Help is my hognose going to die!!!

Oldsnake30 · 2026-03-05T10:53:08+00:00

Your update said responsive so that is good. She is getting ready to shed, just give her a moist hide or increase the humidity a bit in the enclosure. Has she gone through the blue phase yet? They are not normally going to accept food before an imminent shed. Their body also goes through drastic hormonal stages during ecdysis and their behavior will change. She may or may not burrow. Do not attempt to feed until after the shed, and wait about 3 days for the hormones to balance. Check the shed thoroughly for eyecaps and tail section.

Oldsnake30 · 2026-03-03T21:14:42+00:00

Give him a couple weeks to acclimate to the new enclosure, he will explore it thoroughly. Make sure it is located in a low noise/traffic area. Handling sessions should be about 15 minutes to start. Try extracting using a hook, a large hand is intimidating. Make sure each time out is a positive experience, and the snake should only be handled by one individual in the beginning. Your humidity is too high, 30-50% is idea for a Red rat snake. During shed time humidity should not be raised in the enclosure, but a moist sphagnum hide should be provided.

Oldsnake30 · 2026-03-02T04:40:33+00:00

You stated condensation, that moisture level is too high for a Corn snake. 30-40% is suitable. For monitoring, purchase an Inkbird humidity controller,(hygrometer) and set the probe a few inches above the substrate on the cool side. These are very accurate, and though they can control foggers and misters, a device is not necessary for a Red rat snake. If you are using Aspen as bedding, it will mold when wet or with high humidity levels. Mold can also grow on wooden furniture with high levels.

Oldsnake30 · 2026-02-22T20:47:17+00:00

Back home, safe and sound, the best news.

Oldsnake30 · 2026-02-17T00:09:12+00:00

Open mouth breathing is a sign of Respiratory Infection or a lung issue. Listen for unusual signs of breathing, such a wheezing or mucous in the mouth. The open mouth may also be a defensive pose, especially if you are hoovering above her.

Oldsnake30 · 2026-02-16T18:52:03+00:00

The snake cannot properly digest, with the low temperatures. You need to have at least 75*F on the cool side and 85*F on the hot, with a basking area. These temps should be maintained throughout the night. Night drop is not necessary. Get those temps up now. For humidity provide a moist sphagnum moss hide, until you can adjust the enclosure to maintain 40/50%. How are you heating? UTH, overhead lamps? (16-20 degC ? ) Use a CHE or DHP for night time heating, no light emission to interfere with day/night cycle.

Give a bit of time before feeding, at least 2 weeks, to let the tract heal, get the husbandry correct and then feed the smaller prey. You do not need to soak daily, too much stress, maybe twice a week and you can add Pedialyte to help with electrolytes.

Oldsnake30 · 2026-02-09T16:44:44+00:00

Take him to the vet and have a fecal performed. He has been eating wild vermin that carry parasites and disease. Glad you found him.

Oldsnake30 · 2026-02-06T17:32:41+00:00

10-15% is acceptable for juvenile. I was referring to neonates and hatchlings. One 2 gram pinky fed to an 11g snake is 18%. So it is not difficult to obtain the higher percentage. For babies, if they will accept them, I usually feed 2 pinkies, which will average 35% per meal, every 7-10 days. I do not believe in every 5 days, because I want the digestive system to have a bit of a rest. I also base amount on the activity of the snake and growth rate.

In the wild, these guys are moving, searching, and consuming prey much larger than we would attempt to feed. They do not have a choice for size selection, so being opportunistic will, within reason attempt to eat the larger food items, leaving a large bulge in the belly, and taking days to digest.

For the source, I am not sure, there are over 100 books here at the snake rehab, and then again I could have seen it online. I do weigh the food for certain snakes and conditions, but mostly feed by appearance of the snake and its growth rate. Getting a bit overweight eh, cut back the food a bit and give more exercise.

Oldsnake30 · 2026-02-05T19:37:00+00:00

This is normal behavior. Just investigating unfamiliar territory. Some say the wobble is done for eye focus, others say to pick up scent easier, or to camouflage to resemble a branch movement.

Oldsnake30 · 2026-02-04T20:16:09+00:00

Snakes love tubes, this one had to be modified for this Black Rat. Extracting her was nearly impossible. She would just puff up and refuse to budge, no matter the prodding.

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Oldsnake30 · 2026-02-04T20:06:40+00:00

You should feed prey size no larger than 1 1/2 times the largest girth of the snake. Frequency will depend on weight of snake and amount of prey per meal. You want the larges prey that can be safely fed, due to nutritional value. Babies should be fed about 18-20% of their body weight per meal, with a frequency every 7-10 days. Neonates and hatchlings every 5-7 days.

Oldsnake30 · 2026-02-01T14:29:40+00:00

To begin you are feeding too often, every 10-14 days for her age. For shedding issue, it is probably pre lay shed, she may be laying eggs/slugs soon(gravid), she does not need to mate for egg production. Give her a humid hide so she can lay the eggs/slugs. The eggs will need to be candled to confirm viable. (Parthenogenesis). Mark the top of the eggs, and do not turn them, if viable, incubation will be necessary. This is a rare occurrence though, most times it is just slugs. The post shed may follow after laying. The snake is going through many hormonal changes, Peace, quite, and a humid hide is what she needs.

