• Posted 12/19/2024.
    =====================

    I am still waiting on my developer to finish up on the Classifieds Control Panel so I can use it to encourage members into becoming paying members. Google Adsense has become a real burden on the viewing of this site, but honestly it is the ONLY source of income now that keeps it afloat. I tried offering disabling the ads being viewed by paying members, but apparently that is not enough incentive. Quite frankly, Google Adsense has dropped down to where it barely brings in enough daily to match even a single paid member per day. But it still gets the bills paid. But at what cost?

    So even without the classifieds control panel being complete, I believe I am going to have to disable those Google ads completely and likely disable some options here that have been free since going to the new platform. Like classified ad bumping, member name changes, and anything else I can use to encourage this site to be supported by the members instead of the Google Adsense ads.

    But there is risk involved. I will not pay out of pocket for very long during this last ditch experimental effort. If I find that the membership does not want to support this site with memberships, then I cannot support your being able to post your classified ads here for free. No, I am not intending to start charging for your posting ads here. I will just shut the site down and that will be it. I will be done with FaunaClassifieds. I certainly don't need this, and can live the rest of my life just fine without it. If I see that no one else really wants it to survive neither, then so be it. It goes away and you all can just go elsewhere to advertise your animals and merchandise.

    Not sure when this will take place, and I don't intend to give any further warning concerning the disabling of the Google Adsense. Just as there probably won't be any warning if I decide to close down this site. You will just come here and there will be some sort of message that the site is gone, and you have a nice day.

    I have been trying to make a go of this site for a very long time. And quite frankly, I am just tired of trying. I had hoped that enough people would be willing to help me help you all have a free outlet to offer your stuff for sale. But every year I see less and less people coming to this site, much less supporting it financially. That is fine. I tried. I retired the SerpenCo business about 14 years ago, so retiring out of this business completely is not that big if a step for me, nor will it be especially painful to do. When I was in Thailand, I did not check in here for three weeks. I didn't miss it even a little bit. So if you all want it to remain, it will be in your hands. I really don't care either way.

    =====================
    Some people have indicated that finding the method to contribute is rather difficult. And I have to admit, that it is not all that obvious. So to help, here is a thread to help as a quide. How to become a contributing member of FaunaClassifieds.

    And for the record, I will be shutting down the Google Adsense ads on January 1, 2025.
  • Responding to email notices you receive.
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re: UTHs...

Cyberkitten36

Cyberkitten36

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re: UTHs...

Hi again everyone! :) Hope life is finding u all well!
We're STILL struggling with the whole heating issue here and i swear it's SOOOO frustrating it's not funny :(
I have a question re: UTHs...
Ok..so we got one and installed it under the tank. I took out a lot of her substrate (was using that Jungle Bark mix stuff) Anyway..it's about 1 inch deep now. What I'm wondering is this..from what i've been understanding the UTHs can get hot enuf to burn the snake. I get the impression that unless the UTH is controlled by a thermostat it can be dangerous. So why isn't my UTH getting that hot? I haven't gotten a thermostat yet (will be this payday..thursday) however if i push the substrate aside and lay my hand directly on the glass over the UTH..it's barely even warm. Should it be HOT?? I'm starting to wonder if something is wrong with it.
We still can't get a consistent temperature in the tank. The UTH is always on. If we turn the overheat lamp/light on (lamp is on the same side as the UTH) it makes the tank too hot and she'll go lay on the cool side which is WAYYY too cool (when I take her out she's FREEZING! Feels really cold to the touch) So we tried putting the lamp over the cool end instead (hoping to balance the heat a bit) and it makes BOTH ends too hot so she has NO cool place to retreat to. We can't seem to win. There is ZERO humidity in her tank but at this point i'm not concerned since she just came out of a shed. I'm more worried about keeping her at a consistent temperature..especially with winter fast approaching (it can get downright NASTY up north in January/February!) We're going to pick up a thermostat this week and i'm praying it'll help with this whole heating issue.
We've been trying to feed Abby but she won't eat. And i HAVE noticed when we're holding her that we can feel her spine sometimes. She doesn't *look* thin..but feels it. I'm convinced her previous owner wasn't feeding her enuf but she seems too used to eating every 2-3 weeks now. Either that or she's just too darn cold and just not interested. She seems a little ticked off at times too because we're forever rearranging her tank (her hide, water dish, lamp etc) in attempt to get this heating issue resolved so everytime the poor thing turns around everything's been rearranged. My daughter (10) was holding her the other night and while Abby did NOT strike at her..she did open her mouth very widely while facing her. I'm assuming it was a threat to bite since she hadn't just eaten or anything so it's not like she had to re-align her jaws or anything. My daughter FREAKED OUT to say the least and was terrified to hold Abby after that. I have to admit that i don't get nervous around animals very easily but even THAT made me very wary. Abby hasn't shown any aggression with the rest of us at all. And I was sitting right there when it happened..i didn't see my daughter do anything to provoke aggression. Then again i don't *talk* snake..maybe she DID do something...unbeknownst in a subtle way LOL
I have another question re: their pee/poo. Abby's pee is brown..ummmm is that normal? She peed on the couch. And her poo was a bit greenish (the first one she did about 5 days after she ate was white) I thought they only peed/pooed once after they ate?? Abby went around 5 days after she ate..then a week later she went again. Does this indicate that perhaps she's having difficulty digesting her last meal (wouldn't surprise me due to the fact that she's been cold :( )
I hope I'm not annoying u all with these *frivilous* questions. Believe me I've spend DAYS reading all the posts on this site to learn as much as I can. Any help u can offer is always appreciated :)

Lisa
 
Questions

Lisa:

First let me say that I am a novice myself, so any advice I provide is definitely NOT gospel.

