| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| Oh How Original |
Posted - 19/07/2011 : 15:25:50
Well I have a new Royal coming this evening, and I am in a bit of a funny situation.
He is about 680g.. And doesn't look overweight or anything so I will presume of the average length for this size...
I have a RUB set up, and all I can fit in it comfortably, is a water bowl, and a piece of cork bark to hide under.
As it's not the biggest of RUBs 
But I also have a 3x2x2 vivarium, with full ceramics, ready to go, which could fit a lot more in...
Would like some advice on whether people think I should put him in the RUB with not too much room, but essentials... Or go for the 3x2x2 and have plenty of room, better heating and things... But obviously I don't want it to be too big for him.
Need some thoughts as I'm picking him up this evening, but don't have time to go for a bigger RUB or anything as my dads at work until about 6.
Any advice would be good... |
| 11 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| jonoandapril |
Posted - 01/08/2011 : 08:42:41
i always go with the viv option for all mine. if it seems to big you just fill it up with stuff to hide in. taking up the space with dec's is just like having never had the space in the first place i reckon. you could even section off part of the viv if you dont fancy the admin of moving the snake from one habitat to another? |
| anatess |
Posted - 20/07/2011 : 23:54:56
Here's a set-up I used when I first purchased my albino. She did not eat for the 6 months prior to me getting her.
I put her in this tank and she ate 3 days later and has not missed a meal until she hit her 3rd winter.
As you can see, the tank is really cramped with stuff so that she can move from one hide to the other without being exposed from above. Also, I set the hides so it faces the back of the tank for added security. Yes, I didn't see her for a 2 weeks until I ok'd the kids to handle her. So, she was quite boring at first.
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| sandi |
Posted - 20/07/2011 : 20:17:17
Big viv with lots to fill it out. Lets face it, its a big world out there and royals live in this world in the wild, they just choose small homes within it! |
| markmifsud |
Posted - 20/07/2011 : 16:35:29
as long as there are plenty of things to do, climb over, hides etc, make the viv quite busy then your snake will be just fine |
| jhk2005 |
Posted - 20/07/2011 : 16:11:45
I tend to keep all of mine that are between 600gm and 1000gm in 18L rubs and add hides, bowls, decorations as needed to cover the floor, I just add/remove furnishings as needed - it sounds messy and cramped but my snakes appear to settle well and eat well like this.
I know there will always be 2 'camps' of members: those who prefer rubs on one side ; those who prefer vivs on the other, so it really comes down to what you and your snake prefer. The point i'm making is that royals really do seem to adjust better when their enclosure is cluttered and cramped so if you've got plenty of decorations to hand then I cant see why yours wouldn't settle in a 3x2x2. Another member (I can't remember who sorry) made a good point that all the decorations for pet encoslures are mainly for our benefit ; to give us a nice room decoration to look at when our pets are not being interacted with. I agree with that to a point but plenty of decorations will also give your pet plenty of things to investigate and keep as stimulated as it would if living wild.
A trick I have for mine is to buy small pot pourri samples and leave these in the spare room for 1 or 2 days a week to give all mine some new smells to investigate in the air or change the decorations every 3-6mths or so to keep their minds active.
The only thing I would say is that if you opt for the viv then you would definitely need at least 2 hides plus plenty of ground cover ; royals really seem to hate big open spaces and high ceilings so maybe some fake hanging vines will resolve that potential problem 
There are lots of photos of other members who have this type of set-up - could give you some useful ideas when it comes to designing your own 
righty, I think i've hogged this for long enough so I hope this helps u out, i'll shut up rabbiting now!  |
| anatess |
Posted - 19/07/2011 : 16:47:43
Yeah, how small is the RUB?
I currently have a 500g in a 17L size RUB because she's been my problem child. I'm able to fit 2 small hides in there (it's so small that when the snake is in it there is zero space between her entire body and the insides of the hide, but the hide is not lifted off the floor, if you get what I'm saying). She has a smallish water bowl and I added a small piece of rough bark wedged between the hide and water bowl for her to shed on and that's pretty much all that fits in there.
She was in a 4L RUB until she hit 350g because when I moved her up a size, she gets super stressed and stops eating and strikes at anything that casts a shadow... I moved her when it was just almost impossible for her to fit in the RUB, but I kept her small hides. I tried moving her to a 64L size when she hit 500g... no dice. Not even with the same hides and thick foliage.
But, all my other snakes have no problem with the proper viv. I did start all my purchased snakes in a 10g glass tank - really smallish for them until about 2 months of regular feeding then I move them to their proper viv. The ones I hatched myself started off in 4L RUBs.
So yeah, it can be completely up to the snake. But my rule of thumb has always been - better small than big until they have acclimatized and eaten regularly.
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| Jayde |
Posted - 19/07/2011 : 16:39:18
I think pictures of the rub may help |
| reptiledanny |
Posted - 19/07/2011 : 16:23:23
how big is the rub in ltrs????
i put my male in his 3ft viv when he was 550 grams, and he has never refused apart from shed
but since its new, it would already be stressed, and if it is used to being in rubs, it may be even more stressed
i would say the rub, but it depends on how small it is, if you can only fit a water bowl and a piece of cork bark, to me it sounds to small for him, but the water bowl may be very large, and the cork piece may be very large |
| Oh How Original |
Posted - 19/07/2011 : 16:22:09
Might go with that Stephen, and as I'm only just buying it, I don't know how he will react to a bigger viv, but I have plenty of hides, plus the heating should be a lot better than a heat mat.
I will make sure both are set up, and warm, and see what his size is like when he gets here.
I wouldn't want to cramp him up in the RUB, as it is fairly small...
Thanks for the advice both of you :) |
| Kelfezond |
Posted - 19/07/2011 : 16:06:48
680g snake should be fine in a 3x2x2. Anubis was smaller than that when he was introduced to his 3x2x2 and he's never missed a feed. Depends on the snake, put him in and see how it goes if you have trouble move to a rub :) |
| Evolution Morphs |
Posted - 19/07/2011 : 15:52:39
Well if I was you and knowing royals dont like much space I'd go for the rub depending on how many littles it is ?
In a 3 ft viv you may encounter he/she refuses food as she can't settle in a big viv |
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