Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have a 9 month old 5 foot burm that I am in the process of finishing building a cage for. My questions are:

Is there some basic formula for size of snake to size of floor space needed?

They do not need to be able to completly stretch out in their enclosures do they?

All they need is space to coil up comfortably?

The dimentions of the current cage is 48' X 24" X 21".

How long will it last him?

Thanks in advance,
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1.0 Ball Python
1.0 Burmees Python

Personally, and I am probably never gonna hear the end of this, I have a 6 ft male burm in a 40 breeder. The measurements are 36"LX18"DX18"T. He WILL be moving to a 4'X3'X2' the end of the month. I think that your 4'X2'X2', will last him until he is about 9-10ft, as long as he comes out regularly for exercise. Personally, and I know I am contradicting myself by the cage I keep mine in, I think they need one square foot of floor space for every foot of snake, maybe even 1.5 ft for a burm because of the sheer girth. Personally, my burms final cage will be 8'LX3'DX2'T, and I am getting it next week as well. Your will be fine in the cage you currently have, but you can always give him more room, just don't go overboard, they will stress if there is TOO much room.

Young burms do better in slightly smaller cages (your 4' x 2' cage will be fine until it reaches 8'....MAX). A full grown burm, in my opinion, should have at least 30 square feet of space; particularly for a heavy female.

I've read somewhere that the final cage size for a burm should be 6X3X6 LWH. I am currenyl building a 3 section cage. The bottom section is 6X3X2, completely enclosed and houses the hide box, slop sink and storage. The snake cannot enter the storage area. The middle section will be 6X3X2.5 and has under floor heating, access to slop sink and hide box, misting system and thermostat, and entrance to 3rd level in ceiling. The 3rd level has heat lamps and more misting jets. The top 2 levels have glass viewing. The bottom level can be opened with doors to view the hide box and control water release from tank. A side door will be used for emergency egress from the hide box.

What am I sayin? My snake is 9 feet and has no room in a 5X2X3 foot dresser converted into a cage. Check out the pics on Snakes/pythons. I put myself in the animals spot and try to think of what would I be comfortable in.

DZ