Substrate= Paper towel or newspaper.

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: : : : I am getting a pair of Indigo babies soon and would like to have their cages ready for them before they show. That way I can put them in their new home and leave them be for a bit so they can acclimate before I play with them. LOL I have rubbermaid tubs of various sizes but my question is what size for new babies? I will probably be getting 4 foot cages for them as adults but till then I want them to be very comfortable. I was thinking about the ones that I have that are about 2 feet long 16 inches deep and 5 inches tall. I also have some that are about 9 inches tall. Ideas?? : : : : Food is already in the freeze so all I need is bedding and that will probably be pine, or recycled news paper pulp (carefresh). And to decide on growing cage size. : : : : I can hardly wait to get them home. : : : : Craig : : : : : : Craig, : : : Reading your post, I see that you are trying to set things up BEFORE the snakes arrive at your home. A novel idea.. : : : Personally ,I would not put neonate Indigos in anything biger than a rubbermaid size shoebox for the first 4 months.Primarily because I want them to address their food and gain weight /size. Large cages give them a lot of room to run around in, which burns calories and also alow them the luxury of being in a cage big enough to ignore their prey tiem. : : : I would keep it simple, a shoebox or perhaps a small blanket box. Plenty of time and money can be invested in their cages when they get larger. : : : Go smaller, make sure they have fresh water and a small hidebox. And sufficient heat. : : : Once they drop into a CONSISTENT feeding pattern for YOU, and they gain some size, then you can transfer them to more permanent accomodations. : : : Secondly, I would not handle them for the fist month that you have them in your home. allow them to settle in and, again , get into a consistant feeding pattern. : : : As for your food source that you have stocked away, if they are allready eating frozen thawed, then GREAT!, but if not, you may have to buy live and maybe even goldfish also. I am sure you can figure this out. Best of luck to you in your endeavours. : : : Sincerely, : : : Fred Albury : : : : Keeping my hands off them is going to be real hard because they are so cool looking. And after reading about them and how inquisitive they can be that did not help. Come on it is like a kid in a candy store. I have box, hide, water bowl all ready cleaned and waiting. : : What are the preferences of the group on substrate and why? : : Craig : : Craig, : Indigos are messy feeders. they ingest a lot of substrate on their prey items when they eat. for this reason, as well as cost, I recommend only paper towel for neonates, and newspaper for adults. Of course,I am NO guru, and others here have used cypress mulch with good results, so I wont try to rule out that possibility. But I recommend newspaper. : As far as handleing goes, you have to ask yourself a question. Will you do what is in the best interests of the animal long term. : I have had people buy these snakes from me, set them up incorrectly, and handle them..all against my advice. Then call me to complain that they wont eat. Bottem line..nothing wrong with trying new methods...but , at least when they are neonates, heed the advice of those that have allready done what you are doing many years ago. : : Fred

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