Reptile & Amphibian Forums

My newest, florida kingsnake has passed away...i believe from dehydration, cuz she rarely drank when i offered her water.

-----
-Emily: The snake gal

ah man that king was beautiful. I bet you will miss her. Maybe you can do a good buriel for her. I will miss her to.

I feel bad for your loss. But hopefully you'll figure out why (that way the loss was not in vain). Some obvious things to check: The snake may have not found its' water dish enough times to stay hydrated. Did you have a tall water dish (considering the size of the snake)? If the water dish WAS shallow enough, was it placed in the corner of the enclosure (so the snake could easily find it)? Was the enclosure so large that encounters between snake and water dish were a rare occurence?
I lost a snake that way once (dehydration) and believe it was because the water dish was too tall to be easily located by the little snake I had. Remember, as harsch as it may sound, reptiles are not much smarter than fish; They act only on instinct and ARE pretty brainless for the most part! So snakes not finding their water bowl in their own cages can and does happen! In order to prevent that, use shallow bowls, place them in the corner AND check on your snakes more often, cause once it's dehydrated it may loose interest in drinking altogether (even though it's still alive).

Zee
-----
"I am an expert on everything, but I know so little and have so much to learn!" -Carsten "Zee" Zoldy-

Thanks alot for the reply! Yes, my snake often found it's water bowl, and i even offered it water in my hands aswell...how she actually drank in the first place. She was a beautiful snake, too bad she didn't drink much.
-Emily the snake gal

-----
-Emily: The snake gal

What I mean is, that not all snakes are born perfect. Some have internal problems and are programmed to die. You may have received a bad animal, which is not necessarily the breeders' fault, since nobody can really see the inside of a baby snake. I've been breeding snakes for a loooong time and I get "lemons" every now and then. I got another one this year when I bred my golden cornsnake and she had 13 babies. One absolutely refused to eat and eventually died even after providing it with simulated "wild" conditions and offering all kinds of different meals at different times of the day and different temperatures and etc. etc. So this is unfortunate, but may not be anyone's fault. You may even receive another snake from the breeder if he's convinced that you did all the right things for your animal while in your care. Most breeders would - I know I would AND have done so in the past.

Zee
-----
"I am an expert on everything, but I know so little and have so much to learn!" -Carsten "Zee" Zoldy-

Thanks for the interesting thoughts about water dishes. I bought both of my snakes with a little size on them, so I never thought about them not being able to "find" their water dishes. Why does putting the dish in the corner help?

Bill
-----
It's not how many snakes you have. It's how happy and healthy you can keep them.

Dear Bill, most snakes will "cruise" the perimeter of their enclosure, and that will cause them to encounter a water source placed stratgegically in the corner. I have seen some nifty corner type (a 90 shape) water bowls, simulated rock, that might work well for you is you want aesthetic appearance. I have become a big believer in providing a humidity box, just a piece of PVC pipe with a cap and a damp sponge shoved inside or a plactic shoe box with moss inside, etc. I find my neonates (kingsnakes and others)spend a fair amount of time in them, they stay hydrated, can drink droplets, and shedding goes well. I was formerly concerned about skin infections due to moisture, but they have the choice to get out and stay dry, which they do, so skin blisters etc. have not been an issue. Good luck, Vic

I've only had snakes for two months, but I'm a big fan of the corner dishes sold by Flukers. I have an extra large size corner dish on the warm side of each of my enclosures. I have a large size regular dish at the cool end of each of my cages. I've seen both of my snakes in both of their dishes in their respective cages, so I know that they've found them. Your post helps me understand a possible reason why my snakes were able to find them easily. My python often uses the overhanging lip on the dish on the cool side as an extra hide.

I've made attempts at humidity boxes but had no success so far. I've used ceramic soup bowls with plastic lids and cut holes in the lids. I filled the bowls with moss to hold humidity. For whatever reason, neither of my snakes were comfortable with this setup. I never saw either of them go inside. I'm still looking for another idea to try. I'd prefer something opaque to give a more hidden feel. Most of the plastic pieces that I've seen are transparent and wouldn't be dark.

Thanks,

Bill
-----
It's not how many snakes you have. It's how happy and healthy you can keep them.

to the guy asking about an "opaque" humid hide, you can use empty tubs of butter or yogurt. Country Croc has a brown one so that could work. Put the sphagnum moss or whatever then putthe top on it and turn it up side down, cut a whole in the side alittle bit off the ground and there you go.

She was remarkably beautiful. You have my condolences.

Bill
-----
It's not how many snakes you have. It's how happy and healthy you can keep them.