What exo terra terrarium would you suggest?

[Ss laser]

Cheap and easy are all relative terms. Have you considered another snake species or is your daughter set on a BP? Maybe a colubrid of some sort would be better?

I recently went thru the exact same exercise of working with my daughter on fulfilling her wish of snake ownership. We thought a BP was the way to go since it's the go-to "beginner" snake, and they're just so beautiful. But after months of research, we settled on something completely different.

We wanted more a display animal so we could take advantage of a large glass tank. We wanted a snake with a more outgoing personality, which can be hit & miss with beeps. And we were turned off by the more specific and complex husbandry needs of a beep. We ended up going with a Russian Rat. While (arguably) not as beautiful as a ball, he fit the more important traits we were looking for in a pet.

So you've got options, just saying!

Thanks for the new direction to look into. Do you have any links for me on the husbandry and care of a Russian rat? Are there temperament generally nice to handle? I would think so from your recommendation. Thanks again.

As far as the animal plastic cages the price gets way past a 20 long glass tank fast. If I went with T-10 as recommended. I could see 300 easy shipped. Really spoiled by free shipping from amazon. I am going to check with reptiletubs.com as I seen he had pvc cages at the reptile expo last weekend. But I did not check prices as my original plan was a glass tank. He is close enough I could pick it up. Or at the next show.

Also I do get that T-10 might be the only cage needed. But just a divider and heat strip from AP puts it with shipping about $300. And that's no thermostat or thermometer with humidity. And I get all the benefits of the T-10 that goes along with it. But just not sold on the style, look, price, and placement issues for
me. Oh for those looking for a T-10 there is a sale there. And a good price on quick ship page for a T-10 at 150.
Sorry to hi jack this thread! But thanks all for the info and help! Take care.

[hilabeans]

Thanks for the new direction to look into. Do you have any links for me on the husbandry and care of a Russian rat? Are there temperament generally nice to handle? I would think so from your recommendation. Thanks again.

I hate to derail anymore from Plasma's thread, so I'll just say to search this forum and also kingsnake forum. In the General Colubrid section there are a number of very recent threads on Russian Rats from a few members here. And some cool youtube videos, especially of Rainbowshark's snake Levi. He's awesome.

But that's just one type of colubrid. There may be several different kinds that fit your need.

[Ss laser]

Quick search on the Russian rat snakes said adults need a very large cage? But I will research rats and corns more now. Even though my daughter wanted a big snake. Lol. We will check them out at the next expo/show next month. Thanks again.

[Regius_049]

Thanks for the new direction to look into. Do you have any links for me on the husbandry and care of a Russian rat? Are there temperament generally nice to handle? I would think so from your recommendation.

Quick search on the Russian rat snakes said adults need a very large cage? But I will research rats and corns more now. Even though my daughter wanted a big snake. Lol. We will check them out at the next expo/show next month. Thanks again.

I do not personally have russian rat snakes, but I do have experience with rat snakes in general. I hate to generalize all colubrids, but they do tend to have a somewhat similar demeanor across the species. They generally have similar habitat requirements, personalities, and feeding response. Most colubrids can be kept at room temperatures (70 - 75 F but up to about 80 F usually won't hurt anything) with a hot spot around 85 - 87 F. They are usually fairly docile outside their enclosures with a strong feeding response. If you are going to get bitten, 95% of the time it is going to center around feeding. They tend to be relatively bold and not shy. My kingsnakes seldom use hides when they are provided, but they do seem to like burrowing on occasion. Rat snakes tend to fall pretty nicely into this description. Also, in most cases, colubrids have pretty flexible humidity requirements and are able to shed nicely at lower humidity levels.

The one thing that does differ widely among colubrids is size. Russian rat snakes and rat snakes in general tend to be pretty large. They range between 5 - 8 feet, with russian rat snakes averaging around 6 -7 feet. They also really should have large caging and a 20 gallon tank will be insufficient to house an adult of almost any rat snake species that comes to mind.

That said, you could try a kingsnake. They are, in my opinion, the one of the best beginner species available. Specifically, the california kingsnake would have my vote. They don't have high heat or humidity requirements, they eat extremely well, are reasonably docile, and very forgiving on mistakes. They are as bulletproof as one can get while still obtaining a decent size (3 - 5 ft). However, an adult would still need at least a 40 gallon breeder tank (36" x 18") if you wanted a glass enclosure. A young snake would be fine in your 20 gallon space-wise. California kingsnakes are also similar in appearance to russian rat snake if you get the right locality.

[Aerries]

I️ suppose I️ just have a routine going with my glass enclosures for all my snakes, everything is perfect from hot to cool and humidity with the use of a damp towel and sprits of water....yes I️ live in central Florida lol so it helps


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[Ss laser]

Thank you very much. Will look at all the colubrids available at next months show with my daughter. She still wants a BP after our little talk today. She has held a few larger rat snakes, milk, and king I think. But she was not as excited like with a "large" BP. So we will just keep looking and learning. Thanks again everyone.

[SDA]

I️ suppose I️ just have a routine going with my glass enclosures for all my snakes, everything is perfect from hot to cool and humidity with the use of a damp towel and sprits of water....yes I️ live in central Florida lol so it helps

Out with you Floridian and your ideal climate for reptiles!

[Aerries]

Out with you Floridian and your ideal climate for reptiles!

Lol central Florida is actually dryer then south, I still battle humidity but really nothing insane it takes 2-4 days depending the weather for the humidity to drop. “Winters” are different lmao granted it can get cold but nothing like the north still the room stays above 80 ambient


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