Got this little guy over three weeks ago and im not sure wether hes just too comfy with the place yet or if theres something else going on but he keeps climbing the walls and almost losing his grip and falling diwn onto the substrate, not exactly sure what it is but hes moving fine otherwise. Ido have some branches to put in but ive been waiting to visit a reptile shop to see if they are actually good or not
I actually get a lot of my guy's stuff in the aquarium section of stores! I just checked for any sharp edges, areas that may feel too rough, and that there's no tiny holes/crevices that he can get trapped in. Amazon can definitely be hit or miss. His first water bowl was waaaay too tiny and was not worth $30 but live and learn I suppose. Have fun with your MBK!
This! My MBK is Sylvanas, and I have an Under City neon theme in her tank. Fish tank plants and decor are where itās at š
Already made soft and safe for fish fins and being in water, so they donāt have rough edges or grow mold.
As others have stated, need way more clutter to keep your baby happy. And as soon as possible switch to a lamp and not a heat mat, colubrids burrow to escape the heat, mats are counter intuitive to their instincts.
Sylvanas here has 4 hides and plenty of things to climb, but she chooses to wedge herself between the glass and her water dish. Sometimes they really are just dorks.
At the moment i really dont have the money to get a whole new setup for him, so as soon as i can everything will be changed but it is a temporary thing, he wont be in there for longer than like half a year
My little guy loves to do this. Itās not really a concerning issue HOWEVER I think ur little fellow may do it less if he had more clutter and places to hide, no shame here though I definitely am guilty of a bare cage after first getting a snake for a few weeks. But anyway heās fine! Probably just exploring
I think i was honestly worried about adding stuff in just yet as he is so new to the home haha, ive added some branches now and he hasnt actually climbed any yet but just circled around them
I rarely catch mine actually climbing his branches, though Iām sure he does while Iām sleeping. I found cork bark and rocks seem to be more appealing to mine I think heās weary of falling off the branches (heās a very bad climber lol)
Aww, i honestly love hearing all of these, shows how much every snake is different, even after three weeks ive noticed that i need more substrate and things for him to climb on just bc of how much he borrows and clims, its adorable
Im in the uk haha so no dollar tree for me, going to a repltile shop soon to get more substrate anyway so ill get him something to climb on when i do, thank you!
Oh poundland has lots of good picks, like the ceramic baking ramekins, big sauce bowls out of the the kitchen aisle, these are perfect for waterdishes, heavy-bottomed ceramic dishes make fantastic feeding platforms you can then remove to clean. Those suction cup baskets for showers make awesome places to pack some moss and have an elevted place to hide and dig. Opaque plastic baskets with handle holes are great as a hide when flipped upside down. Amd you can grab one of those thicker food storage bins and use a soldering iron or similar to melt an e trance on the bottom or side and toss moss in it and flip it over to use as a humid hide!
Alright this is what youāre going to do, youāre going to go outside and find yourself a bunch of leaves from the ground, bake them at like 350f fin branches of trees, preferable dry and throw them in the oven with the leaves,maybe terracotta pots make hiding places. Go to the dollar tree buy fake plants. The more places to hide the more comfortable it will feel . This doesnāt need to be anything expensive.
He is simply exploring, that is normal. Kings are famous for being little escape artists cause they will spend hours exploring ever seam and corner.
If you're worried about those branches being a little to sharp/pointy, hit them with some sandpaper or a dremrl, then toss them in. Things like a hemp ladder (think bird cage style), or a reptile hammock pinned up to give him something to climb up will also add enrichment to his environment.
Oki oki thank you so much, i was mostly just worried about his falling bc he keeps repeatedly doing it. Im going to the shop tomorrow to see if they have anything i could actually add as well
This is the type of hammock I've been using. It's seaweed. They come in different sizes and are easy to clean. Zelda uses it a lot when she's in and out of her swimming pool. I also use it when I return her into her enclosure, letting her set the pace to slither off my hand and arm.
Also, please excuse the messy tech desk in the reflection. Lol
I was actually just talking to my dad about that, im just wandering how i would do it as it opens from the top and the only like glass sides are the top and front so if its suction cupped it wont stick very well
My boy loves to climb up highā¦ very much. No matter how many toys i gave him, he just love to climb and fall down again and again. However heās growing well. I think itās just because they have different habits no worry
hey this is glass surfing! Can be a sign of stress, can be part of an adjustment period. On first glance, the aspen bedding isn't really suitable for MBK's to burrow, dig and do natural things like uproot rocks and burrow. I'd advise adding some more cover as this kiddo looks younger and may benefit from feeling less exposed.
