No more burrowing?

[Marla]

Hanover has been giving me a time here. He decided that he didn't like his pvc pipe pieces anymore only a week or so after he got them. It didn't matter if they were flat or upright, either. He was determined to hide under the newspaper, on the warm side of his drawer.

I was concerned he was going to get a burn from the UTH, so I got the little piece of blue fabric that comes with the Wal-Mart heating pads and put it between the plastic floor and the newspaper. He was willing to work with that, and never got under it but continued burrowing under the newspaper.

I realized pretty quickly that he didn't consider the pvc secure enough and tried to figure out a way to make him feel more secure. Nothing worked, until now. I made Hanover a hide shaped at least vaguely like an igloo (it got taller than I wanted it to be, but I'll get that sorted out if I make another), and he seeems to really like it. He can peek out and hide with his sides touching all of the interior of the hide except the roof, and I'm going to pretend to have done that on purpose so that he can still use it as he grows .

Here's the hide:


and here's Hanover in it:


No laughing at how lopsided it is, please.

[Mike]

haha...cool hide. i know id feel secure in it...only one way in and one way out. and it looks like Hanovers got that entrance guarded.

[JLC]

Heyyy...that's really neat! Very clever of you!! What did you make it out of?

[Marla]

Mike, he certainly does seem to keep an eye out to see who may be coming to get him. Easier to guard than either the pipe or the newspaper.

Judy, I made it out of polymer clay -- Sculpey, to be exact, because that's the kind I can get in larger blocks. If you've never worked with polymer clay, it's really easy to use and is heat-cured in a standard kitchen oven at 275F. It's non-toxic to humans but does give off some fumes that must be ventilated if you burn it. I'm thinking another good hide I could make with it is a round mud hut with a "thatched" roof, and I think I've figured out a better way to assemble igloos so they're not lopsided.

[JLC]

Thanks Marla...I may have to try playing with that stuff sometime. Sounds like fun!

(And I think it looks cute lopsided! )

[Marla]

Judy, it is fun. The girls and I have made beads, critters, knick-knacks, and tree ornaments with it before (some turned out much better than my igloo, some not so well) and it's really easy to work with. Thanks for not minding the fact that it looks like it was made by a talented kindergartner. I've not tried to make anything that size before, but I think next time I'll just turn a cereal bowl over, cover it with saran wrap, and build on top of that.

[elevatethis]

I've found a really good way to have good hides is to use a bark substrate. I have corkbark hides and a lot of bark in my terrarium. Basically, I started litte burrows underneath each flat slightly curved piece of bark, so its almost like the snake gets to burrow down into it, and fell VERY safe. I have a warm hide and a cool hide, and Amber visits both on a daily basis.

[Marla]

That's good and natural. I'm sure Amber feels secure in those. I'm happy with newspaper as a substrate for mine, tho.

[elevatethis]

So is newspaper popular because its easy to maintain? This is my first snake so perhaps I haven't had the chance to get tired of cleaning messes. Did any of you start out with bark and then switch to something easier?

[Marla]

It's easy to maintain, easy to find, cheap or free, and effective. I haven't ever used bark, but I've heard both good and bad reviews of it. If it works for you and your snake, then I don't see a prob. It's not like it's sand where you have a high risk of impaction, unless you use it with an iguana or other lizard like that.