Epicrates cenchria

[CWilson13]

Everything is ordered and aside from the 8-10 week possible wait :-x for the cage, I should be starting on getting her moved soon. I am going to be setting up the new thermostat as soon as it arrives, which means more info for everyone on the proportional thermostats Also getting a radiant heat panel so once she is moved I will have a fully equipped 40 gallon breeder tank just sitting around...Right about the same time the Expos hit the North East... :muhaha: Wife already knows she is doomed :coverlaugh:

 

[JessJohnson87]

Glad she is more accepting of having another reptile in the house! My husband said 2 geckos were enough....but I just got a bigger rack today that can fit 2 exo-terra type tanks on the bottom shelf :evil:

Sucks that the tank is going to take so long to get there, fingers crossed that it won't.

 

[CWilson13]

She isn't so much accepting as she is resigned. At least until she sees the expos lol Yeah, worst part, not even an hour after ordering I saw 2 6ft Vision Cages on Craigslist. Guy never replied though, made it less stressful. I'm hoping the manufacture and deliver aren't that long, but so far with all the extras I've put into the 40 being good for her, at least she has a decent home for now.
Nice work on the shelf! I'm pretty sure you will convince him to change his mind

 

[amsdadtodd]

Nice work on the shelf! I'm pretty sure you will convince him to change his mind

If he can't be convinced, then it's just a matter of waiting for the next deployment, LOL! Seriously though, I hope you can put that extra rack space to good use!

Todd

 

[JessJohnson87]

It's going to be a few years before he deploys again. I have put the extra space to good use, feeder insects are on the top shelf, Ziggy on the middle and the bottom is the 18x18x24 and the tub with Axel in it. It was a 4 tier wire shelf but I didn't put the 4th self in because I ran out of room.

I always hate when you order something and then find it somewhere else for a really good deal, lets hope they don't respond to you because that would be too hard to pass up!

 

[CWilson13]

Yeah, two 6ft visions for $400 would not be passed up regardless. The cheapest model that is 6ft long directly from the company runs around $440. For what the guy wanted Id buy them for after we move back West.
Something like those would be better for a bigger constrictor anyway.
My wife has been telling me no more since Apollo first came home. We have seen how well that has turned out. I almost agree with her though, just because of said eventual relocation. Maybe that is what your husband is waiting for too?

 

[JessJohnson87]

No he just said we already have a zoo. I'm prepared to move with the geckos, I can use storage tubs for the drive and just pack the cages up with the rest of our stuff. He's still debating on staying in or getting out of the Navy next year so I'm not sure what we're going to do if he decides to get out.

2 6ft long cages for $400? Um....I'd take it....

 

[amsdadtodd]

He's still debating on staying in or getting out of the Navy next year so I'm not sure what we're going to do if he decides to get out.

Tough choice to make at any point in ones career. I left active duty in 1989 and spent several years second guessing myself, despite having a successful civilian career. The last couple years have been filled with retirements for many guys who made second and first class the same time I did, retiring as Master Chiefs, and even a couple Lt Commanders. Each of these guys told me quietly that if they had it to do over again, they would have left when I did. One of my closest friends over the years literally had divorce papers he'd been served with in one hand, and retirement papers in the other. He's still married. I was surprised, to say the least, given the success of such a career. But it just shows how difficult a decision that is to make. I hope you and your husband make it very carefully.

Your leo's will make the transition either way, much more easily than you and he will!

Todd

 

[Elizabeth Freer]

Cory ~

Might you be returning to Seattle one day?

 

[CWilson13]

Cory ~

Might you be returning to Seattle one day?

We have been considering Seattle, amongst other places. So far though, the Reptile related laws of Washington state have been somewhat of an issue. Much less keeper friendly than when I was there.
Our move is still a couple years away though and we have many factors that will be a part of our decision. Top priority being quality schools for our children. Definitely one thing my old stomping grounds has plenty of

 

[Elizabeth Freer]

I understand, Cory. Quality education for our youth is sooooooo important!

Keeping our hobbies alive is a welcome bonus. :biggrin:

 

[CWilson13]

Quick update for Pandora, she is up to 126 grams now. Still tough to get an accurate length on her sadly. She is very mobile when she comes out. Also because I woke her up early, she was a bit cranky and curled around my thumb. Still no strikes though

 

[CWilson13]

So, I got both the new thermostat and RHP (radiant Heat Panel) for her new cage. Yet I still have over a month to wait before the cage itself will arrive. I was actually surprised at just how quickly both came though. It took only 3 days for the Thermostat, and another 3 days for the RHP.
In actual news for Pandora, she finally got to eat her first rat on Saturday. The family and I went down to RI and met Todd at Pure Paradise Pets, if you're reading this it really was great meeting and chatting with you Todd Great guys at the store, and some really great deals on things I will be needing once the new cage is here. Back to Pandora though, sadly I decided to go on a day when they were out of most feeders. I was able to get one rat pup for her though. On the way back up here we decided to stop at Cold Blooded pets as well and ended up buying about 20 rat pinkies for her. Well, given that the pinks were somewhat small, I took 2 out to thaw and when the time came to feed her, she was very enthusiastic about her strike. So much that she actually missed for the first time. She nailed the pink HARD the 2nd time though. About 20min later when I tried to give her the last one she decided to be a brat though. Grabbed it, constricted, and then sat there with it :coverlaugh: took her a good 5min to actually start to eat it. After the last one she was very active, almost like she was looking for a 3rd. I am hoping that she gains some weight with these since the mice were not adding more than a couple of grams each month. Given her approximate age and length she is a tiny bit underweight.

