks ago and it killed several of his snakes because he was at work. I definitely want to take every precaution, especially since I live in NE Wisconsin.

v

My concern would be that the OP said this week could count as the settling in time in a new rack. I would not recommend leaving the snakes in a brand new enclosure. You want to have the rack set up long enough that you are sure the temps & humidity are steady before you leave.

oh I'm gonna get the rack a few days in advance and set it up on my herpstat to get everything evened out before I put them in there...I had thought about that as well