Reptile & Amphibian Forums

i had ababy blue racer dropped off to me today and i am thinking about keeping him, he was wild caught and is very grumpy! last night i put him in a planted terrarium for now butim not sure what habitat they really need and what food items should i try to spark his feeding, also how long can i wait if he refuses food before i should release him
thanks
Tony

Young racers are very, very tricky. Make sure he's got plenty of places to hide, it'll make him feel more at home. Keep him in an area with little to no traffic, and when you feed him, make sure there's even less. The way I usually do racers is I'll drop the food in the cage, then leave the room for a day and a half. They really, really do not like to be watched when they eat. For a young racer, try crickets or very small newborn mice. Hope this helps, good luck
Kevin

i tried a pinky the first night i got him but i watched the whole time so thats why that didnt work i hope. i droped in a few crix yesterday hopefully he will go for that i will also add a few more hides when i get home theres only one in there and he cant fit all the way in. will the humidity level in a planted terrarium be ok or should i place him in a dry setup with cage carpet or something i want him to be comfortible, also what about climbing would he like some branches.

ha let me handle him lastnight without trying to bite over and over so that was pretty cool

Branches are great, they love to climb. I'd put him in a dryer setup, racers are bad about developing blisters if they're put in an environment that's too moist. I remember I had a racer once that for the first six months I had him, I never once saw him eat...I'd drop the pinkies in there, come back a day later, and they'd be gone, and he'd be fat. Like I said, they really hate being watched. Also, if he's a baby racer, try to get a newborn pinkie if you can, something really small. Hope this helps, good luck
Kevin