What type of care is needed for a adult spilotes? I want one and just need to make sure I have room and proper care. Thanks! Dave.
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David Hiscock.
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Adult Spilotes care?
crazycorn
Jul 24, 2003 09:48 AM
Replies (3)
bobl
Jul 24, 2003 01:06 PM
Provide a spacious cage with things to climb on and a hide if you wish. My Spilotes prefers to climb and perch rather than stay in the hide, but i offer it anyway and sometimes he uses it. I keep the temps in the mid to high 80's on the warm end of the enclosure and high 70's to low 80's on the cooler end. Mist to keep a moderate level of humidity. I mist mine every other day or every two days unless he's in shed and then I'll spray every day and keep the humidity levels up until the shedding process is finished. I've found that mine doesn't suffer from having a lack of humidity in his enclosure. I use a large ceramic dog bowl for his water and I do see him drinking from it when he's creeping about. I use newspaper for flooring, but others use Cypress mulch with excellent results.
I keep Cribos and the Spilotes and I find that they are very similar in their care requirements with the main differences being that the Spilotes tolerate a bit more heat than the Cribos do and they love to climb. Spilotes are one of the fastest eating snakes I've ever kept and they eat a lot!
I'm sure some of the other Spilotes keepers will offer other tips to help you out.
Good Luck
CrazyCorn
Jul 24, 2003 01:16 PM
n/p
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David Hiscock.
bobl
Jul 24, 2003 01:39 PM
I have mine in a 4 foot Vision cage. It's the taller arboreal cage so he has lots of room to stretch out and to climb when he wants to. That's the smallest size cage I'd house an adult Spilotes in.
These snakes get very long and have decent girth to them as adults so go with the largest/tallest cage you can afford to buy/build and the snake will use EVERY inch of it.
Spilotes aren't like Cribos in that they love to roam about their cages more often than not. I can go a couple of days at a time without seeing any of my Cribos, but the Spilotes is always out and about whether he's basking on a perch or exploring his cage. Their curious nature, beautiful colors, and large size make them one of the best display animals you can keep.
