Hermes' Diary...

[EasternGirl]

I think Hermes deserves his own thread now that he is a part of the family...He has decided to be shy now...I'm getting ready to try to feed him some little pinkie parts and I will report back and let everyone know how that goes. He keeps poking his little head out of his substrate and then ducking for cover when he sees me...so cute. I was going to go out and get him a new enclosure tonight with a lock lid...but the weather is terrible here tonight...hopefully he won't try any escape attempts before tomorrow. Here is a pic that Jason had sent to me of him...it's better than any of the pics I have been able to get so far....

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[EasternGirl]

No go...he didn't want anything to do with food yet. I tried taking him out and holding him and offering him food with the hemostats...he just started clickety clicking like Cee Cee does when she gets nervous, so I put him back in his enclosure with the dish...but he's just hiding now. Guess he just needs time.

[guidofatherof5]

Before you know it you'll have him eating out of your hand, literally. :D

[EasternGirl]

I hope so...he is being very shy right now and I want to hold him so bad Steve! I am so in love with this little guy already and I have to fight myself to leave him alone so I don't stress him out too much....you may have to talk me down here in a bit! Lol...;).

[guidofatherof5]

Wow, you got it bad. :D
Remember, time spent waiting now will be a benefit later. ;)

[EasternGirl]

I know..I know! :).

[EasternGirl]

Hermes finally decided to come out from hiding and to bask a little under the red bulb I put on one side of his tank for now until I can get a piece of ceramic tile to put over the heating pad to ensure he does not burrow under the substrate and lie on top of the glass and burn himself over the pad. The bulb is a 40 watt bulb but I have it turned down on a dimmer since he's only in a 10 gallon tank. I'm going to get him a new tank tomorrow with a lock lid...but I'm not going to get him a 20 gallon yet...I think he's just too small. I'm glad he decided it's okay to come out from hiding...

[EasternGirl]

Oh Hermes...why won't you come out from hiding??? I guess he just needs time to get used to his new home...

[tress29]

I'm trying to be very patient too! When I went home for lunch today, I saw one tiny head peeking out of the aspen, the little eastern. No sign of the other two! The radix was cruising this morning but I haven't seen the coast since I put him in there. Well, there are a lot of places to hide. I'm feeding them tonight, we'll see who shows up?!

[EasternGirl]

It's so hard to give them their space! I have this new little guy that I am so excited about and now I never see him...I reach down in his bedding and check on him now and again to make sure he's okay. I actually took him out for a bit tonight..he seemed happy enough slithering around in my hand, but then he went right back to hiding and hasn't been out since. I'm going to try to feed him again tonight too. Here are a couple of new pics:

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[guidofatherof5]

Hermes is a good looking Checkered.

[EasternGirl]

Thanks...the pics are a bit blurry...Julian took them in a hurry to get back to whatever it was he was doing...lol. I have cut up pinkie pieces in the enclosure...he came out for a while and was exploring a bit...but of course he ignored the food. I just turned the lights down in here hoping he might venture back out and try a little...he seemed to enjoy being out during the wee dark hours of the night last night. Fingers crossed...

[EasternGirl]

Well...Hermes did not eat...but he was up all night roaming around the tank trying to plan a way to escape. He was really active....climbing all over his little bushes and hides...he even climbed up on the hygrometer once and then fell off...it was pretty funny. As soon as I turned the lights on this morning, he was gone...back to hiding. Wayne gave me a recipe for garter goulash...a little mush to feed baby garters that I am going to make later tonight and try to feed him. For now...sleep well my little nocturnal buddy...

[guidofatherof5]

Well...Hermes did not eat...but he was up all night roaming around the tank trying to plan a way to escape. He was really active....climbing all over his little bushes and hides...he even climbed up on the hygrometer once and then fell off...it was pretty funny. As soon as I turned the lights on this morning, he was gone...back to hiding. Wayne gave me a recipe for garter goulash...a little mush to feed baby garters that I am going to make later tonight and try to feed him. For now...sleep well my little nocturnal buddy...

