Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hey all,

I have 2 monitors, and my wife and I were thinking of getting a corn snake.

All answers ( bland or detailed ) are appreciated.

What is a good basking tempurature for the hot spot? ( For my BTMs its 130 - 135 )

Humidity?

Read ambient should be 80 - 85º on average.

Read that handling after eating is bad. How often is too often?

Do they have a milder temperment around humans as a whole, or is this like the monitors where it all depends on the snake's own personality and how often they're handled?

Thanks,
~GK

Better topic.

ok here is how mine are set up.....
i have 2 snakes, 2 seperate enclosures(if one snake becomes sick with 2 in a cage you wont have any idea which one is the sick one)
one lives in a 20 gallon long aquarium, the other in a reptile enclosure...measures the same as a 20 long.
for heat i have under tank heaters on one side, i do supply basking lights, but they are low wattages, the "hot" side will do fine at 80 to 82 degrees, the cooler side around 72....
i have 2 hides one in the warm side and one in the cooler side.
substrate i use aspen(pine and cedar can cause respiratory problems)
i also have a branch in each tank one snake never goes around it, the other always hides under hers during the night.
also a water dish the snake can fit into.
i know i probably got the exact temps off but thats whats working for me.

i house 2 of mine in 20 gallon longs and 1 in a 40 gallon breeder (he is a ghost and is constantly on the move so wanted to give him more room). babies, however, don't need or like that much room. you can start them out in 10 gallon tanks. a SECURE LID IS A MUST! they can squeeze out of anything you wouldn't think they could.

basically provide warm side, cooler side, couple of hiding areas (nothing big. they like to just squeeze in to them) water bowls. i have UTH's on 2 of mine and my ghost in the 40 gallon tank has a 60 wt light for heat. that is all. we live in the desert southwest so don't need to much supplemental heating. my temps are in the 80 degree range. i have 1 corn that loves her UTH and my ghost corn that could care less about heat.

babies normally eat every 5-7 days. older ones can eat once a week to 10 days or so. best to wait 24-48 hours after eating to handle. frozen/thawed...f/t...is best to feed them. most will take to f/t. just warm up completely before offering to snake. if they don't show interest, i just wiggle the meal a bit and they go for it.

best to give any newcomer a settleing in period before handling. kathy love's book on corn snakes is great for anyone wanting to get a corn or has a corn.

hope you enjoy and once you get one you will want more.

Care for corns is easy. Heat between, 85-88 hot said, lower end is better IMO, and 73-77 on hot side. Fresh water daily, feed weekly, clean cage everyday. I use Aspen and newspaper, give them plenty of hides, something to climb on(optional) and enjoy

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0.1 Albino Cal. King (Fokker)
)
1.0 Reverse Okeetee Corn (trouble)

0.0.2 Anery (Thanks Jimmy)(Frodo, and Sam Wise)
1.2 Dogs(2 Boxers, Cookie and Joe, Lhasa Apso, George)
1.0 Betta
0.1 Wife
0.1 Kid