BP baby is overly active?

[sufficio]

We just bought our baby BP 3 days ago. He's been extremely active since we got him. He's in a larger container but has 5+ hides across the whole spectrum of the tank. The cool side is ~65-70 and the hot side is ~85, with a 75 degree average in the middle. I'm aware this is a bit too cool, we're waiting on a 100w bulb to arrive. The humidity is at 60%. We're using both an over tank lamp(60w) with a day and night bulb we swap out, along with an under tank heater set to low just to help get the temperature up a bit. Substrate is just paper towels for now, we're also waiting on some aspen to arrive since humidity hasn't been an issue.

He doesn't seem to be trying to escape, just wandering in circles all around the tank. Sometimes he'll settle down for 2-5+ hours in one spot, but seems to be moving most of the time. He seems to favor the hot side but wanders to the cool side too.

We were told he feeds on weekends, so we offered him a hopper and he happily took it and ate it. I thought he'd settle down after that but he's still exploring.

We have been trying to avoid handling to let him settle in, but if we're spot cleaning the cage often he'll actually initiate handling by exploring onto our arms. Is this to be avoided? He doesn't seem stressed when being handled, not balling up/striking/wrapping tightly, just exploring slowly around us. He seems to adore my partner's very warm hands. We still try not to over handle him and only keep him out for 5 minutes, even if he acts reluctant to go back into the terrarium.

Is this high activity something to be concerned about? I read it can be from stress but he ate very well so I don't think he's immensely stressed. But I'd like some more experienced opinions. This is our first BP, but not our first snake/reptile and I'm a huge worrier for these things.

Also, we're not quite sure how old he is, but we were told a few months at most.

[redshepherd]

It's possible that it's just as you said, the temps are a bit too low, and he's constantly seeking a more ideal hot spot. Is the UTH plugged into a thermostat?

I think you can post a couple pictures of your setup to get some better feedback!

[sufficio]

Thanks for the suggestion. And no unfortunately the heater has no temp gauge. It's actually a human heating pad that does not get overly hot, we check it several times a day to make sure it's not overheating and burning him. If we still need a proper UTH after the 100w bulb arrives I'll buy one with a gauge for sure.

Here's a gallery of some images of his temporary enclosure:

http://imgur.com/a/IYSig

It's a little janky, but we're waiting on some nicer hides and such to arrive. So for now he can deal with cardboard boxes and egg cartons. Lol.

I have a temperature and humidity gauge right in the middle of the tank, a temp gun is also on the way for more accurate temperatures since I know wall monitors are kinda sucky.

Also, does anyone know what morph he might be? Pet store had no clue. He looks like just the typical color balls tend to be, but I figured I'd ask.

[KMG]

You have many issues.

1. REMOVE THE TAPE FROM THE TUB NOW!!!!! Google pics of snake injured by tape and you will see some terrible things. The tape call rip their skin off to the muscle. It is very dangerous to have in their cage.

2. A human heater pad should not be used and you need to get a proper under tank heater.

3. Its not just a gauge that is needed. You need a thermostat. A thermostat(tstat) regulates the amount of power sent to the uth to adjust the heat up or down as needed. You need to invest some money into your tstat as it is the most important thing you will buy for your snake.

I have Herpstats and love them. I have four. http://spyderrobotics.com/

VE from Reptile Basics are also widely suggested. http://www.reptilebasics.com/thermostats

Another company is Helix. http://helixcontrols.com/

4. The makeshift lid screen thing you have working was really not necessary. You can use a lamp stand to hang the heat lamp from and you can heat the tub through the plastic lid without issue. You of course don't want to rest the light on the plastic lid but that is what the lamp stand prevents.

I had to heat a tub just like this when I bought a snake and the ordered cages did not arrive on time. I was able to get a got hotspot and a good ambient temp by just moving the lamp up or down until it was dialed in.

5. You need to get a IR temp gun so you can know the actual temps of the surfaces inside the tub. A fear that ta 100watt bulb will be too much and create a hotspot that is hotter than your snake is going to need. This can be dangerous as well and burn your snake from above.

