Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Well, next weekend is the Oregon show, and I'm hoping to come back with a little baby milksnake. I've been reading up on their care, mostly through breeders' sites and whatnot (don't worry, I plan on purchasing a book this weekend after I pay my dad for my credit card bill ) but I still had a couple of questions regarding their care.

What size tanks do you keep your adults in?
And how do you keep the temps between 84-88* F?
Right now I have a little corn-baby who is on a UTH and a ceramic heat emitter to keep the temps up (I live in Western Washington, so the weather lately has been INSANE, but I'll be able to turn of the ceramic heater soon :] ) so I'm just wondering how you keep the temps up.

Thanks in advance :]
-----
0.2 Dalmation/Harlequin Crested Geckos
1.0 Creamsicle/Okeetee Cornsnake

What is this I hear about hibernating them? Is this is something they do on their own, something the owners induce as a requirement, or something breeders do to get them ready for the season?
-----
0.2 Dalmation/Harlequin Crested Geckos
1.0 Creamsicle/Okeetee Cornsnake

Looks like you have some corns judging by your signature? Milks generally would require the same care as your corns. Depending on what kind of milk you get, such as a North American milk, they may not need a cage as large as your corns. However, if you get hondurans or black milks, they will need a decent size cage as they are large milks. I think the temp you posted was a little high. I keep my hot end around 82 and cool end at room temp and my milks do fine.

Many of us brumate ours in prepration for breeding season. Some breeders say they don't brumate and still have success breeding, but I have always brumated mine.

I hope this helps,

Dave

DNS Reptiles

>>Looks like you have some corns judging by your signature? Milks generally would require the same care as your corns. Depending on what kind of milk you get, such as a North American milk, they may not need a cage as large as your corns. However, if you get hondurans or black milks, they will need a decent size cage as they are large milks. I think the temp you posted was a little high. I keep my hot end around 82 and cool end at room temp and my milks do fine.
>>
>>Many of us brumate ours in prepration for breeding season. Some breeders say they don't brumate and still have success breeding, but I have always brumated mine.
>>

I plan on buying a wee little one and keeping it in a 10 gallon until it gains some size (made the mistake of putting my baby corn in a 20, which he's fine with now, but we had some issues with his eating because he didn't feel secure :/ ).

And that helps a lot, thank you very much :]
-----
0.2 Dalmation/Harlequin Crested Geckos
1.0 Creamsicle/Okeetee Cornsnake

what kind of milksnake are you planning on getting? Be aware that some of the tinier ones are not easy to get eating on their own, such as the beautiful scarlet kingsnakes (which are actually milksnakes). And some milksnakes are better suited for handling than others. That is why it is important to know what kind you are interested in before giving you advice.
-----
phflame
kingsnake.com host

>>what kind of milksnake are you planning on getting? Be aware that some of the tinier ones are not easy to get eating on their own, such as the beautiful scarlet kingsnakes (which are actually milksnakes). And some milksnakes are better suited for handling than others. That is why it is important to know what kind you are interested in before giving you advice.

I looking at either a Nelson's or a Honduran :]
-----
0.2 Dalmation/Harlequin Crested Geckos
1.0 Creamsicle/Okeetee Cornsnake

nelsons and hondurans are very similar to corns. They need at least a 20 gallon LONG tank when full grown, of course if you can go bigger, they would love that. They can eat frozen/thawed rodents their whole lives, you wouldn't need to go bigger than a full grown mouse size. I use under tank heaters to keep the belly heat going for them. Make sure to measure directly over top of their hot spot to get an accurate temperature. You only need a maximum temp of 82-85F for them. Be VERY careful with their cage, make sure it is secure because these guys are really good escape artists.
-----
phflame
kingsnake.com host

>>nelsons and hondurans are very similar to corns. They need at least a 20 gallon LONG tank when full grown, of course if you can go bigger, they would love that. They can eat frozen/thawed rodents their whole lives, you wouldn't need to go bigger than a full grown mouse size. I use under tank heaters to keep the belly heat going for them. Make sure to measure directly over top of their hot spot to get an accurate temperature. You only need a maximum temp of 82-85F for them. Be VERY careful with their cage, make sure it is secure because these guys are really good escape artists.

Thank you :] I figured they'd be very much like corns.
-----
0.2 Dalmation/Harlequin Crested Geckos
1.0 Creamsicle/Okeetee Cornsnake