Reptile & Amphibian Forums

i know lots about reptiles and i have tons of snakes, but i just got a pair of carpets and i wanted to check on a few things...
should i keep them in the same cage together?? they are babies... they get along great and are always wound up together... they are in a 55gallon aquarium right now... and if the answers in no... then how long would it be ok to keep them together???
i heard that these are vary agressive snakes... my babies bite but they only do it for the first few minutes then they chill out and stop biting... they will tame down like any snake right???

i have green tree pythons as well and i am assuming that if i treat them about the same they will be just fine... by saying the same i an meaning temp and humidity and feeding ect...

is their anything i should be cautioned about??

thanks

shiloh

Very strange questions for someone who knows "lots about reptiles" and has "tons of snakes". I would think that you would know better than to keep two snakes together in the same enclose, as doing so creates an environment in which one will seek dominance over the other which subsequently results in unnecessary stress for both of the animals concerned. You shouldn't assume that they "get along great", the "always wound up together" behavior that you make mention of is indicative of the assertion of dominance of one of the snakes over the other. As far as the comment "very aggressive" goes, these snakes are no more aggressive than most species. They may tend to be a bit nippy as juveniles, but that usually passes as the snake gets older. Gaining the snake's trust through a regime of regular, and gentle, handling with also help. Temp and humidity requirements are not necessarily the same as for GTPs. You can find information specific to the husbandry of carpets (hint: you were not very specific as to which species you posses) on any number of websites. Anthony Caponetto’s site is a good place to start: http://www.acreptiles.com/

they are a coastal jungle cross....

i understand thats its not common to keep snakes in the same enclosure... i was asking because the guy that i bought them from breeds then and he keeps all of his in a huge cage from cages by design... and he has..i think about 25...

i have lots of snakes and i understand just about all the tricks and stuff... i just thought i would check on those things before i had an accident...

thanks for the info...

I agree with everything shiveley said. Carpets generally are nippy as youngsters, but almost always calm down with age. Also, a 55 gallon tank is WAY too big. Simply put, there is no need for something that big to house juvenile carpets. It's overkill. They will not feel secure and ultimately just stress them out. If they are babies a rubbermaid, etc. will work great. They also hold humidity much better. Good luck!

I don't know why the 55 would stress them out as baby's as long as there were enough places to hide and they feel secure in other words its not clear glass all the way around, I kept my carpet in a 4 ft by 2 ft by 2 ft custom wood cgae since he was a baby and all that has happen is he has grown imensely fast, Im not saying its what you should do all the time im just stating my experience. Who did you buy your carpets from?
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Pat
1.1 (100% het albino) Retics
1.1 Coastal Carpet Pythons

Yes, different people have had different experiences raising carpets. If you feel the need to house a 30'' carpet in a 55 gal tank so be it. If you kept a carpet in a big enclosure since it was a baby and had no problems, great. I personally won't do it or never will do it. Ask some of the top breeders in the US or generally anyone with any experience and they will tell you as a rule of thumb, not to house juveniles in such a large tank. They don't feel as secure and may also lead to feeding problems no matter how many hides they have. Also it doesn't matter how big the enclosure is carpets won't grow any bigger or smaller. Their growth rate has nothing to do with the size of the enclosure.

I keep all my carpets in large enclosures since babies. Lots of branches, lots of hiding places. I even keep two females together. They both have their own places and rarely cross paths. So all up to what works for you. There are always more than one right way to do things.

i agree their are lots of ways to do things... i have been able to do lots of things with my snakes that people say u cant...

i will do my first feeding on these guys whis weekend and i will see how it goes... if i have eny problems with the feeding i will consider seperating them and a smaller cage...

and of course i will make sure they are not close when i feed them... i dont think i will remove them if they are seperated to each side a 55 gallon tank is kinda big for these guys and i will probably feed them at the exact same time...

but as far as the comment made about a snake not growing more by the size of the cage?????? are u crazy or was that a typo... it has been proven so many time that i cant even count that a snake and any reptile will grow faster and larger if kept in a large tank... not trying to be rude...

tripple h herps for $100 for the pair shipped

....a snakes enclosure doesn't effect it's growth rate at all. Snakes continue to grow to thire adult size regardless of the size of the cage. THIS HAS BEEN PROVEN...not the opposite as you stated.

Do you honestly think that a retic will stay small if kept in a 10 gallon tank forever? No, it will bust the sides out and keep growing. And the same snake is not going to get any larger if kept in a small room for it's entire life. The factors that effect growth rate are genetics, food supply, and metabolic rates, along with temp, and other environemntal factors.....but not cage size.

Ahh, I see you cut and pasted some information from some document you found online. It talks about snake growth, etc. I only saw one thing regarding growth compared to enclosure size. It said snakes may grow easier in a larger enclosure. Doesn't say faster, doesn't say slower. Doesn't prove anything. The snake is still going to grow the same regardless of enclosure size. Maybe easier, but that doesn't mean the snake will grow any bigger, faster, etc.

Of course different people have different ways of doing things. That's what makes the world go round. If you disagree with someone's advice, don't take it. Do whatever you want.