If you are having problems heating the air in the tub you may need to move the tub to a better place in your home. Many people find placing their tub, rack, or tank is a small closet works well. Being a smaller room with less air flow it is easier to heat the tub. I think the 60 watt bulb should be enough for the tub you have.

When I had a tank in a cold room I had a 100 che on a lamp stand. It was over 16 inches away from the surface of the tank it was over and gave me a 90 hotspot. If I would have laid it on the screen it would have created a dangerous condition inside the tank.

I also think your temps would be slightly higher if the lid wasn't cut and allowing the heated air to exchange with the cooler air outside.

Whatever you do remove the tape first.

[sufficio]

You have many issues.

1. REMOVE THE TAPE FROM THE TUB NOW!!!!! Google pics of snake injured by tape and you will see some terrible things. The tape call rip their skin off to the muscle. It is very dangerous to have in their cage.

2. A human heater pad should not be used and you need to get a proper under tank heater.

3. Its not just a gauge that is needed. You need a thermostat. A thermostat(tstat) regulates the amount of power sent to the uth to adjust the heat up or down as needed. You need to invest some money into your tstat as it is the most important thing you will buy for your snake.

I have Herpstats and love them. I have four. http://spyderrobotics.com/

VE from Reptile Basics are also widely suggested. http://www.reptilebasics.com/thermostats

Another company is Helix. http://helixcontrols.com/

4. The makeshift lid screen thing you have working was really not necessary. You can use a lamp stand to hang the heat lamp from and you can heat the tub through the plastic lid without issue. You of course don't want to rest the light on the plastic lid but that is what the lamp stand prevents.

I had to heat a tub just like this when I bought a snake and the ordered cages did not arrive on time. I was able to get a got hotspot and a good ambient temp by just moving the lamp up or down until it was dialed in.

5. You need to get a IR temp gun so you can know the actual temps of the surfaces inside the tub. A fear that ta 100watt bulb will be too much and create a hotspot that is hotter than your snake is going to need. This can be dangerous as well and burn your snake from above.

If you are having problems heating the air in the tub you may need to move the tub to a better place in your home. Many people find placing their tub, rack, or tank is a small closet works well. Being a smaller room with less air flow it is easier to heat the tub. I think the 60 watt bulb should be enough for the tub you have.

When I had a tank in a cold room I had a 100 che on a lamp stand. It was over 16 inches away from the surface of the tank it was over and gave me a 90 hotspot. If I would have laid it on the screen it would have created a dangerous condition inside the tank.

I also think your temps would be slightly higher if the lid wasn't cut and allowing the heated air to exchange with the cooler air outside.

Whatever you do remove the tape first.

Yikes, I had no idea about the tape. Removed now, thank you so much. Glad I posted pics before he got snagged by any of it. That was a huge whoops on my part. None of the care sheets or homemade hide guides mentioned the tape danger.


Is the tape along the top bit okay? None of it is inside the tank or accessible to the snake. He cannot touch any of it.


We had to make the crappy little makeshift lid because without that the humidity spiked to 80%+ overnight because of poor air flow, even with about 3 dozen holes cut for air. I'll try covering some of the slots with a towel to hold in the heat better.


Thank you for the link to the herpstats, I'll look into saving enough to order one asap.


About the lack of the lamp stand, I'll find one to use. Currently the lamp rests on a small baking rack, raised 1/2 an inch from the plastic so no risk of burning/melting the plastic.


The lamp we have has a dimmer. Do you think the 100w dimmed would still be too hot? But good to know. I will be very wary when first using the bulb and monitor to make sure it doesn't get too hot. The room he's in is unfortunately rather cold, but still the warmest room in the house. It's an ambient temp of about 65-75 depending on the time of day.


Thanks so much for the response. I really do appreciate the help.

[KMG]

Is the tape along the top bit okay? None of it is inside the tank or accessible to the snake. He cannot touch any of it.

It looks like it is needed and as long as the snake cant reach it you should be fine.


We had to make the crappy little makeshift lid because without that the humidity spiked to 80%+ overnight because of poor air flow, even with about 3 dozen holes cut for air. I'll try covering some of the slots with a towel to hold in the heat better.