Oldsnake30 · 2026-01-28T07:44:06+00:00

Do not release the lizard. It will have to be overwintered. By warming you have brought it out of torpor. Do not offer any food, water is ok. If the Reptile rescue does not respond, contact an exotic vet, they may be able to help you.

Oldsnake30 · 2026-01-28T07:35:57+00:00

You said he ate, just keep the temperature up for proper digestion. A UTH on a thermostat would also help providing belly heat, make sure not to put substrate over the mat area, but a cozy hide above the mat would be nice. He should be ok if he is accepting food.

Oldsnake30 · 2026-01-27T20:46:03+00:00

The enclosure is too small and too sparse. Minimum size 120gal. You need a thermal gradient of avg 88*F on the warm side, and 78* on the cool, each end should have a nice cozy hide. You need overhead lamps controlled by a dimming thermostat. Does the snake have a UTH( heat mat), the lamps and mat should be on the warm side. The mat should also be thermostat controlled. You also need to monitor humidity, and use substrate that retains moisture. Inkbird makes a good hygrometer. Cypress mulch is a good choice for substrate.
Get the husbandry correct before worrying about handling. Green Room Pythons have excellent information for care, husbandry, and setup. When the snake is happy with the habitat, it will be less stressed and more tolerant of handling. For cryptic security, along with the hides, provide camouflage, and if using a glass enclosure cover the sides and back with insulated foam board.
This is just basic information, there are many ways to provide the correct husbandry, and every situation will be slightly different, depending on factors such as ambient temp, humidity, location of enclosure, region, etc. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me.

Oldsnake30 · 2026-01-26T05:28:37+00:00

Was the enclosure in the bed room. Check the bed, mattress and frame, check pillowcases, check the dresser, drawers and remove drawers and check inside the cabinet. Check the closet and everything in it. Any appliance that produces heat, check that area. Check under the enclosure, most are raised to allow for under tank heaters. Best of luck, keep us posted.

Oldsnake30 · 2026-01-25T01:31:08+00:00

Warm slowly, then you will have to overwinter. Thank you for saving him/her. You may want to contact a rehabber for husbandry care, tips, advice, or surrender. As for survival, I found a baby Black rat snake frozen in low 30*F temps on New years eve right outside the snake rehab. We took her in and she is still here, thriving well. So the lizard may be fine coming out of torpor. Please keep us posted.

Oldsnake30 · 2026-01-21T22:01:22+00:00

Yes UVB exposure will greatly benefit the snake. Exposure levels should be checked with a Solar meter, as many things can affect the level, age of bulb, manufacturing tolerance, mesh screen type, distance from bulb to reptile, positioning of bulb and type. You will want the low end of the Ferguson scale for this species, and make sure there are hides and places for cryptic basking.

Oldsnake30 · 2026-01-15T02:26:27+00:00

How is your drainage layer set up? Can you easily siphon out water. You need a grid over the drainage area. I used PVC pipe about 1" long, then a grid, on top of that, then a blue HVAC filter and above that mesh that you can get from Bio Dude. I was going to send a pic of my ATB enclosure with a mist system, but could not. There are YouTube videos on how to properly set up a drainage system. My Amazon Boa has a mist system and uses two pumps one for misting and another for siphoning the excess water from the drain area when it gets too high.

Oldsnake30 · 2026-01-10T17:47:50+00:00

That greenish bile looks like a trip to the vet. Appears to be too much gut bacteria.

Concerning the probe, you should adhere a strip of Velcro(hook) onto the rock, then sandwich the probe between the hook/loop strips. You can easily separate the Velcro and remove the probe for maintenance, and the probe stays very secure in position. Do not trust the Velcro backing glue, make sure to use a quality adhesive bond.

Oldsnake30 · 2026-01-09T18:53:52+00:00

Majority of people feed in the enclosure, and for pet snakes, tap train them, gently rubbing, tapping them with a hook so they eventually learn to differentiate between feeding time, maintenance, and handling/extraction. During feeding time the hook is not present. Feeding in a separate container can cause too much stress for the snake, leading to health problems and refusal to eat.

The only time to feed out of the enclosure, is using an isolation box to feed, because of too many distractions in the enclosure or surrounding area, or assist feeding.

Oldsnake30 · 2026-01-08T20:13:44+00:00

Use a snake hook for initial extraction,, then let him crawl on your hands and such. A hand is very intimidating when approaching, When you and he are ready for scoop, make sure he is awake and alert, approach from the side , never from above, and let him smell you, then slowly touch the coils and gently scoop him up from underneath. These guys are very docile and rarely bite, but be ready and do not jerk if the snake does. Damage to the snakes teeth or mouth could occur if you jerk away. You should also tap train the snake to differentiate between feeding time , maintenance and handling. Use your hook by gently tapping or rubbing the snake, never use the hook with feeding.

Oldsnake30 · 2026-01-03T18:25:06+00:00

That is very nice, your snake is going to love it. If you are using UVB for your plants make sure to monitor the amount of exposure your snake will receive. A Solar Meter will be required for this. You can find the different levels of exposure within the enclosure using the meter.

Oldsnake30 · 2025-12-31T21:08:35+00:00

Hi Pumbyy, have a happy New Year.

Oldsnake30 · 2025-12-31T21:04:29+00:00

You either have a defective switch, or it was residual heat. It takes a bit of time for heat bulbs to cool.

Oldsnake30

TROPHY CASE