Posted by:
snakekeeper77
at Tue Apr 30 11:44:47 2013 [ Email Message ] [ Show All Posts by snakekeeper77 ]
Frank, i am glad you finally posted. first off, i will give you a brief look at who i am and a little about me. my name is Rick, i have been keeping and breeding reptiles(mostly snakes) for over 26 years now.i excelled at science and health(for what it is worth) i started off at nine with a ball python. at twelve i bred my first colubrids(corns and a few kings). i moved up to boa constrictors. at fifteen i got a chondro, which at the time were hard to find and even harder to keep alive...this topic i will get into just a bit.
everyone except trooper told me that i would not keep them alive...well, the most obvious thing to do to keep them alive, was to look at their natural environment...common sense to me. well, i studied it like an addict(actually, i was)...i did pretty well with him. i got two more females...when i was seventeen, i got eggs...they all ended up dieing, but the next year, i hatched out fourteen of twenty eggs. the rest of the story for another thread, but my point, my success was from studying the natural habitat and with help from greg, trooper, and rico.
when i use the term 'naturalistic' that is EXACTLY what i mean...as close to their natural environment as i can possibly get it. i think i do a pretty good job most of the time...my animals reflect it as well. i do not know it all, i hope i never do(and im sure i wont), because learning is the most fun thing about the animals i keep, aside from that, watching and interacting with them. i know some, but not much about the hognose in the wild...this is where i ask for help, and you Frank, can help me here. i also think Greg, and other successful keepers can also help. i love big, naturalistic enclosures, i KNOW the animals benefit from it, and i have seen a lot more 'natural' behavior...or at least what i believe would be natural(simply because a lot of the animals i keep...i have not been fortunate enough to observe in nature, especially to a long term observation). i have used rack systems in the past, and although i would rather have my animals in a naturalistic environment...i do not hate on or judge those folks that do use racks...because as a former 'breeder', i understand that any number of animals are very hard to provide large, naturalistic enclosures for...just the space alone is not do~able for almost all keepers. this is why i am more of a 'glorified hobbiest' than a breeder. i do love to produce my own animals and i LOVE morphs...but i would rather have several 'chunks of nature' than a few hundred animals. i just sit down and get lost in my enclosures, for hours at a time...and my wife often asks how i just sit and stare at my snakes...she does not understand that even to this day, they simpley fascinate me...and i am in awe of them. and the day i quit learning or stop being fascinated by my captives...i will find another hobby. i love keeping snakes, and breeding is fun too...
i plan on breeding hognoses, but i believe keeping them is going to be incredible. from what i have read from ALL keepers, reguardless if they are just that, keepers...or breeders, these animals are just awesome. they have charicteristics and habits that is not often found in any reptile, let alone most snakes. i have had several w.hognoses...but i kept them less naturalistic type setups than i will be this go round...and i am very excited to get some of these animals. it will be a nice change from my boas and retics...and i wont have to have room sized enclosures for one or two animals!
i was thinking of a mixture of about forty percent sand, twenty five percent natural top soil, twenty five percent peat, and ten percent vermiculite as a starting base for my soil content....how does this sound to you? i am also going to be adding certain types of mild bacteria and isopods....to make a bio active substrate. i have used this for several other species of snakes, and had great success...what are your feelings on this?
i am going with about 12 or so inches of soil, with some potted plants(with pea gravel around the base with a little bit of soil on top of that...to keep the hogs from uprooting them). i am also planning on some wood structures, small hollow logs, maybe some rock formations(i know to make sure to be careful of crush hazards, but with soil this deep, it wont be hard to accomplish).
i am also planning on a little bit of leaf litter and maybe pine needles for asthetic appeal(for me!!!)...and who knows what else...this is just my initial idea...any other ideas would be greatly appreciated!
i love naturalistic display enclosures...LOVE them.
and to both you Frank, and to Greg. i want to thank you both for your previous threads and posts back and forth. i have already learned a lot from both of you...i know you two dont always agree, lol...but i think you are both very knowlegable and you both have a LOT to teach and offer others(as well as other keepers on here)...i will say, i see points that you both have made, and i think that a few times you(Frank) may have taken some things differently than how Greg said them(or at least meant them)...and vise versa...but you guys are both very knowlegable and have a lot to offer keepers of all levels...thanks for your contributions! you may disagree on certain things, but you both still keep it professional, and i can appreciate that!
[ Hide Replies ]
- About naturalistic. - FR, Tue Apr 30 10:53:19 2013
 RE: About naturalistic. - snakekeeper77, Tue Apr 30 11:44:47 2013
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