First I have some questions:

What is the wattage on your under tank heater?

What is your tank/cage made of and what are the dimensions?

Is the UTH in direct contact with the floor of the tank (attached vs. just placed under one end)?

What type of lamp are you using for over cage heat?

How many watts is the lamp?

I think a thermostsatic control will definitely address the overheating using the lamp. That said, you definitely need to control both heat sources, so you'll either need 2 independent thermostats or a dual out put/probe model.

MG reptiles has a nice comparison of the more popular models on their site (I just ordered a Herpstat II from them)(www.mgreptiles.com).

I realize that cost may be a factor, so if you need to spread the cost out you could dedicate a single control thermostat to the UTH and buy a lower wattage ceramic heat bulb for your cool side.

Either way you go, you should definitely invest in a good digital thermometer (they aren't $$$) finding a unit that has two probes (some have one built into the display, plus an external probe - usually an indoor/outdoor type) will allow you to use one unit to monitor both zones. For humidity you can either find a thermometer/hygrometer combo or purchase a seperate hygrometer.

I'm not sure what substrate you are using, but most are fairly absorbent. You could occasionally mist the subastrate in addition to making sure you have a fair sized water container, or two in the tank.

I'd also reccomend that you place an additional hide on the cool end of your tank.

Hope this helps.

-Scott
 
Are you using thermometers and probes to read the temps and humidity? What are your numbers? Is 0 humidity even possible?? I would suggest you use a thermometer to test the temp on the glass (and it sounds like your about to buy one)..not your hand, remember, our body temperature is right up there..and our hands are less sensitive.
The snakes "urine" should be solid(ish) and a cream/white colour.
Unless she is opening her mouth repeatedly..and your tank is too cold..I wouldn't worry about it..(although apparently your temps are off)
Either way, I don't believe it is a threat to bite..the threat to bite will be a coiled back head..and a "you're mine" look in the eye (just kidding) you'll know it when you see it...lol .My snakes do the mouth open thing occasionally too..I just call it a yawn..and try to get a picture of that big mouth..
Your questions are not frivolous, they are how you learn to keep a healthy snake, which is what everyone wants.

I'm sure a bunch of "professionals" will reply, but I assume if you're worried you'll be anxiously awaiting any reply

Heather
 
First let me say something about the snake opening it's mouth. While there are a number of species that do incorporate gaping as a threat posture, the majority do not do that routinely. Ball pythons are not one of the species that normally gapes as a threat. They usually attempt to hide or get away, but if the threat is serious enough to them they will just bite with little warning. Abby was just yawning. They may do this to increase their oxygen intake, much the way people do at times, or it may just need to stretch the muscles in it's jaws.
If it opened it's mouth wide and then closed it back, this is what is was. When gaping as a threat the snake will hold the mouth open until the threat is gone or it decides to go ahead and bite.
Explain to your daughter that this was just a normal thing they do like when she needs to stretch when she wakes up in the morning. It's nothing to be afraid of.

On your heating issues, if your heat pad isn't geting warm enough, then a thermostat isn't going to make it get any warmer. To go into that further several of the questions Scott mentioned will need to be answered.
As for the basking light, I don't suggest putting an incandescent light on a thermostat. It will just make the light click on and off, which is itself annoying to the snake as well as people in the room. If it's getting too hot just reduce the wattage of the bulb. In a few of the cages I use basking lights in a 40W is plenty, in others I have to use a 75 or even a 100 in some cases.
You can reduce the wattage until the light is getting the ambient temperature in the cage up in the low to mid 80s, then the heat pad will have a much easier time raising the basking spot up to 90.
If the air in the cage is cool to begin with, then the heat will dissipate too quickly making the heat pad seem to not be working.

Also as mentioned, the hand is a very unreliable method of testing the temperature. Something you might want to consider getting in the future is a non contact thermometer. A digital one with a probe will run $10-15, but you can get a small non contact for $25 and they are so much more useful.
I know Reptile Basics sells them for $25, and they're a good value. I paid $75 fo rmy Raytek before these little models came out.
Here's a link to Reptile Basics' site http://www.reptilebasics.com/store/home.php
 
Lisa,
With what has been mentioned above I think you will get the temp. thing worked out and I agree with Clay that the non contact thermometer is the ideal tool. Snakes do yawn and realign their jaws but also keep in mind that if she has been cold for a period of time a R.I. may develop, if her mouth remains open, it could also be a sign that she's having difficulty breathing, also look at her tongue when she's checking things out and make sure that the fork isn't always together, if she has excess fluid in her mouth the fork will remain together - could be an early sign. Also excess handling can stress the animal so then feeding can be a problem, give her enough time to get comfortable with her new surroundings.
Mike Derks
 
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