| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| oxy10 |
Posted - 14/11/2011 : 15:03:56
Ok here goes. I have a 3x1x1 viv with a 100W red heat lamp. Ive had it set up for a year with two exo terra stick on, strip type thermometers on each end, a couple of inches from the base of the viv. Ive always had a daytime reading of 32/27, night 27/23-24. Everything was fine until a few months ago when my snake stopped eating (usual I know). She went 2 months without taking a feed, then ate twice, without striking, just after leaving the rat in over night, and she's now gone a month without eating again. Anyhow I decided to buy a digital thermo with a temp alarm, just incase the bulb fails without me knowing. I placed the probe inside the hot hide and I was getting about 35C, on top of the hide more like 37.5. Just to check I took the cheap thermometer out of my fridge and that was reading about 39 on top of the hide. My glass strip still reads 32?? SOOOO, do I keep my probe inside my hide or on top. Also could high temps stop my snake from feeding? She does spend every daytime in the cold end (because the hot end has been too hot??) and a great deal of the night time in the cold end. Also should I just totally discount the strip readings on the glass, for example my readings right now at my hot end are :
32.1 digital probe on top of hide
35.0 cheap fridge thermometer on top of hide
24.0 exo terra strip thermometer on glass
Obviously if the strip is correct then im too cold, but surely the strip is the least accurate? Thanks in advance for your time and help!! |
| 13 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| oxy10 |
Posted - 24/11/2011 : 00:00:38
Ahh well, so long as she starts feeding like she used to she can take them however she likes! I hope Ive fixed her with the proper temps and its not jus a coincedence! We'll see in about 8 days or so! |
| n/a |
Posted - 23/11/2011 : 23:52:34
quote:
Originally posted by oxy10
After more than a week of roaming round all night and hanging out of her hide all day I've finally tried feeding. After defrosting her rat I heated its head with a hairdryer, offered her it and nothing, just licking and sniffing for 10 mins. Brained the rat and warmed the head again and got the same result. Tried putting the head in hot water for 10secs and still no strike. After all that I left it ontop of her hide and she went straight to it and began eating. In the past few months she started by refusing food for 2 months, then she ate 2 rats this way without striking, then shes gone 5 weeks without feeding until today. Basically why would she stop striking, I can understand they go off their food for long periods, is this usual though and will she start again??
Lol - they are awkward little gits aren't they? Congrats on the feed by the way. Yeah, my Shahi is usually a strike feeder, but after his fast last winter he took a couple of feeds lying down, so to speak, before revving back up into strike feeder mode. Saada came to me as an adult and I was told that she liked to have the rat left in with her. For a good long while she fed at her leisure, but this summer she's started striking too. So they do change their habits ...maybe just to keep us guessing eh? |
| oxy10 |
Posted - 23/11/2011 : 23:34:50
After more than a week of roaming round all night and hanging out of her hide all day I've finally tried feeding. After defrosting her rat I heated its head with a hairdryer, offered her it and nothing, just licking and sniffing for 10 mins. Brained the rat and warmed the head again and got the same result. Tried putting the head in hot water for 10secs and still no strike. After all that I left it ontop of her hide and she went straight to it and began eating. In the past few months she started by refusing food for 2 months, then she ate 2 rats this way without striking, then shes gone 5 weeks without feeding until today. Basically why would she stop striking, I can understand they go off their food for long periods, is this usual though and will she start again?? |
| oxy10 |
Posted - 17/11/2011 : 00:37:48
Ok so after a couple of days i'm getting 31 - 32 in the daytime and 26.6 - 27 nightime. I've noticed a great change in snakey. She's now spending at least 50% of time in the hot end, as opposed to nearly 100% in the cold end. Shes also out a lot more, within an hour of changing to night temps she was out and she has been for about 4 hours. Bearing in mind I've hardly seen her out for more than half an hour for the past year! Now, hopefully she will start feeding again, I'll keep you informed! |
| boomslang |
Posted - 15/11/2011 : 00:17:13
Yeah i get a temp floor lvl outside hides,as its always lower inside them. |
| Kelfezond |
Posted - 14/11/2011 : 22:26:20
Yeah that's near perfect |
| oxy10 |
Posted - 14/11/2011 : 22:17:37
Bulb is on a 600W dimming stat yes. I've always set the temp using the strips and I think it was set to around 35C. After a day watching I'm getting 31.5 ish at the hot hide on the floor. I haven't tried yet but I'm guessing inside the hide will be a couple of degrees lower, will this be hot enough? |
| boomslang |
Posted - 14/11/2011 : 20:02:24
strip thermometer/stick on dail ones=crap.Stick with a digi one,Is this bulb stated?Also take the reading from the floor. |
| Kelfezond |
Posted - 14/11/2011 : 15:44:49
Yeah thats where mine are :) |
| oxy10 |
Posted - 14/11/2011 : 15:34:52
Im now getting 27.2 on my digital probe on the floor next to the hot hide, aim for 31 there yes? |
| Kelfezond |
Posted - 14/11/2011 : 15:27:05
Yeah ignore the strip.
The hot end wasn't too hot for her, in the wild the temperatures would far exceed that, it just wasn't "ideal". Some of my snakes always sit in the cold end as well I think it just differs from snake to snake. |
| oxy10 |
Posted - 14/11/2011 : 15:16:06
Well Ive just this second took it off the top of the hide as thats directly under the bulb, now its next to the hide covered with some artificial plants. The only reason I thought she could of gone off her food was because she was effectivly trapped in the cold end, the hot end too hot to stay in, and the cold end too cold to help her digest?? Just a thought anyway, I am a noob! So do I ignore the strip saying its now 24 in the hot end? |
| Kelfezond |
Posted - 14/11/2011 : 15:09:44
In my experience digital thermometers are the most accurate, I don't put mine on top of the hide I put it on the ground level in the hot side (not inside a hide though) and get it to about 30-31c. If yours has actually been 35c that's not (in my opinion) too hot to cause her to stop feeding. Sometimes royals just go off food and it's unexplainable, this time of year it's very common. I'd use the digi thermometer and get the temperature right then go back to how you always treat and feed her.
Goodluck! |
