Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have a baby midland water snake and was wondering what the best terrarium setup would be for him.

TIA

A baby Midland would do fine in a 10 gal. aquarium but will need a 20 gal. as an adult. Cypress, aspen, and coconut shavings work well as a substrate. Give him a couple inches so that he can burrow. Provide a decent sized water container. He should be able to move around inside it with ease. I provide my watersnakes with an overhead heat lamp over one end of the cage. A 40 watt basking bulb for 5 hours a day would keep the cage in the 80 F range. Keep the substrate dry at all times. Hope this helps to get you started.
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Pierson Hill

Herpetology and Herpetoculture

I like plain paper substrate with a place to hide and a water container large enough for the snake to fit in.. Keeping the substrate dry is important in preventing dermatitis, and it’s quick and easy to just discard soiled or wet paper and lay down new. However, I have kept only adult Nerodia, not neonates.

-Joan

thank you for the replies. Here is the setup I have now (most of those leaves are behind the cage). Is everything ok for him? I used smooth gravel instead of wood chips, will that be ok?

thanks in advance

I personally wouldn't use gravel as a substrate. First off, it doesn't allow the snake to burrow and create hiding spots where it can feel secure. Secondly, I would think gravel would be hard to clean efficiently as waste would fall in between the rocks making spot-cleaning difficult. If your set on using gravel, I'd consider burying a small plastic container filled with slightly moistened sphagnum for him to hide in.
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Pierson Hill

Herpetology and Herpetoculture

Ok, I have gotten him a bigger cage and changed it around a bit. The only gravel in the cage now is just around the water bowl and rock so he wont get stuck between them. the rest of the cage is lined with cedar chips. I am going back to the pet store today to get some Aspen. Are the cedar chips ok in the meantime?

Thanks for the help.

Cedar is toxic to snakes so get your snake off it immediately. Pine is also said to cause problems as well. I should have mentioned this before, I apologize. Aspen will work fine and I usually encourage my snakes to burrow beneath their waterbowls for a cooler place to hide. They are able to squeeze under it without any problems so don't worry about him getting stuck.
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Pierson Hill

Herpetology and Herpetoculture

Ok, he's out of the cedar, I put aspen in the cage now. I also put a heat rock and a basking lamp in, what temp and humidity does the cage need to be at? What about the water, should it be warm or at room temp?

Thanks again

Great. I'd check the temps on your "warm side" of the cage. They should be in the upper 80's F. I don't advise using heat rocks without a rheostat. I've seen heatrocks burn snakes horribly. What wattage is your heat lamp? If it's more than 60 watts, you probably don't need the heat rock at all. You could unplug the heatrock and leave it in the cage to catch the heat from the lamp. The waterdish should stay room temp. The cage should stay dry at all times. If your snake has shedding problems, you should soak him for an hour or so per day when he's in the blue. Hope this gets you rolling. Let us know how he does.
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Pierson Hill

Herpetology and Herpetoculture

I have the heat rock unplugged, it got pretty hot when I first set it up so I just unplugged it, it's warm enough with just the lamp. He hasn't shed yet since I've had him but I dont think it will be a problem because he loves the water, he stays in his bowl for at least a few hours a day. He's been eating quite a bit too, around 2 fish a day. I'll post more pics as he grows.

Thanks for all the help!

That's a nice looking little Midland. Where'd you get him?
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Pierson Hill

Herpetology and Herpetoculture

I found him in a friends pool. I really love his markings. I finally got a pic of him eating

This might be especially useful for water snakes: Instead of one large water dish, use two smaller ones, with one on the warm side and one on the cooler side. He'll probably prefer the cooler water for drinking, but might prefer the warmer water to soak in while preparing for shedding.
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MichaelB