Reptile & Amphibian Forums

For the past several years I have been doing brumation the conventional way....meaning, I would lower the temperature slowly and then eventually turning every heat source off followed by covering the entire terrarium with a black cloth or dark plastic tarp. My point is that the honduran remains in its very same cage that it is accustomed to.

My question is, do some of you guys transfer the snake to ANOTHER container (like a large feeder box) with shavings and water... and then store the container somewhere else in the house? It would seem like if you have like more than a dozen or so hondos that need brumation that it will save some space plus you can clean the cages thoroughly during winter. Specifically applied in my case is that all my hondos are in my garage area and I am thinking of building a snake room in there...so it would be a lot easier for me to brumate the hondos in individual plastic feeder boxes and put them all together stacked up...so that when a new snake room is being constructed this winter, they will not be disturbed....is it a good idea to brumate a hondo in a different container?

Or maybe you guys can describe to me how you brumate your milksnakes in terms of equipment and space.

Thanks in advance for your input.
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RAY

First let me say I don't know for sure. That said I _THINK_ that it would probably be a good idea. Just for the reason of not disturbing them in your case. Another kinda obscure thought is that most snakes don't brumate and live in the same area. They do however tend to brumate year after year in the same spot and move to their summer homes that don't change either... normally. A brumation tank might give you better results in the long run.

The easy answer is try it and let us know. I was thinking of doing the same for my snakes this winter or possibly a group here and there. Good Topic

Later Jason

I have always moved my snakes out of their display cages and put them in smaller rubbermaid type enclosures in a closet in a spare bedroom for brumation.

This gives me time to clean their cages thoroughy and its also easier to control the lighting and minimize disturbances.

However, I have a really small collection, so its easy to do that. I suspect the guys with large collections brumate the collection in their normal enclosures.

>>I have always moved my snakes out of their display cages and put them in smaller rubbermaid type enclosures in a closet in a spare bedroom for brumation.
>>
>>This gives me time to clean their cages thoroughy and its also easier to control the lighting and minimize disturbances.
>>
>>However, I have a really small collection, so its easy to do that. I suspect the guys with large collections brumate the collection in their normal enclosures.
>>

So how cool does it get in your closet? I've done kingsnakes in the attic here in Virginia. With the containers sitting on the ceiling "drywall" itself and then covered with a layer of padded envelopes, the temp stayed around 55 degrees.

The house I'm in now has a garage that is not heated, so if I was putting any of my Hondos down for the winter (next year, too young this season) I would come up with some way to do it in the garage with a closed shelf settup and an emergency heater to keep the temps above 50.

Just curious also, what temps do everyone keep their snakes at for brumation?
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"Colubrid-aphilia", adj; An inordinate love of Colubrids.

It doesn't get too cold in the closet. I will crack a window in the room and the temps get in the 60s. That seems to be cold enough for the triangulum I have worked with. Some people say the darkness is more important than the temp, as long as the temp is dropped below normal temps.

I live in Charlotte NC and was also considering using the attic this year because the guest room may be occupied by some guests this holiday season.

You said it only gets in the 50s in your attic up in VA? Is your attic finished with insulation and dry wall or not?

It can still get cold in Charlotte at night during the winter, so I am a little afraid of putting the collection up there.

I chose a spot above the "computer room" and monitored the temps in various places: My attic had the remains of blow-in insulation between the joists, and no drywall or insulation on the roof at all. The heat from the house below combined with the cold of the un-insulated attic made for a steady mid to high 50's combination. I moved what little insulation there was on the floor of the attic and my containers fit perfectly in between the ceiling joists, resting right on the ceiling "drywall". Over the top of the containers I put newspaper and had a ton of fiber padded mailers to provide insulation from the extreme cold of the attic, and at the same time it held in the heat rising from the house below. I had a digital thermometer with a remote probe that read the air temp in the containers and it stayed pretty steadily around 55 - 60. I had some control over it by adding or removing the padded envelopes and leaving a small "vent" that I could cover up or uncover to raise or lower the temps. I was still nervous and checked the temp every time I went down the hallway, but it worked for me.
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"Colubrid-aphilia", adj; An inordinate love of Colubrids.

Thanks for letting me know how you do it. That's exactly what I was thinking of... i mean using the rubbermaid type enclosures for the winter and stacking it up in a corner in the garage. I have a 3-car garage so I can utilize a corner that is not part of the snake room I will be constructing this winter. I do have a fairly large collection of highend hondos but i don't mind the work of putting each one on a different rubbermaid enclosures. But I am glad to know that it does work (at least for someone like yourself).

Anyone else doing the same thing and has not affected the breeding of the milksnakes, especially hondos?

Thanks again.
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RAY

I live in a relatively cold area(Boston)and have brumated many species of milks. I definately use smaller rubbermaids because they are 1)stackable,2)smaller(convenient- a smaller it is the easier it is to control temps)and most importantly 3)to be able to move the males away from the females in situ. I have found that the colder it is the higher the sperm count in NA milks anyway. If the males can still smell females they will be more active in brumation and less aggressive breeders.
The best place I have found is between my bulkhead and the cellar,stacked on the stairs. Under a few feet of ground insulates from freezing temps, and I have the inside door I can adjust(how far open)so if a real cold snap comes in I dont have to move the boxes only open the door to the inside temps. Lastly,I make sure to cover the boxes with a blanket even in the dark. They have to be checked on and this should be done as efficiently as possible. This works for me,Jeff

Thanks Jeff. The relative ease of stacking up is what attracts me the most. What surprises me is the notion that the colder it is the higher the sperm count plus the notion that if the males cannot smell the females, they will be more aggressive when breeding comes. I am going under the assumption that what you mentioned above is in fact true and I will give that a try (separating the males far enough so they cannot smell the females during brumation).

Thanks again for your input.
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RAY

I had a big plywood box, insulated and kept at around 50 deg coldest to as high as 70 during warm spells in Winter (So Cal.)

I put my 3 adult Cal kings in the box each in its own sweater box. Well, the 1st year all 3 snakes got out of their sweaterboxes. I found them during a periodic check in the plywood box. The big male and female were together. The smaller female was on her own. I decided to leave them in there like that until Spring. Just free to roam amongst each other.

They did great, no problems, and bred like crazy. I've kept them together during Winter after that.

In the wild, snakes don't hole up each in its own sweaterbox during Winter. There is movement among individuals and congregating for some of the reproductive adults, though maybe not all. For those that congregate I doubt they are all eating one another.

Just some interesting things to ponder.