Reptile & Amphibian Forums

well, got a striped king yesterday from petco, he looks healthy although i put a cover on the cage thats the only thing i forgot from petco was a screen cover, the humidity went up to almost 90% in about a half hour, i took it off and just watched him for an hour to make sure he was ok, the humudity went down to 65 easily, now its been around 58-62, which is a tad bit high isisnt it? the water bowl is all the way across the tank from the heating pad. but here are the pics, he looks a littly shiny is that ok? kinda like hes wet but idk if he still is hes been making tunnels in the aspen bedding, i thoguth maybe to dry off im not sure, any tips on the tank setup? hes very lively, likes to have his tongue out haha, he looks happy, id say hes 20 inches long, they couldnt really tell me how old he was so any ideas so i can know? he said also he will get to 5' which i doubt is true but he said it will take 3-4 years...

he said try to have humidity 45-55% and heat mid 70s on cold side of tank and mid 80s on other, my temp gauges are like 70 and 73....all the time, although i bet the heating pad where he lays sometimes is almost 90 im not sure.

I have a banded Cal king that I've had for six years, and she is only four feet long. However, I have heard of specimens reaching five feet.

About humidity: your range 58-62% sounds fine to me. Cal kings tolerate a wide range of conditions, so it shouldn't hurt the snake if the humidity has a very brief periods of high and low levels. What's important is the average level. If the humidity remains too high (above 70% or so), you could try slightly decreasing the size of the water bowl or adding a heat lamp (in conjunction with a screen lid). The real indicator is your snake. If the sheds are complete (or nearly complete) and the animal has no respiratory problems, you should be fine with your ranges.

I would also suggest keeping records or when you snake feeds, sheds (and also whether those sheds were complete or not), etc. so that you can better monitor the animal's health.

Here's my setup:
75 gallon (48in long x 12 in wide x 24in high)glass aquarium with a screen lid. A 75W heat lamp on one end. My temps range from 76F on the cool side and 80-85F on the warm end. Humidity is between 50 and 60%.

Hope this helps

yeah it helped, i will keep track....can i feed such a young snake an anole? ive heard on other forums people think its pretty cool that they do it...itsj ust the anole is bigger then the pinky mice...

also, my heat is only 68-72 on cool side and like 3 inches above the bedding is 75 degrees...but that doesnt matter because the heating pad is probably 85 right?

when can i start handleing him? i know after you feed him wait 2-3 days before holding, but im waiting for him to get used to his tank i guess? how long should i wait for that? i took him out for about 2 minutes today to make sure his skin and face was looking good and he seems fine..

these are suppsoed to shed every 4-6 weeks correct?

I've never fed anoles, so I can't help you there. However, I wouldn't suggest feeding live prey if you can help it. You run the risk of introducing parasites and injuring your snake (when feeding things like juvenile/adult mice). Someone else can probably chime in with more useful information.

As far as your temps go, the cool side sounds a little too cool to me. I would try to keep it mid to upper-70s (nightly drops are ok). On the warm side, if you're using a heat pad, you should definitely invest in thermometer with probe and place that on the bottom of the tank as close to the heat pad as you can get it. Otherwise, the pad may get too hot and you won't know it.

I would wait to handle your snake until you've had him for about a week. That way he has the chance to explore his environment and get used to you. Young snakes are prey for everything and are often more skittish than older, more socialized animals. When you do handle him, don't be surprised if he rattles his tail at you or acts defensive. This is normal. Just act like it didn't happen, and pick him up anyway. Depending on how well he tolerates handling, I would limit handling sessions to once a week.

How often a snake sheds is usually determined by how much they are fed, temps, and age. Younger snakes should shed more often as they are growing at a much faster rate. It's been a while since I've had an animal as young as yours, but one shed at least every month sounds about right.

Once more thing. I don't know if this is your first snake, but when you feed him, watch your fingers. Kings like their food. Also, it would probably be a good idea to feed in a separate container. Ingestion of substrate isn't horrible, but it can lead to problems.

I meant to post photos last time...

As stated in the last post:
- 75 gallon glass aquarium
- Substrate: aspen (3 inches deep)
- Humidity: ~50%
- Temps: warm - between 80F and 85F; cool - between 74F and 78F

uhh. yeah first snake, how do i know if its male or female?

yeah ill get a digital thermometer and try to get the other side heated up more by moving the pad over some.

Take to a QUALIFIED herp vet, and have it probed. Inexperienced keepers can and have injured their snakes by trying to pop or probe them. While you're at the vet, I would also recommend letting them take a fecal sample so that they can check for internal parasites.

Nice looking striper. B&W.

reako45