ok, so if i use only sandy soil, as you put it...what ratio of sand to soil...? ...so say two inches of large 'grain' vermiculite, with a fine mesh screen on top of that...with a quarter or half inch of pea gravel on top of that to help keep the soil out of the vermiculit~and also keeping the snakes out of the screen and vermiculite), then ten or eleven inches of sandy soil...and i will incorporate a pvc tube, one inch in diameter with a cap on the top...so i can keep the bottom 'moisture level' substrate(vermiculite in this case) moist without getting the sandy soil moist? should i have an under tank heating element on he bottom...to heat the wet vermiculite, causing the moisture to rise into the soil? i will still probably utilize some rocks and wood stuctures for astecic reasons, although it may be more for me...than the snake, i do believe the snakes will still explore these structures and items...and honestly...i want something that is not only functional...but i want it to look good. i dont want a sandbox in an enclosure. even though the snakes may not have any small trees or anything in the environment that you are studying, i am sure there are plenty of grasses and other 'structures' in their environment elsewhere...ya know. and not being a smart ass, but there are hognose snakes in a lot of different micro habitats. if i cant have a nice 'looking' enclosure...as well as funtional, i wont keep hognoses...i do well with my boas right now, but i want to work with the hognoses. they are quite fascinating...and i am sure they will do well for me. i dont think having some surface objects will affect them negatively...if anything, it will give them more to explore. just my opinion on it...yours?

another question...how does sand and soil hold burrows, without collapsing, even if packed down well...will the burrows hold shape, or do the snakes just 'worm' into it? i was under the impression that the snakes actually make burrows...like tunnels and little 'dens'.

[ Show Entire Thread ]