You are gonna be a bit frustrated but all you needed was a fan in the room moving some air to exchange the humidity a bit. In my snake room I run an oscillating fan to keep the air in the room moving to prevent the air inside my cage to become stagnant and hold to much humidity. When adding fan you don't want to point the fan at the cage and usually placing it on the opposite side in a corner works fine to move just enough air to drop the humidity a bit.


Thank you for the link to the herpstats, I'll look into saving enough to order one asap.

Herpstats are great and I have never seen one person with one not like it.


The lamp we have has a dimmer. Do you think the 100w dimmed would still be too hot? But good to know. I will be very wary when first using the bulb and monitor to make sure it doesn't get too hot. The room he's in is unfortunately rather cold, but still the warmest room in the house. It's an ambient temp of about 65-75 depending on the time of day.

A rheostat(dimmer) will work fine. If it were me Id start as low as I can and slowly go up. Adjust the light and then give it an hour to heat fully and rest. Recheck the temps and then adjust again. Do this slow. The 100watt bulb will really put out some heat at full power and may be able to still melt the plastic at the distance the fixture is from the plastic.

You can get rid of the heating pad you are using and get the get the 100watt bulb and dimmer dialed in to provide a good hotspot while giving you the correctly ambient temps. This will probably work best by raising the fixture some to allow the heat to spill over the lid a bit more to better heat the air and not create such a pin pointed hotspot. Using a lamp stand or setting a lamp up in a manner that keeps you from moving it or banging it will make the bulbs last longer too.

[sufficio]

Thanks for so much good info. I really do appreciate it. I will remove the heating pad as soon as the bulb arrives so we can get a good temperature going. Hopefully a lamp stand will help the heat spread across the container better as well to get a better gradient, the cold side is far too cold right now.

Good to know about the fan for the future. This tank is semi-temporary while he grows, so when we get the permanent full size tank in a few years I will keep that in mind if the humidity provides a problem.

Thank you again for the help, I truly do appreciate it =)

[KMG]

No worries.

You can use whatever you want to raise the lamp but if you want a purpose built item I have many of these and like how adjustable they are. $20 at both big box pet stores.

https://www.amazon.com/Zoo-Med-Repti.../dp/B000255OUO


I like to keep my home at 68. Before I had a house with a dedicated heated snake room I had a 40 gallon glass tank. I had a uth, a 100 watt che, and a 60 watt bulb to keep it with the correct numbers. The lamp stands made getting this dialed in much easier and like I said extended the life of my heaters. It also makes your setup safer but keeping you from moving hot heat fixtures around and laying them around on items that could melt or catch fire.

[Mangiapane85]

So you don't really have an idea of how hot it is on top of the heat pad right now? That's a dangerous game to be playing, because I know they can get quite warm.

That's a 60w bulb you're using you said.. I'm assuming it's a UVB/basking type bulb? I figure that would be PLENTY to provide a good hotspot especially since it's SO close to the tub itself.. what do you do at nighttime though?

I know you said you're waiting on a temp gun, but you can just go buy one at lowes or Home Depot. I would get one TODAY if I were you because I have a feeling that your temps aren't what you think they are.

And you don't HAVE to spend that much for a thermostat (referring to the herpstat) for the setup you have. One of the jumpstart stats on amazon would be fine. They are very inexpensive, but do a good job.

And also, I understand "clutter" can help with a snakes security, but I'd suggest maybe taking out one or two of those egg cartons or what not. That just seems, too much.

Nevertheless, keep us posted on the snakes behavior/health.

EDIT: Oh, and yes. It's just a normal, wild type BP.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[sufficio]

I removed the heating pad out since it seems too dangerous to leave on, especially overnight when we can't check it hourly. Yes, the bulb is a basking/heating bulb. At night we swap out the daytime white bulb for a 60w red nighttime bulb. Good to know about the temp gun and thermostat- I'll head out today and buy the temp gun. Thanks so much for the suggestions!

And thanks for the link to the lamp stand. I'll order that asap. =)