Shedding

[frankykeno]

We are planning to use cypress mulch as a substrate with terracotta pots for hides. Will this provide enough rough surface for a nice normal shed or should be plan on introducing something else during shed times (Punkin the new snake apparently doesn't shed "cleanly" but I'm thinking that may be humidity issues as it's been kept in a glass case set-up as far as we know and will go into a Rubbermaid bin system when arrives here).

[Smulkin]

You should be just fine - that ought to provide more than enough for a good shed. Even in the setups with the LEAST amount of friction/rough surfaces (newsprint/plastic hides) our BPs seem to be able to throw off nice clean sheds quite often onesies . . . though they do like to throw a wrench in it by leaving a nice p00p tucked inside sometimes grr hehe. Humidity is key - and I can't tell you how right on the money you are. Plastic is hard to beat. Even Neph our 8-9' AfRock is in (big) plasic and managed to wriggle out of a one-piece shed. At least I can use all the leftover aquariums for the rat colony

[Anthony83]

I just got my first Ball about two weeks ago and his eyes turned blue one week after I got him. I'm Using a Glass tank and humidity does become a problem but I just covered most of the screen top with some plastic and left just enough space for the heat lamp (heat lamps also suck out all humidity) but when it was shed time I just misted the tank twice a day to keep the humidity at least at 50-60 never going above 75 and Osiris shed his skin perfectly in one piece after a couple of days guess I was lucky.

[SatanicIntention]

It might be better to use newspaper or papertowels for the first few weeks just in case the poo looks abnormal or you get a mite infestation(it's just much easier to spot if the substrate is white). I kept mine on newspaper or papertowels for the first few months, and she did just fine. I just now switched to cypress and it works just as well. Humidity is easy to keep with any of those 3 substrates, especially in a plastic tub.

If you want something else with a little rougher texture, you can always go to a garden store and get a flat stepping stone. I bought a pretty big one for about $2, and soaked it in a bleach solution, rinsed and then baked it to make sure I didn't have any "friends" left.

When you say terracotta pots, do you mean the actual planter pot itself or the saucer it sits in? The saucers are the better choice if you can find a good size. I found some 4", deep ones at Michael's. They were only about $0.40 apiece.

Hope that helps out a bit

[frankykeno]

geesh Becky you really do worry about poop a lot LOL....good idea tho about the paper towels thing for the first while as I guess I need to collect some snake doo doo for the vet to test (the things I do for the pets around here!)...probably a lot easier to find it that way (visions of poking thru the cat box for a sample still haunt my dreams)

as far as the terracotta question, yep we will be using the bottom bit (technical term lol) not the actual pot which would be too tall for the Rubbermaid, can use the actual pots for some nice flowers to plant if they survive the next night-time deer raid that is

[SatanicIntention]

Yep, me and parasitology go together like, well, poo and fecal flotation solution I know, the things we do for them just go beyond anything we'd ever do for a significant other, LoL.

Do you know how to knock a hole in the saucer without cracking it? It can be tough the first couple of times www.proexotics.com has a F.A.Q section with 2 videos on how to make them(if you're not sure on how to git 'r done)

Hope that helps a bit.

[Adam_Wysocki]

Yep, me and parasitology go together like, well, poo and fecal flotation solution

And that's why we love ya Becky!!

Do you know how to knock a hole in the saucer without cracking it? It can be tough the first couple of times www.proexotics.com has a F.A.Q section with 2 videos on how to make them(if you're not sure on how to git 'r done)

Or, if you have a drill, you can buy the plastic flower pot bottoms ($.89) and a 1-2" "hole saw" (around 6$@home depot) and drill yourself some perfectly round holes! That's how I make hides for my babies and they love them!!!

-adam

[SatanicIntention]

I have those plastic ones, but just ended up cutting out a side hole. I wish I could fine ceramic ones since I like them better. They are just nice and heavy. I bet those plastic ones are better for you since they are much more plentiful(Whoo! WalMart!) and not as expensive. Pretty indestructible as well.

Thanks for that idea, I pretty much had a brain fart.

[Adam_Wysocki]

Yeah ... I usually buy 50 at a time ... LOL .... the only thing that I don't like about them is that urates stick to them like crazy! .... But they are cheap enough that I can throw them out at the end of each season if they are really nasty.

BTW - top holes can sometimes snap hatchlings into feeding mode if they are being picky!

-adam