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They're Small By Snake
Standards: |
Hatchlings are between 4
and 7 inches long. An
adult
Rough Green Snake will
be between two and
three-and-a-half feet,
although some might be
slightly larger. This,
along with their slender
bodies, makes them one
of the smallest pet
snakes. Females are
usually larger than
males. |
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They
Have A Relatively Short
Lifespan: |
There are reports of
Rough Green Snakes
living 15
years in captivity.
However, a lifespan in
the single digits (6-8
years) is more common. |
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Enclosure:
Tall
Enclosures Are
Appreciated: |
Since Rough Green Snakes
like to climb, they
should have a tall
enclosure (3-feet high)
with climbing branches.
These snakes do well
when housed together. A
30-gallon capacity tank
can hold up to three
Green Snakes. Green
Snakes are inquisitive
and will escape from
their enclosure given
half the chance, so tank
covers should be very
secure. |
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Plants Instead Of Hide
Boxes: |
Snakes like to have
quiet areas where they
can get away
from it all. However,
unlike most species that
are satisfied with a
simple hide box or two,
Green Snakes prefer to
be given green foliage
that they can blend in
with when they hide.
This greenery can be
provided in the form of
live plants like
philodendrons or the
plastic variety, which
is easier to clean. The
greenery can take up to
half of the Green Snake’s enclosure. |
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Humidity:
Ventilation
And Humidity Are
Important: |
Green Snakes need
slightly humid
conditions, so their
cage should be misted
once or twice a day with
clean chlorine-free
water.
However, the air in
their
enclosure should never
be allowed to become
damp and dank. Adequate
air circulation is
essential to their
health. Caution: never
position a snake's
enclosure near a window. |
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Diet:
Soft Bodied
Insects Make Up Their
Meals: |
The Green Snake's diet
can pose a challenge to
the inexperienced snake
keeper. To maintain its
health, a Green Snake
needs a varied diet of
different insects, such
as moths, spiders,
crickets, grasshoppers,
and occasional
mealworms. (Feeding
mealworms too often can
cause impaction, due to
their hard
exoskeletons.) Crickets
often make up the bulk
of their diet. Before
being fed to Green Snakes, crickets should
be dusted with a
nutritional supplement,
or "gut loaded" by being
fed iguana or bearded
dragon pellets, mixed
with floating turtle
sticks and cut up
carrots or collard
greens. It's a good idea
to place live insects in
the enclosure in a
wide-mouthed bowl or
container. Uneaten
insects should be
removed from the
enclosure. Rough Green
Snakes should be fed 1-2
times a week. Offer
about 12 crickets per
meal for adults and 6
appropriately sized
crickets for juveniles.
Important -- It is
necessary to provide
calcium and vitamin
supplements as part of
the diet. Please read
the supplement section
below: |
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A
Note About Feeding |
Unless a paper or carpet
substrate is used,
snakes should be fed
over a piece of
cardboard, paper or
other smooth surface to
prevent them from
ingesting the substrate
along with their food.
It's a good idea for
snake owners to offer
meals to their pets only
in special feeding boxes
and not their regular
enclosures. Many snakes
will become aggressive
when they
anticipate a meal, and
to reduce the risk of
pets snapping when the
enclosure is open, many
owners use a feeding
box. This box can be a
rubber container or a
tank with a safer
substrate like paper or
indoor/outdoor
carpeting. |
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A
Note About Gut Loading |
Feeding crickets a
nutritious diet will
pass on vital nutrients
to your reptile. When
reptiles eat these
insects they are able to
absorb the nutrients.
This is why it is
important to gut load
crickets at least 48
hours before offering
them to a reptile.
Commercial cricket foods
provide a convenient way
to gut load crickets.
(Always follow
manufacturer’s
directions.) Crickets
should also be provided
with water, preferably
in the form of oranges
or a commercial water
gel product designed
specifically to hydrate
feeder insects. Putting
a shallow dish of water
in the cricket holding
tank will result in
insects drowning and
promote the spread of
bacteria.
You can also create your
own gut-loading formula.
Our vet recommends a mix
of ground up dog food,
cereal and fresh greens
with oranges or a
commercial gel for
water. |
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Supplements: |
Dust insects with
calcium supplement and
vitamin supplements. As
a rule, a growing
juvenile's food should
be dusted more often
than an adult's. Follow
product label directions
when applying
supplements, and avoid
over-supplementing food.
