Reptile & Amphibian Forums

ok..here is the cage for my green anaconda. before i get a ton of posts about my bacteria hazards. the stones in the water are regularlyrinsed and disinfected with rocal as well as all water sources. The cage bottom is astroturf which is replaced regularly since it is 19c a sq ft. the antlers were sterilized with bleach before entering this cage. now to describe more. the cage has three lights source..full spectum w/ubv on one end, normal flourecent in the middle, and incandesent heat bulbs on the other end. under the hiding hut there is a large undertank heater and in the middle of the cage is a ceramic heat emitter. there is a fogger in the large water bowl and if the 2 temperature and humidity guages cannot be read since i took these photos with my phone...the end with the hut and undertank heater is 90 degrees with a humidity of 50% and the end with the water is 80 degrees with a humidity of 40% at the time i took this picture(that end fluctuates because of the water dish and when i turn on the fogger to up the humidity). now you might be thinking this is a huge task to keep clean...you are right if you assumed that..which is why i do not always have the cage so decked out since i need to clean certain things at a time. the anaconda is in the little hut by the antlers where the heat pad is and there is a water dish inside there where he can go in and out of while staying hidden (when i check on him he is 50% in water and 50% out)...i put the beach ball in because i had it in my bedroom and when he was on the floor he kept going to it and climbing on it and rolling off(funny) but he kept doing it so i put it in his cage and he is very attracted to it and plays on the thing. I have the shark because i like to put a stuffed animal in all my snake cages for visiters that dont see snakes as nice pets (they think it is cute and it gives them a softer side to snakes if they see a snake curled around it..like my ball python and her monkey)...hope you all like the cage.

middle

other end

Does your anaconda realy need a stuffed animal and a beach ball???lol. Nice cage but it looks like a lot to clean.

yes he needs a stuffed animal and a beach ball...he (which i am starting to think is a she since the spurs are not visible without a lot of work and still hard to see the shape) is a baby...no it just makes people less scared when they see my snake wrapped around a stuffed animal (girls like it, thats why i also have sugar gliders). the original gage setup was like a baby's crib and i think i am going to do it again once i get the large cages by design cage. i like doing different things and going all out. but at a show i bought a waterfall (behing the shark) so then i went all out spending a ton to make it look like the amazon and have a fogger with waterfall and all. it is hard to clean which is why it isnt all in there all the time...only when i work realy hard...otherwise i am cleaning things periodically. there is actually usually bamboogoing around the top of the big water dish to hide the plastic but it just got real hard to keep clean so i am leaving it off for a little bit.

I remember doing cages up just like you. I used to have alot of fun with it. Unfortunately it becomes to much of a chore and then you find yourself not cleaning the cage as often. As long as you have fun with it, I say put whatever you want in there (maybe a volleyball net?)
Just make sure of what I mentioned above, dont let the snakes well being suffer because you dont feel like digging a huge "movement" out of your waterfall pump. Or whatever.
Have fun
Arik

like i said before...its a hastle but all that stuff gets cleaned regularly and it isnt all alsways in there. even the stones get disinfected with rocal after every movement in the water. the turf like i said is 19c a sq ft so it just gets replaced and all my cages have new substrate (some 2 or 3 times) for about 5 dollars. this cage is huge and in a visible part of the room..and next year i live with a girl who hates snakes so at least it can look pretty. my girlfriend is also great because she helps me with everything...actually she examined my snakes spurs with a magnifying glass while i parted the scales..and still couldnt really tell since they were so deep and tiny so my guess now is female(she has more fun working with the sugar gliders).

also...my cages all used to be newspaper and cardboard hidint spots...astroturf looks way nicer and my cages are now in a visible part of the apartment. i see no cleaning problem at all since astroturf is actually cheaper than newspaper if you cant find any old ones and have to buy new ; )