>>I just got a gray band this past weekend. He's my first snake and I want to make sure I don't make any mistakes with him so I have a few questions.
You're in the right place, amigo.
>>1. How long should I wait after feeding him to handle him?
That's really sort of a precautionary measure to keep the snake from regurgitating its food. I've never had a snake regurge from handling it, and I have moved them from feeding cups back into their enclosures right after feeding them. If you are talking about handling the snake for a good while or "playing" with it, I'd wait til the lump from its prey is gone.
>>2. Does he have to hibernate or can I keep him active year round? If so, what can I do to aid in the process?
Unless you are trying to breed it (are you certain it's male?), you should keep it active all year round, especially if it's female. If you brumate a female without putting her with a mate I believe egg-binding can occur.
>>3. He's fairly young but I would eventually like to spoil him with a huge enclosure. Is 45-55 gallon too big?
That's huge. I don't know exactly what it would hurt (I have heard that wide open containers can stress alterna out, but I don't know that that is true). I'd go with 10 gallons, 15 if it gets relatively long.
>>4. What is the best substrate to use? I don't care too much about expense.
The "best"? I think that depends on who you ask. I use pine and aspen shavings, and some people like carefresh paper bedding. You can use newspaper or paper towels, but provide a hide box. Honestly (I know some would disagree about this), I think sand would be great for an alterna. If you were to give it some wide flat rocks with a crevice between them about the width of your alterna and put it on sand, you'd come closer to the natural habitat than you ever could with wood shavings. Just be sure if you do that that your rock hide is sturdy and won't topple or slide and crush your little friend. Some people claim sand gets eaten by their herps and impacted, resulting in death, but I've never had this happen, and don't see how it would be different than in the wild.
>>5. He eats frozen pinkies already but what is a good alternative treat for him to eat when he gets bigger?
If you have a baby alterna that eats mice, you should be thankful. When he gets bigger just feed him bigger thawed mice. You might have some complications in switching his prey around.
>>Any other advice is welcome.
The ONLY reason people say alterna aren't the greatest herp for beginners is because of the feeding complications the babies have. You are already past that, so the rest will be easy. If you have any more questions, post them. I'm sure others will give you advice on the substrate.
Brandon Bowers
