Hello all, nice to meet you!



Yesterday I became the proud owner of a black and white stripe California King Snake. After some research, my husband and I believe it is a San Diego Stripe. We purchased the snake from a very reputable local reptile store after a thorough examination for any odd lumps or bumps (of which there were none). Along with the snake, we got all items necessary to care for him (with the exception of the tank, which we already had). We are unsure of gender and age, as the manager who had all the records for the snakes was out of the office, so the girl couldn't tell us what our snake is (though he is yet toothless and about 14-16 inches long). We've been calling it Talon, and for now referring to Talon as a male.



Talon has a nice set up in a 20 gallon aquarium. He has aspen snake bedding about 2 inches thick along the bottom, 2 'hiding' spots (one on the warm side of the cage, the other on the cool side), a good sized pool with about an inch or maybe more of water in it. He has a heating pad attached to one side of the tank with a heat lamp containing a 60 watt UV light above (the 100 watt made the aquarium very hot very fast). One side of the tank maintains a temp of about 84-86 degrees fahrenheit, the other side (where the water is) about 75-78. The humidity meter ranges between 35 and 45, which according to the meter is in the low end of the moderate range, bordering on the 'desert' range. He also has a piece of driftwood in the center of the tank for climbing.



The reptile store had been feeding him about once a week. A friend of mine that raises rosy boas suggested we increase feeding to twice a week. Talon ate a pinkie mouse today with little encouragement (he seemed quite hungry!). We move him from his tank into a cardboard box using leather gloves to signal its time to eat. This is an attempt to teach him not to strike us whenever we reach into the tank, thinking we are handing him food.



This is my first snake, and though I have cared for them before I have never owned one myself. I am wondering if there is anything that I should be aware of?



I am adding a pic of Talon, just to share what he looks like

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