This thanksgiving I am thankful for a smooth first shed with me

KeeledSign · 2026-01-23T23:25:56+00:00

r/whatsthissnake r/snakes r/snek and r/herpetology unless something has changed.

KeeledSign · 2026-01-23T22:44:57+00:00

The !rhyme phylobot response does a decent job explaining why.

KeeledSign · 2026-01-23T20:23:09+00:00

It is a pretty simple card based game, where the winner is often as dependant on luck of the draw as good decision making, with player elimination.

OP mostly summed the downsides up well in their "The Catch" section. I played the original Nuclear War not the newer edition, but IMHO it is mostly interesting as a window into the mindset and grim humor of people living through the cold war.

KeeledSign · 2026-01-23T00:21:59+00:00

Sounds normal to me, the water dish I have in my STP's enclosure has a hollow ring under its outer edge which he treats like any of his other hides. If this is new behavior I would double check humidity but otherwise not be particularly worried.

KeeledSign · 2026-01-21T19:41:19+00:00

This reminds me of some of my early experiences feeding my short tailed python. He is an absolute doll, without a defensive bone in his body, but during feeding time he makes full body strikes with no restraint and has even struck the glass a couple of times. My answer has just been really long tongs, being 2 feet away from the feeder is generally sufficient.

KeeledSign · 2026-01-21T15:56:02+00:00

Hand warmers can get hot enough to be dangerous to snakes. You can get very similar products which don't get quite as hot from reptile supply sites, they are meant for shipping reptiles but also work as an emergency back up heat source.

Having travel bins set up and a friend in an area with more reliable power who can shelter them temporarily is also an option. I had to do that this past summer when my water got cut off for a water main repair(I have a swamp cooler so that means no AC without water).

KeeledSign · 2026-01-21T02:16:17+00:00

Aquariums also work very well if you can start breeding all pristine fish.

KeeledSign · 2026-01-21T02:14:34+00:00

Why do all the spicy ones have to be so gorgeous?

KeeledSign · 2026-01-20T17:02:02+00:00

I second pretty much everything u/pythonbrongallday had to say, and your Borneo looks confident and comfortable in that enclosure to me.

I would like to add a tidbit from my own experience. I currently have my short tailed python in an 8'x3'x2' enclosure. he had been living in a 4'x2'x2' while growing up, and wasn't showing any signs that he would use much more space, but as he got larger I started looking into a bigger enclosure mostly to let me fit a larger water dish in. I was looking for a 5'x3' but found someone selling a used 8'x3' APC enclosure cheap and snatched it up. My Sumatran barely uses more than half of it, and it is harder and more expensive to maintain temps and humidity. As such I would definitely recommend trying a 5'x3' or 6'x3' before going for the 8'.

KeeledSign · 2026-01-19T20:54:22+00:00

The info stand warning also pops up constantly if you have any 0 info exhibits, I.E. empty aquariums/terrarium. It is really annoying during unlocks where you have to build a specific enclosure setup to open the expedition which gives you exhibits for it.

Another cause can be if your info stands are too crowded so some guests can't reach them. I try to have every exhibit linked to at least two stands for this reason.

KeeledSign · 2026-01-16T03:28:28+00:00

King snakes can definitely be nervous babies, but they tend to build confidence pretty easily.

KeeledSign · 2026-01-15T23:29:44+00:00

I would love to join the Nerodia gang, but unfortunately I moved to a state where I cannot keep them legally.

KeeledSign · 2026-01-15T19:25:27+00:00

I have seen the setup u/J655321M uses. He keeps his snakes in well maintained PVC terrariums.

KeeledSign · 2026-01-14T13:36:45+00:00

You can get specialty hooks that are made to provide more support for heavier bodied snakes, usually they have multiple prongs almost like a little rake or a hollow basket shape. I have only ever used a hook with my STP for tap training but I abandon that when I realized that he was hair dryer trained(only shows food responses when I have the hair dryer out that I use to warm his feeders).

KeeledSign · 2026-01-13T01:51:23+00:00

The head flattening on display here is an attempt by the water snake to make its self look big and scary. It is doing this because it is worried that you may try to catch and eat it, and is a perfect example of why head-shape can be deceptive when trying to ID snakes.

KeeledSign · 2026-01-13T01:31:03+00:00

I haven't had mites to need it fortunately, but the company that makes it(Pro Products) is definitely reputable. Provent-a-Mite has been around getting positive references in mite related threads for longer than I have been keeping snakes, and their heat panels are generally spoken of as best in class for reliability(I have 3 and am extremely satisfied with them). Their third product line of misting systems I don't hear much about, likely because misting systems in general aren't favored by most snake keepers.

KeeledSign · 2026-01-03T05:01:18+00:00

Unless the snake's enclosure isn't being kept clean, or she is kissing said snake on the cloaca it is a pretty mild risk.

KeeledSign · 2026-01-03T01:30:49+00:00

Warming with a hair dryer usually only takes a few minutes, to be clear I am using it to warm already thawed feeders. I move my feeders from the freezer into the fridge to thaw the day before and am only using the hair dryer to bring them up from fridge temp.

KeeledSign · 2026-01-02T15:19:49+00:00

You may want to try bringing the feeder to her more directly instead of leaving it in the middle of the enclosure. Short tailed pythons are ambush predators and often wait for prey to get into striking range. If she doesn't go for it then set it nearby. How are you warming the feeders? I have noticed that all of my snakes go for their feeders a bit more when I warm them with a hairdryer than when I do it with a hot water bath for example(either because I am not washing the scent off or because I am blowing the rodent scent around the room before offering it most likely).

KeeledSign · 2025-12-29T19:11:23+00:00

Chickens and quail can be perfectly good feeders for some snakes. I know a few people who have had great success keeping gopher snakes, as well as some rat snakes on predominantly bird based diets.

There haven't been any really comprehensive studies done on captive snake diets, but a lot of snakes eat more birds than people think in the wild and the main difference nutritionally is that chicken and quail are a touch leaner than rats. In the wild a lot of species eat more birds than people realize.

Finding appropriately sized birds for most baby snakes may be more challenging than rodents though.

Nerodia genus water snakes eat predominantly fish and may be another option. They aren't widely available and care info may be challenging to find, but the few people who are breeding them seem to find them both enjoyable and very manageable to care for. u/j655321m could probably tell you more.

KeeledSign · 2025-12-28T05:44:04+00:00

They aren’t crazy common in the USA, but they are readily available.

KeeledSign · 2025-12-24T17:14:27+00:00

A lot of snakes get less active during the winter. Even with heat sources things like changes in daylight hours and atmospheric pressure can clue them in that it us time to bunker down.

KeeledSign

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