 

[amsdadtodd]

Cory, it was great to meet you and your family also! I'm sorry they were so short on feeders, that is usually not the case at all.
I've found with my boa's that when they miss a first strike, the second is very hard and the feeding goes very fast. I would caution against feeding more than one item though. I've been told this can prolong the feeding response, keeping the snake in an aggressive mode for longer than necessary. The convention is to feed one of the largest prey items the snake can handle at each feeding.
Rats do seem to be more nutritious than mice, my guys have been growing much faster since they graduated to them!

 

[CWilson13]

Nothing to apologize for Todd! It seems that my luck involving my first visits end up with a lack of feeders haha. First trip to Cold Blooded was the same.
Normally I would have just fed her the rat pup I got at PPP, but when I got home and was able to check, it was slightly larger than the adult mouse I still had for her. When I fed her the first adult mouse I had noticed how large her stomach grew. Normally that wouldn't worry me, but Pandora loves to bury herself in her mossy hide box after eating and the openings for it were made when she was smaller. I now have a new box to make for her and will be making larger openings. Once that is made and I can replace the one she is currently hiding in, she will definitely be going back to one at a time feedings. The other reason she got 2 pinks was because she has been behaving like she was very hungry lately. I am hoping that she will go to once a week instead of every other week once the last adult mouse and rat pup are gone. Considering how small the pinks are, I think she will take to it fairly well.
I'm glad you mentioned the one large feeder vs. multiple smaller ones also. That is somewhat of a hot topic among snake keepers. I am much like you in preferring to feed a single large one category. For the exact same reason you mentioned. The hunting instinct remains for longer if they are not given something filling the first time. This was something i noticed when I had Drake, my Red Tail. He was only given two small rats a couple times while I had him, once when I was new to caring for a constrictor on my own, the other because he had not eaten in 3 months and I couldn't find any frozen larges. Any other time, he was given a single large or extra large rat.
Between everybody here and the two breeders I speak to about her particular species, I think I have some of the best support possible to give her a very long and healthy life. Not to mention all the research I have done separate on my own... I swear I have at least 10 different care sheets and another 10 bookmarks regarding these beauties lol

 

[CWilson13]

Just re-read my last post. By no means did I intend to sound like I was going to feed both the adult mouse and rat pup at once. I only meant that those two are going to be next in line after she is done digesting her currently full belly. Once she emerges from her mossy box I will be replacing it with the new one. Hopefully she won't defecate in the new one either... :scratchhead:

 

[CWilson13]

Change of plans regarding her new Moss box. That is going to wait until her new cage arrives. I am currently on the hunt for anything that can go around the sides of a sterilite container and not fall off from high humidity. So far I haven't found anything on my own

Also after her last meal of two rat pinks, she decided to hide from us for well over a week. Had I not checked regularly for messes to clean up and water changes, I might have though she escaped :coverlaugh: Finally last night I had to clean and refresh her Moss so she came out. Between that and the last time she was out she now has the nickname of Miss Grump. Got all huffy at me until she was in my hand and then right back to her usual curious and active self. Woke up this morning to her third perfect shed :yahoo: even got some photos of it. Of course the brat went right back into her Moss after though lol I had to wiggle a marker down the front of the shed to show off the eye caps, hopefully the photos turned out well.

 

[amsdadtodd]

I've found that Gorilla duct tape withstands the humidity pretty well. I use it to keep my thermostat and thermometer probe wires snug to the glass on the bottom and sides of the tank.

Nice clean shed. My boys both shed the other day, it was unusual because I had never seen their eyes cloud over this time. Their skins were getting that dusky, pre-shed coloring, but I had no idea it was coming and was surprised to see both of the shed skins that morning.

 

[JessJohnson87]

Happy belated birthday Todd!

Are you trying to cover the sides of the container? Silicone and great stuff foam holds up to humidity pretty well to. My background has not fallen off of the Zoo Med tank yet.

 

[CWilson13]

I might try the tape, thanks Todd! Her new box is a bit too big for the 40 gallon so this is a good excuse to keep it out of there until the APCage comes. Her shed was surprising to me too, since she was in her box I never really saw her get all cloudy. Each shed has just boosted my confidence in her husbandry, primarily the humidity levels. Her species is so reliant on high humidity and the clean sheds are the best indicator of if it is high enough or not.
I also double checked that rat pup I got from PPP, that thing is a little bigger than I thought. I had her in one hand and the pup in the other and I am definitely going to wait a bit for her to grow before giving it to her. The adult mouse and rat pinks will be enough for now I believe.

Yeah, mostly covering the sides and top Jess. It is a little bigger than a shoebox sized container. I actually had thought about the great stuff insulation foam, but I didn't want to enlarge to box too much since I know how much expanding that stuff does. I used it to seal up some holes under our heaters on the floor. Easy to overdo it lol Once the new cage arrives and gets assembled I will look back into that along with the gorilla tape. I really want her new home to be functional and appealing to look at.