The following is a
possible supplementing
schedule for this
reptile.
Our veterinarian
recommends dusting
insects with a plain
calcium supplement every
time they are offered to
the pet. (Avoid using a
calcium supplement with
added phosphorous,
unless specifically
directed by your
veterinarian, since this
can promote kidney
disease.) Our
veterinarian also
recommends dusting
insects with a D3
supplement once a week
and a vitamin supplement
two times a month. This
is only one
recommendation, consult
your veterinarian for
specific directions on
supplementing your pet’s
food, since there are
many variables that go
into determining the
best supplementing
regimen for a given
animal.
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A
NOTE ABOUT WATER: |
All water given to this
pet for drinking, as
well as water used for
misting, soaking or
bathing must be 100%
free of chlorine and
heavy metals. (Not all
home water filtration
systems remove 100% of
the chlorine and heavy
metals from tap water,
so check your system's
specifications before
using it to filter water
for your pet.) We
recommend that you use
unflavored bottled
drinking water or
bottled natural spring
water and never
untreated tap water. If
tap water is used, you
should treat it with a
dechlorinating treatment.
Do not use distilled
water, which can cause
severe medical problems,
since it lacks minerals
that are essential to
important body functions. |
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Water Should Be Provided
In Two Ways:
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A bowl of chlorine-free water that is
deep enough for the
snake to submerge itself
should always be in the
enclosure. Rough Green
Snakes will immerse
themselves in this bowl.
They will also drink
water from the droplets
misted on the leaves
of the enclosure's
plants |
Temperature:
They Like
Moderate Temperatures: |
The temperature gradient
in a Rough Green Snake's
enclosure should range
from a "cooling area" of
about 70F to a warmer
area of around 80F. Care
should be taken not to
overheat the enclosure.
A basking area with
slightly warmer
temperatures can be
created during the day
using a heat lamp or
ceramic
emitter controlled by a
thermostat to keep it
from overheating. A heat
pad placed under
one-third of the tank
can also be used to
maintain the desired
ambient temperatures.
(The
pad can be turned off or
down when the basking
lamp is on.)
Thermometers should be
placed one inch over the
substrate in the cooling
area and basking spot.
Never use a heat
rock, since it can burn
the skin of a Rough
Green Snake.
Important - see the
Note About Day/Night
Light Cycles and Heating
below. |
Lighting:
Supplemental
UV Fluorescent Lighting
Essential: |
Unlike many snakes,
which are nocturnal or
most active at dawn and
dusk, the Rough Green
Snake is diurnal (most
active
in the day). As a
result, exposure to
supplemental UVB
fluorescent light is
essential.
Green
Snakes should be exposed
to supplemental UVB
light 10-12 hours a day,
using a fluorescent bulb
designed for snake
enclosures.
Lighting
should be left on for 12
hours a day, a little
more in the summer, less
in the winter. Do not
leave lighting on all
day, since this will
cause undue stress.
Important - see the
Note About Day/Night
Light Cycles and Heating
below. |
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Note About Day/Night
Light Cycles and Heating: |
All
reptiles, including this pet, must have
distinct day and night periods in their
enclosure to maintain their biological
rhythms. (See the lighting entry above
for the specific length of this animal’s
day/night cycle.) The day period
must be light; and night must be dark.
A timer should be used to set day/night
periods. If a heat source is required to
maintain correct nighttime temperatures,
use heat mats or strips mounted below or
on the side of the tank, infrared heat
lamps, ceramic heat emitters, or a
combination of these products. This will
allow the enclosure to be heated while
remaining dark. Follow directions
carefully with all products. If ceramic
heat emitters are used always choose
fixtures with porcelain or ceramic
sockets and to protect against fires do
not place them by dry wood or flammable
fabrics. Ceramic heat emitters must be
kept out of the reach of children and
all pets, including dogs and cats.
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Substrate:
Their
Substrate Should Stand
Up To Misting: |
Since the Rough Green
Snake's enclosure will
be misted once or twice
a day, it's important to
select a substrate that
will
not become a moist
breeding ground for
bacteria. Paper
substrates, such as
unprinted newspaper and
paper towels are good,
because they can be
readily discarded and
replaced. Indoor/outdoor
carpeting is also good
because it resists
moisture. Another reason
to avoid chips and
shavings is that they
can easily be ingested
by this small insect
eating
snake at mealtime. |