Probing for security weaknesses. If a flaw is found, they will exploit it.
Typical garter snake move. :D

[EasternGirl]

I know! I'm going to get the lock-lid tank today because he was making me so nervous I didn't sleep again. I know he'll find a way out of this tank! Smart little bugger!

[Chondro788]

Marnie,
He sounds like he is happy, not sure why he is not eating. You may try putting him in a small deli cup for a few hours with a half pinkie and see if that doesn't do the trick. Remember, he will eat alot larger item then you may expect. Keep the updates coming, I enjoy reading about him!!

[EasternGirl]

Thanks Jason...I will try that...I think he is just adjusting...I'm sure he'll eat soon. Here is his new home...

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[guidofatherof5]

Simple, yet elegant. :D
Looks good. You know this puts Hermes back 24 hours. :D

[EasternGirl]

Hermes is now sitting in a deli cup with a bunch of pinky pieces...he's looking at me like "Lady...first you bleepin' fly me on a plane...then you stick me in some big glass thing and poke at me every couple of hours...and now you stick my a*& in a plastic cup!? What gives???"...

[EasternGirl]

Jason...I tried the deli cup...no go...did you feed him in the middle of the night? He is only active during the night...I think tonight I am going to try feeding him in the middle of the night when he seems most comfortable and active...

[kibakiba]

It's going to take him a week or two to get used to being there.

[Bart]

It seems I have luck with my babies... All of them, besides Kleo, ate literally a few minutes after arrival.

[EasternGirl]

Well aren't you special? Just joking...I had a cat named Kleo...

[EasternGirl]

Hermes still isn't eating but he came out to play today...I put him on the bed and he slithered all around and crawled all over my hand and in and out of a cardboard tube I put down for him. Then he went for a little swim in his water dish. I have discovered that his hours of operation are from around 11:30pm every night until around 5:30 or 6:00am in the morning...then he goes to sleep for the day. At night he has found that he has a favorite plant that he likes to climb up on and bask under the red light. As soon as he is big enough, Seely (formally known as Selena) will become his new roomie.

[EasternGirl]

I just moved Hermes viv...he was in my son's bedroom which I was a little concerned about because it gets very cold in there. Plus, I needed to make room for a new viv for Seely since I had to separate him and Cee Cee. So...Hermes is now in the living room where it stays nice and toasty...but there is more light in there so he won't like that so much. I did make sure to put him in a spot away from any lamps. I will just have to make sure to keep the lights low in there during the day and the shades drawn when the sun comes in. Seely is now in the bedroom where Hermes was...he can handle the colder temp...he lived in there all last winter...and Cee Cee is also in the living room on the other side of the room. Hopefully, I will get a storage shelf soon and I can put at least two of the tanks on the shelf either in my bedroom or in the living room. And eventually, Hermes will move in with Seely...and Cee Cee will get a roomie.

[EasternGirl]

Okay...Hermes hates me and he won't eat.:(. I am trying to let him have his space to get used to being here...but I have to check on him to make sure he is okay from time to time and then he gets bugged out and goes back into hiding...He didn't even come out to explore last night. He poked his head out under the heat lamp for a little while...but then he just went back to hiding. And..he is still refusing to eat...Come on little buddy!!!

[katach]

He doesn't hate you. He's just still adjusting. He'll get there. :)

[EasternGirl]

I think he just ate a piece of a pinky! Yipee!!!

[EasternGirl]

It's confirmed...Hermes ate a piece of a pinky...just the stomach but hey it's better than nothing! I changed his substrate tonight to purple carefresh because I couldn't see him in the tan colored carefresh that I had in there before...he was blending into it. So I got some purple so that I could see his little pink body in contrast to the color...lol. I made some little hides for him out of tiny little cardboard boxes and he seems to really like them...they look like tiny little houses and he goes in the little holes and hangs out inside. Right now I am using a red night bulb for heat...he seems to prefer hanging out on the warm side of the tank. I didn't take him out today...I'm going to leave him alone for the next couple of days and let him get more comfortable.

[katach]

That's great he ate! Congrats!!

[EasternGirl]

Thanks...he's out and about now exploring his viv...I'm not watching him tonight...letting him have his space ;).

[katach]

Good plan!

