Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hello,

If I want to brumate my snakes in a refrigerator, do I have to cool them down gradually first, or can I just keep them off feed to empty their gut, and then put them in? I am going to live in an apartment, and it might be difficult for me to set a room aside to cool the snakes off in, and I don't trust leaving them outside.

Thanks,

Jeff

I would definitely NOT just throw them in a very cold environment like that all at once. Additionally, refrigerators usually stay too cold for brumating snakes. They tend to only get into the mid-high forties or so.

A wine cooler is much better at dialing in the preferred higher temps you will want to target(mid-to upper 50's or so), depending what types of snake's you will be brumating. These can be bought for a couple hundred bucks, and work great when setup correctly.

My friend "JKruse", and "Upscale" over on the kingsnake forum have used these very successfully in the past, and Jerry has proven good results in short order with his that he just recently acquired for his Mountain kings(zonata) this year.

I would go over to the king forum and post about what they could tell you about their experiences using a wine cooler so you know how to deal with it without finding out something the hard way and jeopardizing any snake's health. Jerry just posted some good eggs over there from some snake's that were introduced into his wine cooler this season.

good luck!, ~Doug
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"a snake in the grass is a GOOD thing"

my website -serpentinespecialties.webs.com

Thanks for the reply!

I see you DID go over there to ask about it...good deal!

And good luck with things too!

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

my website -serpentinespecialties.webs.com