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  1. #1
    Registered User VereMyth's Avatar
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    Hognose rubbing despite husbandry being Okay?

    So little hiccup here I just want some other opinions I have an active hognose snake that every night rubs against the top of the colubrid rack I have for him.

    What has me confounded is that the Temps are okay, the humidity is fine(I live in Florida and he's a western). He has a GREAT feeding response sheds are all full and nothing stuck. So I don't think he's stressed?

    However, the rack is kind of bland, should I try adding some decorations or buying a terrarium and seeing if its just boredom? None of the other hog-noses I have expressed themselves this much.

    So a quick recap,

    Hognose rubbing/scrapping the top of the rack he is in, there are two other hog-noses in the same rack with no issues.

    Humidity and temps are all normal from the research I could conduct(It's rather interesting how little information there is without having to watch video) just in case though I am providing a hot spot of about 91, a cool spot of 75-80 degrees, the humidity is probably slightly higher than needed but not too much at 50-60%. If any of this is wrong please assist me.

    Other than this and checking every now and then maybe I just have an overactive Hognose which would be the best-case scenario for me I will adjust accordingly.

    Also if anyone knows any sites for care and peculiarities about Hognoses.

  2. #2
    BPnet Veteran nikkubus's Avatar
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    What sort of substrate? Mine really likes to burrow around in her substrate even more than going in any of her hides. I have three hides in there with various textures, ceramic water dish, and a small driftwood branch for her to climb around on. It's about 5.5" high. Never really had any rubbing issues with her. If you have examined his shed and it's al in one piece, not missing anything from the head, I doubt it's that.

    The only thing I can think of is trying to get to a female. My male corns did some of that during breeding season, and while it's not breeding season, if you are keeping him at those temps year round, he might think it is? Are there females in the same rack?
    7.22 BP 1.4 corn 1.1 SD retic 0.1 hognose

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  4. #3
    Registered User VereMyth's Avatar
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    Re: Hognose rubbing despite husbandry being Okay?

    I use the aspen snake bedding while terrible for bps I find it works well for hoggies,

    Is there supposed to be a different temp variation for not breeding season? That's healthy for the hoggies i cant seem to find any decently reliable information from googling and the only channel on YouTube I know for hoggies is snake discovery.

    Maybe I'll check thier channel again.

    Yes, I have a mixture of genders, but if I recall correctly, the active one should be a female I must of put "him" by mistake/reflexive habit.


    I also have some extra cork bark pieces so maybe I'll put some of those down.

    Would lighting maybe be a cause? The rack is enclosed with acception of the front which I have facing a window a recently put some covers around to reduce heat and glare off of screens in the room.

    There also seems to be no pattern to it...maybe I'll just get this one a terrarium they fit the smaller exo terras pretty comfortably don't they?

    Also thanks for the help I at least have some more things to try to limit or reduce the rubbing.

    Sorry if this is a mess of a post writing jt on mobile...
    Last edited by VereMyth; 01-30-2021 at 12:45 AM.

  5. #4
    BPnet Veteran nikkubus's Avatar
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    Hognose really appreciate the day/night cycle of light, so an opaque tub is probably not the best for them. Clear tub should be fine, it doesn't need to be super bright. A young one would be okay in 18x18x12 exo terra, but I'd say at roughly 100 grams probably going to need more space.

    As far as seasonal changes, snake discovery does go over how they brumate, if you search that term you should be able to find the videos, which have a great description of how to prepare them before, the temps during, and how long. The short version is stop feeding them for about a month to totally clear out their systems of food, then gradually drop the temps down to 55-60 and keep them at that for 2-3 months, then gradually back up to normal temps. This is absolutely not necessary for the health of the snakes in captivity, it's mostly to trigger them to want to breed. Some people who don't breed do it just to save energy, food, and maintenance. Personally I only do it with adults, and do so whether I'm breeding or not unless they are having some kind of health issue where I'm really wanting to put weight on them.

    Aspen bedding works great for them, that is what I use for them and corn snakes as well.

    If it's a female I don't think it's a breeding behavior. Since you recently put up something to block that window, that might be the culprit, and the behavior may pass by itself once she gets used to the new surroundings, but I'd try to make sure there is at least some artificial light during daylight hours in that room whether you are in it or not.

    I wish I had some bookmarks to provide you, but so many of mine are broken links. I think besides snake discovery, Clint's reptiles has some videos on them, and Dav Kaufman takes a tour of several places that keep them and they talk about some care in some of those.
    7.22 BP 1.4 corn 1.1 SD retic 0.1 hognose

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  7. #5
    Registered User VereMyth's Avatar
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    Thank you, I'll make adjust the lighting maybe get some led strips around the rack on timer

  8. #6
    BPnet Veteran Caitlin's Avatar
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    First, I am no expert - I have only one Hognose in my collection. I'm just sharing what I've observed about him. He's a young male on the small side, so I thought he'd be comfortable in a 24x18x16 PVC enclosure. He did just OK in it but was often restless - he never rubbed, but he did 'edge' a lot (repeatedly moving around the edges of the enclosure), which is a sign of stress in snakes.

    I have since moved him into a 30x15x15 PVC enclosure with an additional basking shelf, and he seems much happier there - he doesn't edge any more, and he's involved in more relaxed and natural behaviors like slow exploration, climbing, and basking. His new enclosure is closer to a patio door with lots of natural light, and also has an LED light that goes on during the day (enclosure is heated with an RHP on a Herpstat). He's very responsive to day/night cycles. For 'furnishing', other than the water bowl, he has lots of artificial vines that he explores each day, and while he certainly isn't a great climber, he seems to really enjoy low climbing on big cork rounds and a couple of low branches. He has always really liked to burrow so has deep aspen substrate. He responds extremely well to enrichment activities like food puzzles, food mazes, and 'snake in a box', and 'asks' to come out of his enclosure probably every two days or so when he knows that coming out means engaging in these activities.

    In short, he's an active and curious snake who seemed to need both more space, more exposure to day/night cycles, and more activity options than he had in his smaller enclosure.

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  10. #7
    Registered User VereMyth's Avatar
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    Thank you, this settles it,

    I'll see about getting a larger enclosure the others are pretty happy so I'll leave them there,

    only this one seems to be the active rubber, gonna have to make a shelf and everything for the enclosure lol.

    In the meantime maybe adding some more things to push around in the enclosure Will keep her occupied.

    Thanks both of you, I was honestly a bit stumped because she behaves so differently than the other hoggies I have.

  11. #8
    Bogertophis's Avatar
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    I hope the bigger enclosure & "new toys" works for your hoggie- it's so frustrating when a snake keeps doing this, especially when others (same species & same husbandry) are fine as they are. Just shows you they're individuals, eh?
    Rudeness is the weak man's imitation of strength.
    Eric Hoffer (1902 - 1983)

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