Reptile & Amphibian Forums

So I adopted a 50/50 banded Cal King from someone who was moving abroad for work. He's in a 10 gallon tank and is about 24", eating one fuzzy twice a week. His tank has a heating pad on one side, nice hide spots, aspen bedding, water dish, climbing tree and a water bowl. This is my first snake but I've been reading up and trying to learn all I can and so far seem to be doing things right. I've had him for about 3 weeks and have a few noob questions you guys can help me with:

1. He spends about half his time hiding/sleeping but the other half *very* active, usually trying to escape (I think). He moves around his cage, climbs up the glass to the top, then falls over and does it again. For hours. He doesn't seem to get the concept of glass. Is this normal and should I be concerned that he might hurt himself?

2. Very rarely he will 'freak out' and go a bit spastic like he gets spooked or something. He'll *run* around his cage extremely quickly for a short time.

3. I've considered getting a larger cage. Although I've read that kings don't need climbing elements, this guy loves his tree. Should I opt for a high tank to give him more things to play on?

4. I inherited some vitamin spray. Does anyone actually use this stuff on their snakes?

Thanks for your advice!

That behavior sounds pretty normal, especially if it's a younger snake. My Cal King, "Nigel" is also very, very active. He plays for hours in his cage, especially when I "rearrange the furniture." You might want to consider giving him some other toys. I bought mine a plasic dog toy called a "Jolly Ball." It's a ball with 4 large holes in it and Nigel thinks it's the most fun when I bury it under the aspen. There was another quite ordinary plastic ball that came with this toy and my king spent hours crawling over it, trying to balance himself on it. Also make sure you make the bedding really deep, between 6 and 12". They love to crawl around in it. You could also take things like the cardboard center of paper towel rolls and bury it in the aspen, Cals love to curl up in that too. The activity of your snake is pretty normal, Nigel greets my husband and I every time we come home and start watching television, no matter what time of day. I've never used a "vitamin spray," but I would recommend a powder called "Reptical." You should also be handeling your snake a few times a week. Also, It's almost always better to feed dead prey than live prey. We buy frozen mice from Petsmart, then thaw them in warm water for about an hour to an hour and a half. Hope this helps! Sounds like you're doing great!

Just caught this reply, thanks for posting.

He's grown a bit though still very active. I made him a little cave under the substrate and he seems to like it a lot. I'll add in some new toys and see how he feels about that.

I've got 46 fuzzies in the freezer courtesy of Cajun Mice, they packed them in bags of 5 for me. Got fed up with Petco because they ran out. Guess frozen mice are that hard to manage. Saved myself a bit of frustration and a bit of money.

Awesome pet.