Quote Originally Posted by ballpythonsrock2 View Post
I think IMO you might find your problem possibly solved after you put in the new simple black hides from Reptile Basics. Have you ever took the temp of the bottom of the hide (inside where the snake lays) with that kind of hide you have to wonder how much heat is actually getting in there from the UTH.

And I think you will find they eat better when the ambient is in the low 80's as well. I have seen how that raising the ambient temp into the lower 80's has affected my snake's activity and hunger. But having closer access to the uth after putting the new hides in might be all it takes. Less than 500 grams that snake should still be eating pretty good at this stage, but shedding does often affect their hunger and you said it just came out of shed a week ago.
Thank you for your advice. I do hope changing the hides is at least a step in the right direction. Yes, I've taken the temp on the inside surface of the hide a few times. When it had the help of the California summer heat (ambient temps easily staying at 80 F), it did okay at around 86-87 F, but now that the nights are cooling off, it's closer to 85 F, which was what prompted me to dial up the Herpstat setting a bit. However, I was also hesitant to turn it up too much, since Iggy is strong enough now to sometimes nudge the hide out of place while he's roaming around outside it. I'll probably try turning up the space heater to bump up the ambient temp to 80 F as well. If my sister feels the room is getting a bit too warm for her crested gecko, we could relocate his tank if necessary.