Finally Introducing George!

[skaplan86]

So i been around here for a few weeks and I am finally going to formally introduce George!

He had a bout with some scale rot but thanks to Becky (satanicintention) he overcame that today with his shed. He still has some scratch on top of his head from something. The mark was there before he shed but then the shed like ripped the scab off or something... Any suggestions on what to do about it? Looks minor and like it will heal over time...

Now for some lovely post shed pics...

What are you lookin at!?


Make sure you get my good side!


Good view of scratch on top of head


Before Shed Belly (about a week ago)...


My belly is so clean now!



His Tub

Right now it is sitting inside the 50g glass tank he used to use because I haven't gotten the UTH off the glass yet. I have some flexwatt coming on wed for the tub though. He has already managed to flip the water dish and soak all the paper towels, so I have to change them not even 10 minutes after putting them in... Warm side is on the right cool is on the left. He is kinda on top of the acurite in this picture (I will fasten it to side of tub this weekend)... Im gettin around 92 and 82 in his hides using the acurite and my IR therm... Humidity has been up at 65-70 for shed but i put a couple holes in the sides this evening in order to help get it down to 50-55...

Any constructive criticism is very welcome... This is my first snake and I feel horrible that after having him less than a month he already had scale rot so I'm vowing to do better from here on out!

Thanks a ton!

[tweets_4611]

Good looking boy! And congrats on getting him over scale rot!

Just a tip, you might file or sand down those holes in your hides. BPs have pretty tough skin, but you don't want to leave something sharp or jagged in the tub...you don't want him to get cut or scraped by his hides...

[skaplan86]

Thanks tweets! I will definately be sanding those down a bit when I can get out and get some sand paper... I hate this time of the semester, as I'm sure many here do... He has been ok till now with th because they aren't that sharp...

Judging by his size and whatnot, does anybody think he is too big for this tub to be a permanent home? I'm having probs with him moving the hides all over the place. I'm going to get a heavier/lower water dish that wont tip if he gets up on top of it but his hides dont way much so when he comes in and out he shifts em all over the place... I woke up to another war zone this morning because when he was clunkin around last night his hides were comin with him...

I wan't to eventually put him in a nice enclosure, but how big? is 48"x24"x14" too big?
I can get one of these http://www.happysnakecages.com/products.htm for pretty cheap, they are made out of a particle board with lanoleum inside, all sealed up and good for snakes. Its a local guy who makes em and has a ton of snakes in them and will gimme a good deal...

[starmom]

I have my larger ball pythons in these: http://www.reptilebasics.com/2x3-Cag...h-p-16286.html and they are great!! Easy to heat and clean, holds humidity really well, and looks great!!

Your snake looks awesome and I'm really glad that you got in touch with Becky... she is really amazing

[Laooda]

Awww! Hey George! So glad that Becky helped and he's doing good for you... pat yourself on the back!

[skaplan86]

Starmom I would love to get one of those but its a bit out of my budget at this time... I can get a 2'x4' for a third the price and was just wondering if i'm asking for a stressed out snake. I have other hides that I made that provide a tight hide but take up a lot of space in the tank, and will fill the tank with plastic vine and such... Just didn't know if a 2x4 is still too much space...

[xanaxez]

i have all my snakes set up in these abs cages and the bottom 4fter is around 75 to a 100.00 bucks cheaper then most others. my 4fts were 150.00 and the 2ft'd were 75. heres some i just got and havent gotten set up yet.

[starmom]

How much does the snake weigh? My big snakes do really well in 3 foot cages, but I don't think I'd put them into a 4 footer unless they were over 3000g....

But, it really depends a lot on the snake too. I have some snakes who will probably spend their lifetime in a cozy rack tub because that is just where they feel comfortable...

[skaplan86]

I don't know what he weighs, but I highly doubt he is 3000+... from what I have read that would be a very large female and since he is a 2 year old male I doubt he is that big... He was in a 50g glass tank that was 48x18 when i got him and it was a pain to keep the levels, but I don't know if he actually felt uncomfortable in it due to size... I guess i might just error on the side of caution and save up for RBI...

Xan... what is abs stand for?

[skaplan86]

Well I think I can say George is almost 100% better...

He finished his shed all on his own (was kinda messy cuz of treatment) and ate for me today! I even gave him a larger rat than he is used too. Last time I gave him a small medium, but today all their mediums were a pretty good size. its gone and he is headed back into his warm hide for the night. Now I gotta clean up the rat poop from his cage though (what kinda rat poops before getting assaulted by a snake anyways, jeez)

I handled him for a few minutes last night and he was very calm. Didn't try and escape to a warm dark area and didnt just stay in a ball. he kinda just sprawled and laid out. When I had him on my shoulder cuz I was movin around a bit he got some good stretches in.

All in all I think he is starting to be much more happy snake and less irritated snake. Its a good feeling!

Thanks again to everybody who helped