My first snake

[tinkertoy]

I plan on getting a pet cornsnake soon and this being my first reptile i was wondering if you guys could help me out a bit. I've got a 55gal tank and i was wondering what type of heating i should use in tank /under tank heating pads or the heat lamp thing i know that i shouldnt hot rocks cause the snake would burn it self.I've read stuff thats said that ceder and pine are bad for snakes so what would make good bedding.I need all the info and help i can get. Do u think a 55gal tank will be big enough for when he starts growing right now he's 4 months old and not very large.

[I_Love_Iggy]

First you might have to consider getting a tub or a 10 gallon for him untill he gets bigger. 55 Gal is WAY too big for a baby. Shell stress out if she doesent have enough places to hide. Little corns are notorious escape artists as well. make sure your top is escape proof. Be carefull with screen tops since snakes like to rub their snout on it and that can cause damage. Id love to talk to you about corn care. I have msn live. so i can message people on yahoo messenger. Can i message you?

*edit* Also the best method of heating many people i know and also myself find best for snake is underbelly heating. You can buy a sunbeam "Human heat pad", make sure it doesent have an automatic shut off. Their the best and dont tend to overheat like those exo-terra things you get at petstores. Id make sure you have a ditigal thermometer with a probe so you could monitor the temperature on both sides of the tank and for substrate we use newspaper,papers towel and if you want something aeasthetically pleasing you can use Aspen bedding. Pine and such can be deadly because of the Phenols in it. Aspen does not have Phenols and is perfectly safe. For temperatures you should have on the warm side 85-90 F and on the cool side around 80F maybe even a bit lower. During the night it can go down safely to 70-65 F

[liz4277]

Corn snakes are relatively small, and as such, they do not require large enclosures. A baby corn snake can happily live in a ten gallon aquarium or enclosure of similar size. Upon reaching full adult size (about three to four years), a corn snake will require an enclosure with the minimum dimensions of a standard twenty gallon long aquarium. Larger aquariums such as a thirty gallon breeder or fifty-five gallon tank are also appropriate. No matter whether your corn snake lives in a humble home or a palace, there are several important details to keep in mind when setting up your new pet. For Bedding: There are appropriate and not so appropriate choices of substrate in corn snake housing. Cedar shavings are unacceptable as they cause respiratory problems in snakes. I personally do not recommend pine for the same reason, but others have used this substrate without any problems. Corn cob bedding (manufactured for use with birds) should not be used as a substrate because it causes excessive drying of dermal tissues and can cause serious intestinal blockage if swallowed. Acceptable substrates include reptile bark; butcher paper, paper towels and Astroturf. Reptile bark can be purchased in pet stores, and is attractive and natural-looking. Butcher paper can be acquired in many places such as home depot or art supply stores. This substrate, while not particularly attractive, allows one to keep the cage very clean by continuously replacing the soiled paper. Paper towels have the same advantages and disadvantages of butcher paper. Astroturf can be used, but it does tend to rot easily if wetted, so it is best to have several pieces cut to fit the cage so you can rotate dirty and clean pieces. If the tank has a screen top, a shop light or metal reflector may be placed on top of the cage, to one side, with a heating bulb inside to create a basking area of 80-85 degrees F. Another method of heating is the use of quality under tank heating pads. Under tank heaters are plastic with one adhesive side. The adhesive side of the heater is used to attach it to the bottom of the outside of the tank, on one side of the cage. These heaters can only be used with certain types of cages, so check the directions before purchase. Hot rocks are not recommended for corn snake heating for several reasons.