Reptile & Amphibian Forums

ok, so my eggs are hatching, and i'm a little vague on a couple things. I have read that hatchlings wont eat until after the first shed. how long does this usually take? The second is water. They don't have their own water dishes, but I've been putting them individually in a tupperware container with some water for them to drink. how often should I do this? And Lastly, how many times should I feed before I can feel safe selling them? Any advice you can give will be much appreciated.

Hatchlings often eat before their first shed. Most people wait though. The first shed typically occurs 7-10 days after hatching.

I'd get a water dish for each snake. I consider that one of the things to do before breeding - having a plan on how to house the offspring. There are some people who don't keep water in with their snakes 24/7, but I do.

Many people like to feed their snakes three times before selling, but there is no "rule" about this. Three times seems to be enough to know that the snake will likely be a consistent feeder.

Tim

Third Eye

n/p
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"Better to be silent and thought a fool, than to open mouth and remove any doubt!"

It might do to mention, also, that water dishes, hides, etc. don't need to be the expensive items one finds in a pet store. You can probably find everything you need in your own kitchen and bathroom.
I keep two large boxes full of empty plastic containers from the kitchen (butter tubs, sour cream and dip containers, etc.), old deli cups and empty food boxes (everything from tiny Jello boxes to bulk cereal boxes) and toilet paper tubes. I use these for hides, water bowls and humidity boxes. They're free and disposable and I feel a little "greener" for having recycled them. I also keep a supply of Ziploc containers (not bags) with snap-on lids. They're a little smaller than a Sterilite shoe box and I use them to house new hatchlings for the first few months before I put them in the snake room. They work well to hold subadults and smaller adults, too, while I clean their cages. Don't forget to make some air holes, though! For a substrate, I use newspaper and sales papers.
For permanent housing, I usually replace the disposable water bowls with crock-style water bowls that I have gradually acquired. The point, though, is that this isn't a necessity.
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http://www.cafepress.com/shedz

I have them all individually housed in small containers with airholes in a cabinet under a heat pad for my lizards, so its about 83 F. Is there anything wrong with taking them out daily for water? My worry was that they would tip any container that I could put in with them. They are on paper towels for substrate. how often do the babies need to drink?

Many times I will use PVC caps bought from the Home Depot, etc... for water containers for hatchlings. They can even be super glued to the bottom so they can't be tipped, no matter how high, or how low the lid to their container is.

Many times when these caps are used in conjunction with a low-profile container(deli cup, etc.., and the lid just meets the top of the PVC cap, a small notch can be cut or ground in both sides that is slightly larger than the snakes head. This will allow the snake to poke it's head in to drink, but it can't be spilled due to the two heights of the container lid and the cap top being about equal.

Filling the PVC cap is easy too, I just use a small kitchen baster, or a lrge syringe to fill them, that educes any water getting on the substrate used in the small confines of the container.

BTW, all the advice from the other's is right on the money too!

~Doug
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"Better to be silent and thought a fool, than to open mouth and remove any doubt!"

The PVC caps often come in different styles at the stores, some are rounded, and some have a flat bottom,....avoid the rounded ones..LOL!

This might mean you have to go to a different store sometimes, but often the big Home stores often carry both.

~Doug
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"Better to be silent and thought a fool, than to open mouth and remove any doubt!"

I use plastic "mason jar " lids from the grocery for water bowls for my hatchlings. They come in a box of 8 for about $1.89 or so and can be washed easily, even in the dishwasher. The brand I use is "Ball" from WalMart.
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