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Colin S
Yearling
United Kingdom
148 Posts |
 Posted - 01/02/2009 : 20:46:21
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Hi everyone,
the wolf suggested this one and I agree.
After lots of research I decided to invest in a female Royal Python.
I went to see the breeder last night and fell in love with a natural royal. Her markings are lighter than usual and her head is more pastel.
After looking on various web sites and talking to john the breeder, I decided to place the heat mat on the rear side instead of the floor of the viv. This was after a horror story he told me when a Royal managed to burrow through the sub and whilst laying on the mat, burnt her belly. He told me that as long as the mat is at ground level with the snake it would be ok. I took his advice as well as that of the chairman of the Portsmouth Reptile and Amphibian Society.
I have also two thermometers. One at the cold end and one at the hot end. This will help me get a decent reading for both areas. John stated that it takes a bit of tweeking on the stat to get it right.
I feel quite confident that I have got the set up right with two hides as well, one at either end.
It has been a steep learning curve and I hope that this may help other first timers. |
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dazb
Royal Python Moderator
United Kingdom
2847 Posts |
Posted - 01/02/2009 : 20:59:55
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sounds like your all ready to go...
i have heard of mats being put on the rear walls before but never really worked out how this works, since they cannot lay on the hot spot that they create.
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wolfspirit
Old Royal - I Post too much!
United Kingdom
5741 Posts |
Posted - 01/02/2009 : 21:01:18
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Hi Colin, how big is your viv? and what are you using to heat your viv? a heat mat on its own wont be enough i dont think.
was the royal an adult and was the mat unstatted>? I never had a problem with my royal on a mat, but he is only a baby so does not have the weight of an adult and also i read somewhere it is not recommended to use mats with adult royals anyway. Someone wiser and more experienced will fill you in more than i can..lol..
I know it means paying out more, but i have recently switched to using a ceramic bulb with a bulb guard and the temps are nice throughout the viv, still allowing for a warm and cooler end as well,
if your not using a ceramic, you will need the mat for belly heat for your royal to digest its food, at least that is how i read it...and a heat bulb with a guard. |
"No one can go back and make a brand new start. Anyone can start from
now and make a brand new ending."
-- Source Unknown
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Edited by - wolfspirit on 01/02/2009 21:03:29 |
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Colin S
Yearling
United Kingdom
148 Posts |
Posted - 01/02/2009 : 21:24:07
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Thank you for your replies. I am using a lamp as well as the heat mat and it is all concentrated at one end.
The viv is 24x 15 x 15.
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kay
Hatchling
64 Posts |
Posted - 02/02/2009 : 13:15:32
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Can anyone else add to this as I have my young royal on a mat and am now worried that it might burn?
Are they not designed so animals can lie on them? I have substrate over the top of it, which can be moved quite easily. The main reason Im worried is because I found some old shed completely stuck to the mat, from when he sloughed last! Did this just happen because the skin is old/dead or can it happen to the snakes fresh skin??
Thanks x |
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wolfspirit
Old Royal - I Post too much!
United Kingdom
5741 Posts |
Posted - 02/02/2009 : 13:23:30
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| this is one of the reasons i prefer ceramic heat, i dont have to worry about a mat and as long as you have the ceramic fitted properly and behind a guard and on a stat then it is fine... |
"No one can go back and make a brand new start. Anyone can start from
now and make a brand new ending."
-- Source Unknown
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dazb
Royal Python Moderator
United Kingdom
2847 Posts |
Posted - 02/02/2009 : 13:37:49
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all my snakes are on mats. 2 of them (1 corn and 1 royal have the mats inside the vivs with a piece of newspaper or cardboard over them so they cant lay directly on them.
i use newspaper in my royals, the main reason i cover them is to prevent any chance of wee/water seeping in to the conector block. also dont want a puddle of wee/water standing on the mat.
if you use a stat (which you should be  ) and the probe is positioned above the mat and is set to the correct temp then your royal should not get burnt.
my royal digs down in her aspen and lays directly on the cover of the mat so that is where i postion my probe.
stats are essential in my view for use with mats cos they are designed to switch off when they reach a certain temp, so if a problem did occur which caused it to overheat it should turn off. |
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anatess
Sub Adult
USA
669 Posts |
Posted - 02/02/2009 : 23:19:09
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| A heat mat on the bottom of the tank is fine BUT - more important than having a mat there is having a thermostat! Most heat mats (ZooMed, Zilla, etc.) go up to 110 fahrenheit. They are designed to penetrate substrate. So, if you have substrate that a snake can burrow under, there is a possibility of the snake laying on top of the material where the mat is attached to that is at maximum temperature heating up the belly of the snake too much. So, a thermostat/rheostat to control the heat on the surface under the substrate is important, especially if you got a hide on top of the heat mat. |
        
Snake owner since Oct 2008, so yeah, I'm no expert.
0.1.0 pastel royal
1.0.0 spider royal
0.1.0 albino royal
1.0.0 bumblebee royal
1.0.0 yellowbelly royal
0.0.1 wild-type royal
1.0.0 normal western hognose |
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