I've been working with reptiles for just over 17 years now and I've had the great blessings of success with a wide variety of species. I can say that my last three years with racers and coachwhips have been some of my most rewarding.

As for caging, I use the old 6' slant-fronted neodesha cages. The tops are almost all screen and several screen vents are on each side. You are spot-on about air flow. My herp room has several ceiling fans and several oscillating floor fans around the room. You can actually feel a light breeze standing anywhere in my room. I have found this greatly benefits all my snakes, but I would say that space and airflow are essential to keeping sight hunters.

I use 5 gallon "rough tote" Rubbermaid boxes filled with moist sphagnum and placed on the cool side. I cut a 3" doorknob hole in one end and twist in a 2' section of corrogated drain pipe to mimic a burrow.

For heat, I use a 30-45 watt spot light to get a 95-ish basking spot. Heat is also essential and I regularly temp gun 100-105 on their body surface! Thanks to the big cage and ventilation, the humid box stays about 75 degrees.

Speaking to your comments about their intelligence: My very long-term female pink and I have a game we play on feeding day. When her meal is thawed, I let her see me approach her cage, which gets her very excited. I open the glass and can literally toss the mice or rats and she will catch them in mid-air. What else is interesting is that she only does this with me. When my wife or brother-in-law feeds her, she does not come out to greed them and would never take the food so eagerly, even when the exact same presentation of food is given. That's creepy smart for a snake. I'm in her small circle of trust, I guess.
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Matt & Nicci Turner
www.selectiveorigins.com
www.bloodpythons.forumotion.com

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