anybody keep water snakes?

[annulataarethebest]

From what I've heard, water snakes don't usually too great in tubs in snake racks? I'm about to be working with some green water snakes and hopefully breeding them next season. I'm thinking probably a 55 gallon tank with a screen lid to keep the enclosure well ventilated, a heat lamp, a water bowl... What's a good substrate to use for water snakes? Would some type of reptile bark substrate be better than aspen or sani chips?

[aSnakeLovinBabe]

From what I've heard, water snakes don't usually too great in tubs in snake racks? I'm about to be working with some green water snakes and hopefully breeding them next season. I'm thinking probably a 55 gallon tank with a screen lid to keep the enclosure well ventilated, a heat lamp, a water bowl... What's a good substrate to use for water snakes? Would some type of reptile bark substrate be better than aspen or sani chips?

you can use newspaper pellet, carefresh, aspen... anything really. i don't like aspen because it sticks to the water snake's food to easily. For snakes that like to eat wet things, I find newspaper pellet to be idea because it is heavy and doesn't stick to things easily. Aspen pellets might have a similar effect. I avoid bark because of it's molding tendencies... unless you fork out the cash and buy reptibark. I like that stuff and it smells like *heaven*. I have kept water snakes in the standard tub setup just as you would any other colubrid.... but it tends to work better with CB animals. Field collected animals will thrive much better initially when set up with the traditional basking light... etc. The major difference to my tub setups, is that I set my tubs up just like I do tanks, with fake plants and branches to climb, and fairly large bowls, the only difference is the basking light is substituted for a heated room and daylight through the windows. The snakes don't mind either way, most of them, the ones that do, especially my coachwhips and racers, have lights overhead. It gets very bright in my snake room during the day, and that's the key.