Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Some of you here are familiar with these big guys, and I'd be interested in knowing what you feel would be suitable dimensions for a terrarium to house an adult.

I have a terrarium which measures 44" X 20" X 20" in which I could tentatively keep him. I would be looking in on him every day to change his water and spot clean, and I'd be using aspen bedding. Would this suffice, or would it be considered on the small side?

While we're on the subject of Gaigae... Some months ago there was a thread something along the lines of, "If you could just keep one milksnake, which one would it be?" If any one has a link to that thread, I'd appreciate revisiting it.

Thank You!

In my opinion, that is a VERY suitable sized enclosure. Many of us can only WISH we could house our stuff in quarters that roomy to tell you the truth.

have fun with it Dan!

~Doug
-----
"a snake in the grass is a GOOD thing"

Great, and thanks for the reply...! I was afraid it was going to be a bit small, considering these get to be stocky 6 footers.

Dan

I have 2 of mine in those under the bed Sterilite tubs from Target that measure about the same as your cage there (minus the height) and they are doing great!!! I really like them more than my custom cage setup (see pic) cause the tubs hold more humidity and I get less dry sheds that are all over the cage. Now I just get one big easy to clean shed And if you know of a place that is selling some females, do let me know

-----
~Markus Arelius

Ok fine just Markus.

The very existence of flamethrowers means that sometime, somewhere, someone said to themselves..."You know, I really want to set those people over there on fire...but I'm just not close enough to get the job done!

Hi Markus, and thanks for your input!

I really like your display cage, and it's obviously roomier than the plastic tub! I've never had any shedding problems with any Lampropeltis ssp. over the years; they all shed in a single piece. Maybe you live in a more arid area than I do (I'm in northern Italy), or your home is less humid than mine... I always have a large water dish in my terrariums like you do, and most of my snakes like to soak in them. That's certainly a factor with their great sheds.

Can't help you out with any female Gaigae. If you're in Europe, I'm sure you'll find them at the Hamm Expo.

Oh wow yes I am in Southern California and no where near Italy haha! It is probably much dryer here too. But I actually have plastic tubs here that are almost as big as that display cage in the picture and they have done me great thus far! I do keep a decent sized water dish in with all of them but mine never really touch it apart from having a quick drink. Other than some dry sheds here and there from the ones that are not in tubs, they are fantastic and healthy! I am contemplating moving my other 2 into tubs as well now. Wish I had a pic for you so you could see how big the tub is! I'll try to snap one off here soon and post it up!

And no worries on finding me a lady Gaigae The shipping on that would be murderous for me lol!
-----
~Markus Arelius

Ok fine just Markus.

The very existence of flamethrowers means that sometime, somewhere, someone said to themselves..."You know, I really want to set those people over there on fire...but I'm just not close enough to get the job done!

I was in Encinitas and Palm Springs this summer, and it's definitely drier in Encinitas (and PS!!!) than here. I've seen some plastic containers sold that I literally could fit into and close the top, and they sell tubs here that slide under the bed that are similiar to the ones you describe.

Best wishes!

Ah yes that definitely explains it why I get the dry sheds more often than you if I dont do the extra to humidify things more
-----
~Markus Arelius

Ok fine just Markus.

The very existence of flamethrowers means that sometime, somewhere, someone said to themselves..."You know, I really want to set those people over there on fire...but I'm just not close enough to get the job done!