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soaking gaboon vipers
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by danny37 on September 28, 2008
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i would just like to know if anyone else out there soaks their gaboon vipers? when i first started keeping gaboon vipers the keeper that i got them from told me i needed to soak them every few days to keep them hydrated. so i soak them for 1 hour in luke warm water every 3 days. now theres a few benefits with this method. first of all they usually deficate in the water every couple of weeks or so,and that saves me on substrate. also when their in shed they seem to get a good start at the head and mouth area after a good soak and totally shed after i put them back in the enclosure. now on the down side, thats an awful lot of handeling, and the snakes seem to hate it. their pretty smart and seem to know whats coming when i take them from their enclosure, they go nuts. i am worried about stressing them to much, to often. i do mist them every few days, and i do see them drinking from the water that runs down their face. i also keep a fresh water supply(dish)in their enclosure, but have never seen them use it. i guess what my question is, is it worth the stress to soak and handle them if their being hydrated with a misting every few days? thanks, Danny
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RE: soaking gaboon vipers
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by puffadder7 on September 28, 2008
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well, i dont keep gaboons i keep puffs so when they are about to shed i usaully soak them, i think it would be different since gaboons have to have higher humidity, arin
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RE: soaking gaboon vipers
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by Cro on September 28, 2008
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Danny, you are right to be concerned about stressing the Gaboon Vipers by soaking them.
I am not sure just who started this idea that they need to be soaked, or that they need to be dragged over to a water bowl and shown how to drink.
If you keep the humidity level in the cage at the correct level, and spray the snakes with a misting bottle from time to time, and provide a nice bowl of fresh drinking water, there should be no need to soak the snakes, unless they have something like a stuck shed that needs a bit of help.
Because Gaboons are heavy bodied snakes, hooking them in and out of cages is even more stressfull to them than it would be for a smaller framed snake.
I really do not think that soaking them is needed, especially on a regular basis like you mentioned.
Best Regards John Z
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RE: soaking gaboon vipers
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by GREGLONGHURST on September 29, 2008
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Frequent misting should work as well as a soak, with much less stress. Bear in mind that in adults, ribs can be broken just lifting them on a hook. A specially built hook made of inch or two wide material may be a good tool to have on hand for those times when moving is absolutely necessary.
~~Greg~~
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RE: soaking gaboon vipers
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by Crotalusssp on September 29, 2008
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When I kept Gaboons, I would only soak them if a shed started poorly or I was concerned about impaction of fecal matter. Like others have stated a good sized bowl of daily changed freshwater along with misting every other day. An enclosure that retains moisture is beneficial and may reduce the amount of misting needed. Hooking and moving large Bitis is stressful on them and sometimes on the keepers as well. Reducing the amount of handling is beneficial to all involved. As long as there is not a reduction of habitat/environment quality as a trade off.
Charles
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RE: soaking gaboon vipers
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by Rob_Carmichael on September 29, 2008
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Nice to see good, solid advice on this subject. There's no need to soak gaboons if they have the proper humidity levels and have access to fresh drinking water.....all of the reasons provided are dead on accurate. Over soaking can actually cause more problems due to what's added in our drinking/tap water.
I remember someone on this forum claimed that he kept gaboons permanently in several inches of warm water and preached it so much that other folks started doing the same. In the end, there were a number of dead gaboons thanks to such horrible advice. It's great to ask questions (specific questions that is) and then get some solid advice.
Rob Carmichael, Curator
The Wildlife Discovery Center
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RE: soaking gaboon vipers
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by danny37 on September 29, 2008
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thanks for all of the good advice, i will cut down on the soaking. as many snakes as i have i was doing alot of unnecessary handleing, and like i said,it was stressful for both me and the snakes. Danny
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RE: soaking gaboon vipers
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by gaboonviper4 on October 1, 2008
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if you keep the humidity @ 80% and soak them once a week that should be fine. that is what i do with mine.
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by Buzztail1 on October 1, 2008
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For what it's worth:
I have been caring for Gaboon Vipers for the past two years.
We keep them on a mulch and moss mixture which is misted daily. The relative humidity is about 80% and they are soaked no more than once a month. They always have access to a large water dish kept filled with fresh water.
Hope this helps.
R/
Karl
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RE: soaking gaboon vipers
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by 23bms on October 1, 2008
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I keep Gaboons in a relatively low humidity environment and have zero shedding problems. They don't need soaking. They are much happier being left alone.
BTW, the idiocy of dragging your Gaboon to water once a week is just that - idiocy. If they want a drink, they are perfectly capable of crawling to their water bowl - usually when YOU aren't looking.
Wonderful animals. I love them.
jrb
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