Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I'm having trouble keeping humidity high enough in my cages to promote easy shedding... none of my snakes seem to be interested in a humid hide, and i've tried several different styles... butter tubs, meal worm tubs, ceramic pots... I only put one in when they are about to shed, so maybe thats why they arent interested... is there anything i can do to get humidity up with out a humid hide? they've all pretty much got maximum size waterbowls.. should i put a towl over the top of the cage over the water bowl... or...?? Help!

Any advice would be great..
thanks,
Tina

I usualy use a spray bottle and spray the cage. If your corn is having trouble sheeding make sure they have enough stuff in its cage to rub on. I hope this helps.
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Snakes Rule!!!
Blake Mikesell
stoneageh.tripod.com/
stoneage107@juno.com

they've got lots of accessories, hides and that fake grapevine stuff for climbing and all... almost looks cluttered to me, so i feel confident that's not the problem... do you spray them all the time, or just durring shed? i'm using white cotton cloth as bedding, as its easy to keep clean, and reusable... could that be an issue? would it be a problem to mist that if its not an issue to use that as bedding? they are all juviniles...

It sounds like you have enough accesories. I spray mine usualy when there going to shed, But I realy dont spray. I think your bedding is fine. It will probably absorb the water if you spray. but thats a good thing, when there in shed I would spray them every other day, just spray the sides of your cage.
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Snakes Rule!!!
Blake Mikesell
stoneageh.tripod.com/
stoneage107@juno.com

I'm really curious about your setup b/c you humidity (in my opinion) should RARELY ever factor in with corn snake husbandry. I'm wondering if something in your tank is maybe treated with a chemical that is causing conditions to be more dry than normal.

If you think about it this way, corns live all along the eastern U.S. so if you were to walk outside (if you live in that region) then you can see that its not that humid (well, except for maybe further south). There are other health related problems I'd imagine that could be causing your corn to have trouble shedding, though I'm not an expert in reptile veterinary medicine. Otherwise, it may be something in the immediate environment near or in the snake's cage. Try changing the substrate to something else, like paper towels and mist the corn with a sprayer a few times when it starts to shed. Otherwise, you may do more harm than good by trying to raise the humidity for a species that can normally thrive in less humid conditions.
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Sincerely,
Jason
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www.members.aol.com/northeastsnakes

Dont get mad, but i actually have two kingsnakes and a ball python... i can't get responces on the kingsnake forum, because it kinda seems like they are entwined in their own little preformed world, and aren't exactly friendly to new comers... i'm hoping that the two are similar enough that the replys i get here will help...

if i'm wrong in assuming so, let me know...

my set ups are pretty basic... in one tank i have white cotton fabric for bedding, one of those fake log hides, and a peice of that fake gripvine stuff... the other tank has same bedding, a ceramic pot flipped upside down propped up by a seashell, so the snake can get under it, and a peice of the fake grapevine stuff, then the third has the same bedding, a rock hide, and of course all three have water dishes.

Does that help any?

Never heard of using white cotton fabric for bedding. I can't see how that will help keep humidity in. Most folks use aspen or reptile bark. I use the bark. When my snakes are going into shedding I mist down their tanks a couple times then when they turn clear I'll mist down the tanks again and even go as far as getting my snakes out and misting them down as well. They all have great sheds. Also they need something with rough edges to rub on to get the old shed off. They all have at least 2 water bowls as well. Except my python, she has a big water bowl.

I have the screen tops and I cover half of the tops with saran wrap to help keep heat and humidity in.

My little zoo:
1 amel corn
1 ghost corn
1 honduran milk
1 jungle carpet python
4 cats, 2 dogs and 2 baby anole lizards.

Tina-

I'm a novice, but here's my small experience- I got tired of misting endlessly and still getting spotty sheds, a "moist hide" led to a perfect shed first time I used it... if your critters aren't so interested in a damp hide, maybe remove the other hides for a few days, put in two butter tubs w/damp paper towels, one at each end of your tank so they have a choice of temps, then they are almost certain to use them... and if they use them, they are almost certain to have good sheds, at least you will have eliminated moisture as the cause of any poor shedding that still takes place...

Best of luck-