[EasternGirl]

So...Hermes was out and exploring when I woke up around 8am this morning....interesting for my little nocturnal buddy..perhaps the pinky piece he ate last night gave him some confidence! I may have ruined that for him though because I took him out to show him to my sister-in-law. Maybe not though...because I took him out last night when I got him ready to feed and he still was out and very active all night. Perhaps he is starting to come around...

Since I am new to albinos...exactly how much to I have to protect him from light? I mean...obviously, I am not putting any kind of UV light directly on him...but how much do I have to protect him from the regular lights in my house and sunlight coming in windows?

[chris-uk]

I wouldn't have any snake in direct sublight through a window, glass in the viv acts as a greenhouse and you won't be able to control the temperature gradient properly. There shouldn't be any danger from your normal house lights. Our albino checkered is more active in the evenings when it's dimmer, but we still see her out and about plenty during the day. I think it's just a case of Hermes coming around, keep giving him time and you'll start seeing more of him soon.

[EasternGirl]

Right...I mean, I don't have him in a window or anything like that...but should I worry about sun coming in the windows in the room that he is in? Should I worry about walking past windows when I have him out? How much light can he safely be exposed to?

[chris-uk]

He's not a vampire, so he's not going to burn to a crisp if sunlight falls on him. ;) If he's not in direct sunlight he'll be fine, if the room is south-facing with big windows it may get bright for him in the summer, but I'd be surprised if your room was bright enough to do him any harm.
I'd say you'd get an idea as to whether bright light bothers him by walking him past a window, if it hurts his eyes you'd see him turn away or react in some way. I've stood with Binky in my hand next to our front door, it's not all clear glass but it's translucent and lets a lot of light into the hallway. I've not seen Binky react to the bright light. And thinking about sunlight, a lot of UV is blocked by glass, not all of it though so I think that although Hermes could burn his skin through a glass window it's going to take some time, so you'd have to be really careless to let it him burn (and everyone around here knows that isn't going to happen).

Just to add, I was downstairs a few minutes ago, with the sun shining into the hallway and Binky was happily slithering around in the bright hall. She's in a viv about 4m up the hall, so no direct light, but white walls and light flooring mean the hallway is bright when the sun is in the right direction. We also have a 60W ceiling light in the hall and she's not bothered by that in the evenings.

[EasternGirl]

Thanks Chris...this is all very helpful! So far when I have walked through the house with him I have not seen him react in any way to the light. These are all great things for me to know with this new little guy.

[EasternGirl]

Hermes has been out and about in his enclosure a lot the last couple of days. I think he is finally getting comfortable here. He spends most of his time basking under the red light in a little fake bush he seems to like. Last night he was slithering all around the tank. I offered him some more food...just in case he was looking for some...I made him a mixture of pinky, salmon, and reptomin (Wayne's garter goulash) but he didn't seem to want any. I just hope that he is going over to the water dish and drinking at night. I tried to put him in his water dish yesterday and he got mad at me and made a little hissing sound...it was very cute. This may be a dumb question but would there be any chance that a young snake would not know to go to the water dish or not look for it in a big tank? I'm being a silly over-protective mom aren't I?

[guidofatherof5]

If very young I would say that's a legit concern.
As long as the dish is low to the ground it shouldn't be an issue.
Tossing (gently placing them) them in the water dish from time to time is acceptable.
I do that when they look like they could use a wash.

[EasternGirl]

So...do you think it is possible that he hasn't been drinking water then?

[guidofatherof5]

I doubt it but adding another water dish may give you some piece of mind.

[EasternGirl]

Yeah I'm going to do that...thanks.

[EasternGirl]

Hermes is mad at me again because I put his little head in the water dish to make him have some water. Look Hermes, I don't know if you are drinking water or not and I am just trying to take care of you...gimme a break snake! Lol...

[EasternGirl]

Hermes ate half a pinky last night! You should see how fat he is! Ha ha...I put the pinky pieces under his hide like I always do...when I went back to check to see if he had eaten, I looked in his tank and saw this fat little Hermes looking back at me and laughed..."I guess you ate!"...I said. He's fat and happy and basking under his red light in his favorite bush today.

