The other problem is security. Snakes are very insecure when out in the open, particularly slow moving species like hogs. Simply put, when they are out, by choice or forced, they are vulnerable. So they avoid that unless absolutely necessary.

Materials like aspen and shavings do very little to prevent dehydration, but help with security. Such materials as moist but not wet sandy soils(like what they live in) are how they stay both secure and hydrated.

As I posted, I tested and are testing deep dirt of a suitable type(to the hogs) I set up a cage with wild caught and my son set up a cage with captive hatched.

My WC's went down and never came up, hahahahahahahahaha and I mean never. Hogs are very very timid animals, while they look tame, they are not. They simply lack the ability to take flight, so they don't.

My sons captive hatched, made millions of burrows and continued as normal.

My WC's went native and stayed hidden at all costs. The test continues.

So its your choice, I hope you do both, something good for the keeper and the kept.
In the field, so far, they have not come to the surface for longer then 20 minutes. In all cases where I can determine what they did, they exit one hole, then crawl to another hole a short distance away, then down that hole. This was observed both by tracking and visually. Cheers

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