Hey sounds like you are headed in the right direction. One thing though, I would get rid of the hot rock. Take it back to the store and exchange it for a under tank heater. Better yet, do what I do, use a human heat pad bought at Wal-Mart.
The heat rock can become too hot and burn the snake. This small of a snake the heat rock could actually kill. Heat rocks are useless and dangerous for reptiles and in my opinion should only be used if the electric cord is cut off and it is used as a rub rock!
I use the heat pads, cheaper than a UTH and have different settings on it so you can maintain the proper temps in the cage.
The heat pad should be set on one end of the tank, and cover about a third of the end of the tank. For a ringneck, you can use newspaper as a substrate. It is easy to clean out and replace when soiled and doesnt carry any little bugs that could get on the snake. If you use dirt and such from outside, you could introduce parasites to your snake, if it doesnt have them already being a wild caught snake. Dirt is harder to keep clean when the snake does its business in the cage and would make it harder to find the snake. Ringnecks love to burrow, so it would spend most of its time under cover or in the dirt.
With newspaper, the snake will most likely spend most of its time under the newspaper, or in a hide.
You should have a hide at both ends of the tank so the snake can regulate its body temp.
A water dish.
A rock or something rough so the snake can shed.
Ringnecks dont like the temps in the cage as warm as some snakes, so you will need to buy a temp guage to maintain proper temps. If it is too hot, the snake could die or go off feed. If it is too cool, same thing, so it is important to keep the temps in the cage at the right temp. The cool end should be right around 72-74 and the warm end should be no higher than 82.
Ring necks eat a variety of items out in the wild. Worms, slugs, small salamanders, baby lizards, and other small snakes (baby dekays, red bellied browns etc.)
You can keep a ringneck on a diet of worms and it will do fine. I would feed it a couple of small worms about every 3 or 4 days. Any worms not eaten within the first day should be removed. They tend to smell pretty bad when they are left in for a couple of days.
Let the snake settle in for about 3-5 days once you have the cage setup. Dont handle it, as this will stress it. Once it has settled in try feeding it. It may not eat, due to the fact that it is nearing winter and most snakes are starting to get ready for hibernation. I would recommend letting it go at that point, but being that it will probably be too late in the fall to release it, you may just have to continue trying to feed it.
Or you could just go ahead and release it now, and try your luck with one next spring, as they are pretty easy to find.
Either way, good luck and keep us posted.
Happy Herping
Brian