[EasternGirl]

Hermes is so funny. He ate a big piece of pinky tonight and his stomach is all bulging out because he is so small and the pinky piece is like 3 times the size of his little head! He looks so cute after he eats all fat and bulgy...I'm so glad he is eating on a regular schedule now.

[guidofatherof5]

Way to go Hermes.

[EasternGirl]

Okay...this is a terrible pic because, again, my camera is dying and I took this under the red bulb...but I just wanted to give you an idea of how much Hermes has grown. He looks so big now! I'll have to measure him later today.

http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv235/Marnie313/000_0002800x451.jpg

[guidofatherof5]

You're doing good Mom.

[EasternGirl]

Everyone in the family was looking at him and laughing at his fat belly this morning...he may have a complex now...lol.

[EasternGirl]

I have a question...and forgive me if I ask ditsy questions, I am still new to some of this stuff. I have never had a baby snake...and I don't really time when Cee Cee and Seeley shed...Hermes has been with me since November 29th....should he have shed by now or no? How often does a baby snake shed?

[guidofatherof5]

It's different for each snake. Some shed often some don't.
You'll have to just keep an eye on Hermes and watch for the signs of a shed.

[EasternGirl]

Okay....thanks...I just know that people said that he may not show signs of a shed because he is albino...I've been watching closely...we'll see!

[EasternGirl]

Hermes decided to give me a Christmas present...and left me a perfect shed in his enclosure this morning! I was just saying last night that I was a bit worried that he hadn't shed yet. Right after my family finished opening presents this morning, I went to check on him, and found his shed stuck on his little cardboard box hide. All one piece, eye caps down to bottom of tail...unfortunately I broke it in two when I pulled it off the box...but I will post a pic later today. Like everyone said...I had no idea he was going to shed...he showed no signs other than maybe he felt a little rough and stiff. He seems softer now. He also ate before he shed. The shed was a translucent white.

[guidofatherof5]

Albino sheds are awesome. The blue phase that albinos go into is easily missed.
Stiffness is a good thing to watch for.
Glad it all went well. Little Hermes is growing and before long won't be little Hermes.;)

[EasternGirl]

He is getting bigger and braver...he sat on my stomach yesterday and slinked around my hand happily for a while very calmly...a much different experience than that with my skiddish W/C easterns.

[EasternGirl]

Here is a pic of Hermes chillin on his favorite bush. Now I also took a pic of his cloaca...it's the best pic I could get because my son had to take it while I held Hermes. I don't know if it is just because of his age...I have never had a snake this young before...but he has a very odd looking cloaca...it is very defined...and has a very distinct narrowing...it has kind of a bulge and then it narrows after it....I know it isn't infected or anything...it has been like that since I got him...but it looks like "he' could be a "she" to me...or does the cloaca just look like that when they are young? I also noticed that it looked like it was open when I was holding him...is that just because he musks me a lot when I hold him?

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[chris-uk]

I wouldn't guess from that photo Marnie, best I would say is that to my eye Hermes could be either.

[EasternGirl]

Hmmm....I wonder if I should try to pop him. I will try to get a better pic. I really need to make sure of the sex before I get a radix from Steve in the spring. Hermes' sex will determine what gender of radix I get because I will be getting a cagemate for Cee Cee or Seeley and if Hermes is a male, he will be rooming with Seeley, if he/she is female, rooming with Cee Cee. I do not want another accidental baby situation.

[chris-uk]

Personally I don't like the idea of popping a snake. You have plenty of time before you need to know, so I'd let him grow bigger for a few months and get a better photo nearer the time. One thing you can be fairly sure of is hat whether you need a male or female, Steve isn't going to be short of a radix for you. :)

[EasternGirl]

Right? Lol....

[EasternGirl]

Hermes is funny...he thinks he's a poisonous viper in the rainforest or something...he hangs out high in the top of his vine plant suctioned to the side of his tank all the time...I'll post a pic later. Oh Hermes...you're so tough...you're a scary viper!

[EasternGirl]

Here is Hermes the poisonous viper hanging out in his jungle vine...

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