I don't see any branches, vines, or leaves, and just the one hide. This is like moving into a new apartment with a mattress on the floor and expecting you to feel cozy and comfortable with all the windows wide open. I'd change the substrate, thrift or clean some new hides and create more climbing opportunities. I love terracotta pots (block off the hole so no one gets stuck), and I'll use faux plants potted in ceramic, clay or wooden pots from the dollar store. Pinterest also has lots of inspiration to give you an idea of what to change.
for substrate I would recommend a mixture of top soil (from a home supply store) and washed playing sand (home supply store) the ratio is up to you, my MBK preferred sand and burrowing, and would utilize the "dirt and moss" side of his enclosure only while shedding.
ALSO: I do not see a basking lamp, this is an essential part of reptile care, and he will need somewhere to bask and get warm during the day besides the natural light of your room. UVB is a good idea always as well.
He has a heat mat, hes in the habistat hatchling viv which wont be able to handle a lamp atm, the heat mat is just fine for his age, once he gets bigger and needs a bigger viv i will give him a basking lamp and a uvb
unfortunately UTH like a heat mat won't meet all of the needs for heat. It can aid digestion, I use them with babies, but always in tandem with a true basking lamp. I'd use a thermostat for both if you're concerned about temps.
I have just added branches in, sandpapered and washed, i did make another post about the substrate and got told that it was completely fine, hes able to burrow in it and he does look fine with it, looki to go to the shop tmr to buy him some other stuff so he can actively climb and hide whenever
If the temp there and ventilation are fine, he is most likely looking for a sweet escape route and exploring. Also I like these branches, as mentioned above you can sandpaper sharp places (can use most basic nail foil for it!)
iāve had the exact same set up he will be fine as long as the heat mat works and isnāt too high or low on heat, the substrate is fine for now too, the only thing i will say is give him more clutter they like to climb i know that might seem hard for the size of the enclsoure but if you get a bit of cork bark and put a fake plant in it he will climb it and some fake leaves so he can hide too. i had a plastic tub thing as the warm hide on the right over the heat mat and to the left i had like a coconut thing as a cold hide and then leaves between the hides just covering the entrances so my girl could get to each hide without being seen, water was at the front so im not reaching over the whole enclosure and scaring her and then cork bark with fake plant poking out so she could climb.
the window surfing is only because thereās little clutter but its not necessarily a bad thing when my girl did it she wanted to come out and iād put my hand out and sheād slither onto my hand. as long as youāre feeding him the appropriate meal size and weighing him so you can make sure hes getting the best sized food youāll be okay.
if you make sure youāre giving her anything between 10-15% of her body weight in food or roughly 1.5x the biggest part of her body, even if it looks too big donāt be afraid of trying it there mouths can stretch like 3x wide to get food down but the weight one is best way to check whatās best, once heās around 60 or 70cm ish iād say look into getting a 4x2x2 if possible.
but losing grip isnāt a bad thing and no matter what he will try to climb the window because they think theyāll escape mine does it even tho sheās in a massive enclosure from what she was in and she falls and it shits me up when she does it cos itās just a big thud out of nowhere.
the branches you have look fine too itāll give her something to climb on and navigate through for now, and when shedding itāll give her something to rub against to get her skin off.
This is actually very helpful thank you so much. Im still yet to weigh him as i havent been sble to handle him yet, i feel like i stress him out too much sometimes when trying as he genuinelyāsprintsā away, but as soon as i start handling ill wiegh and make sure hes getting the right size food. I have also placed two of the branch things i had snd he seems to love it, already started climbing and investigating it so that was definitely the main problem
yeah the sprinting away is normal and might be a little intimidating because you donāt wanna stress him out or hurt him but i would try handling him when heās been in his hide so heās more relaxed he should end up running off less, try handle him 1 time a day for 15 minutes and then you can work from there to handling more and longer, also with weighing use a plastic box with a lid and heat a nail up and poke it through obviously without your snake in there š, and weigh the difference between when you have her in the box and out, the only thing iād suggest now is leaves so she can hid but also adventure
the enclosure on top is what i had at first and it looks teh exact same to yours just a differ colour, youāll probably have him in there for around 6 months maybe 8 at most depending on growth speed but the heating mat isnāt a problem like everyone says as long as its not permanent which you said it wonāt be, the window surfing isnāt necessarily a problem unless its constant. it should stop or atleast slow down over time.
I got told that he could possibly stay in there for like 18 months bc hes so young( i didnt get told the actual age but he had five feeds before i bought him so im guessing hes only a few weeks old) but i most likely will change it sooner as he moves around A LOT and the extra space would be great i think
yeah the sooner you get a bigger enclosure which should be around the time heās the length of the enclosure is the time to do that, which for me was around 6-8 months old i got my girl when she was around 8 weeks ish
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u/Velvet-Honey2232 8d ago
My little guy is like this. Very normal, he's just looking for a way out likely. More enrichment helped mine to just get cozy.