Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hy guys i have a quick question about cage humidity. Since i got my burmese i've been using unsented aspen shavings,the only reason i use aspen shavings is to keep the humidity up but it's a pain when it comes to feeding time, because i have to watch to meke sure he does'nt eat any of the shavings. I want to use news paper but my problem is keeping the humidity up, usualy with shavings i just spray once a day , and im set for the day. Doyou guys have any suggestions on how to keep my burm happy,if it helps i keep him in a custom made plywood enclosure its 3Wx3Tx21/2D and he is about 3feet long.

I would try feeding your snake in the bathtub, then you wouldn't have to worry about swallowed shavings or switching substrate.

i think thats asking for trouble don you think, i mean i hate to get bit buy a 3 foot snake let alone buy a full grown down the line you now what i mean. Every time i feed him it takes im about 3 hours to get out of feed mode.

I strongly agree that all large constrictors should be fed inside their enclosure. It is extremely stressfull on the snakes to be handled and moved after eating and once the snake gets larger has the potential to be quite dangerous to the keeper. As far as the humidity, if you switch to newspaper you can mist the paper near the heat source(under the heat lamp or next to the heat panel) and it should help maintain the humidity level. Just monitor it and make adjustments as needed. One thing to think about in the future is the height of your cage. You do not need to make the cage so tall. By having a 3' tall cage it makes it incredibly difficult to maintian a high humidity level. Once you make the next cage for when he/she gets bigger I would limit it to 18"-24". That is plenty of height for almost all ground snakes.Hope this helps. todd

I have been feeding my burms and boas in the bathtub for a long time and have never had any troubles. I find it easier on both of us because they have more room to eat (except my for my boa he's 9') and i don't have to worry about swallowed shavings.The reason I started doing it was because when I was feeding them in their cages every time I stuck my hand in they would strike at me, after putting them in the tub to eat they havn't snapped at me since. My boa is the easiest to feed cause i use a pet taxi in which he crawls in and out of himself.