Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hi, I have not yet paired my ATB's, as the female is new, so it will be a while, but i'm curious what type of setups you all use for babies. Working with reptiles, as I do, I take a bit of issue with the use of these water setups, so I was wondering if someone can enlighten me as to either the safety of such a setup, or preferences for alternative means of setup.

Something about a tree boa sitting over a pool of water brings up ideas of drowning (with babies of course), too much humidity (proper ventillation is obviously a must), and frequent water changes to prevent scum, fungus, disease, etc. Another concern is skin blisters due to too much moisture???

Any input from experienced keepers would be greatly appreciated.

thank you!

Freight

I like rubbermaid/sterilite setups. They are lightweight, easy to heat, hold humidity well and are cheap and stackable. I use newspaper as a substrate due to the amount of cleanup they require. Much easier to simply replace compared to spot cleaning cypress mulch (which I have used successfully as well). I have never used a water substrate and personally do not think it's necessary with ATB's. If I were to use it though, I would definitely put some sort of plastic egg crate or mesh over it. Here's a pic of my new neonate black garden in his 19 qt. rubbermaid enclosure. I just started using these particular rubbermaids and really like them because they have a lip around the outside that is accesible to very small ATB's and also allows perches to be placed horizontally across the top of the enclosure without any drilling or additional perch supports.

>>Hi, I have not yet paired my ATB's, as the female is new, so it will be a while, but i'm curious what type of setups you all use for babies. Working with reptiles, as I do, I take a bit of issue with the use of these water setups, so I was wondering if someone can enlighten me as to either the safety of such a setup, or preferences for alternative means of setup.
>>
>>Something about a tree boa sitting over a pool of water brings up ideas of drowning (with babies of course), too much humidity (proper ventillation is obviously a must), and frequent water changes to prevent scum, fungus, disease, etc. Another concern is skin blisters due to too much moisture???
>>
>>Any input from experienced keepers would be greatly appreciated.
>>
>>thank you!
>>
>>Freight

Well, you've confirmed my suspicions that a water setup is unnecessary. It just doesn't seem right to me to take the risk with a baby. Too many things can go wrong.

I was figuring on a setup like yours with a small humidity box filled with cypress, and a water bowl, and branches, and a plant. Simple but effective.

By the way, that snake in the pic is beautiful! Looks like a halloween? Very nice! Halloweens and dark phase ATB's are truely my favorites. Maybe between my dark garden female, and my orange/green calico male we can get some sort of halloweenish babies? Who knows, but we'll see soon.

Are there any particular tricks to induce mating, or is it just up to them once they are paired? Some of my other arboreals are stimulated by extra spraying to mimic the rainy season, so I was wondering if anything like this helps?

Thanx

Freight

Thanks for the compliment. I am looking forward to watching him grow up and see how he turns out. Of course, I am hoping for a very black animal with contrasting white markings.....we'll see. As far as your set up, I don't think you will even a need a humidity box. Depending on where you live and what your ambient rh is, you probably only have to mist appropriately to keep your humidity up around 70%. That's one of the great things about these types of enclosures is that they hold humidity really well. As far as breeding goes, I am no expert, but from what I understand this time of year let the temps drop to low 70's at night and mist heavily, especially in the mornings. I had a pair many years ago that showed breeding activity around the end of January but I got rid of them before I ever knew if it "took". I am doing the same thing with my green patternless male and my yellow female now, so we'll see what happens in the next few months. So far, nothing......

Oh yeah, here's a pic with some of my ATB setups in my herp room. Good luck! Billy

>>Well, you've confirmed my suspicions that a water setup is unnecessary. It just doesn't seem right to me to take the risk with a baby. Too many things can go wrong.
>>
>>I was figuring on a setup like yours with a small humidity box filled with cypress, and a water bowl, and branches, and a plant. Simple but effective.
>>
>>By the way, that snake in the pic is beautiful! Looks like a halloween? Very nice! Halloweens and dark phase ATB's are truely my favorites. Maybe between my dark garden female, and my orange/green calico male we can get some sort of halloweenish babies? Who knows, but we'll see soon.
>>
>>Are there any particular tricks to induce mating, or is it just up to them once they are paired? Some of my other arboreals are stimulated by extra spraying to mimic the rainy season, so I was wondering if anything like this helps?
>>
>>Thanx
>>
>>Freight

>>>>