This care sheet for the Brown House Snake should be used for guidance only. If you have decided to keep a pet snake please gather as much information as possible from other reliable sources about the species you intend to keep.
Brown House Snake
Lamprophis fuliginosus
DESCRIPTION
The Brown House Snake is a small snake from the grass and scrublands of southern Africa, where it preys on rodents and lizards. It is often found around human habitation.
The Brown House snake is an egg laying constrictor that reaches 2 to 4 feet in length.
The Brown House Snake is a relatively new species to be kept and bred but is growing in popularity because of their ease of care and handling.
Brown House Snakes can live 10+ years given optimal living conditions.
HOUSING
Brown House Snakes require an enclosure measuring approx- 30x12x12 inches. The enclosure or vivarium can be a converted aquarium with a secure and well ventilated lid or a cabinet style vivarium with glass doors. Being a mainly terrestrial species of snake, the Brown House Snake will also do well in a plastic storage box, such as a 50 Litre 'Really Useful Box'. Make sure plenty of ventilation holes are drilled in the sides. Whatever type of housing you choose for your Brown House Snake it is important to remember that these snakes are fantastic escapologists and the enclosure must be secure with no gaps or pushable lids/doors.
Juvenile Lamprophis will do better in a smaller enclosure (18x12x12 inches) until they reach 2.5 feet in length. The smaller enclosure helps young snakes feel less vulnerable as they grow.
Humidity should be kept between 50% and 60%. Unless you live in an especially humid or dry area this is easily achieved. The humidity can be raised 10% when your House Snake is about to shed its skin. This is easily done by moving the water bowl nearer to the warm end of the enclosure until the skin is shed. Humidity can be measured with the use of a hygrometer.
A 1 inch layer of dry absorbant substrate such as bark chips or aspen shavings should line the floor of the enclosure. Newspaper is another alternative and allows for easy cleaning, although it is less pleasing to the eye. Dry leaves can also be used as an attractive natural substrate for the Brown House Snake but collected leaves should be frozen overnight to get rid of any unwanted pests.
Provide 1 or 2 hides in your Brown House Snakes enclosure. These should be just large enough for your snake to fit snugly inside. Plastic or clay hides can be bought from pet shops or you can use natural hides such as bark pieces or hollow logs. Home made hides can be made from plastic margarine tubs, cardboard boxes etc. but are less attractive.
A large and sturdy water bowl should be available in a cool part of the enclosure, and should be just large enough for your snake to bathe in.
A climbing branch will occasionally be used by your Brown House Snake, but is not absolutely essential for this mainly terrestrial snake.
The vivarium can be decorated with plastic plants if wished.
HEATING, LIGHTING AND TEMPERATURE
Brown House Snakes need daytime temperatures of 29 to 31 degrees centigrade at one end of the enclosure and 23 to 25 degrees centigrade at the other. Overall temperatures can be allowed to drop 3 or 4 degrees at night
The best way to heat a snake enclosure of this size is by placing a heat mat under the vivarium. This should cover between 1/3 and ½ the floor space and should be controlled by a thermostat to maintain the correct temperature. This creates a warm spot for your Brown House Snake to bask in when it needs too and leaves half the enclosure at a much cooler temperature allowing the snake a choice of temperatures at any given time.
Lighting is not necessary if your snake is kept in a room with a window and is a matter of choice. If you are using a large vivarium and find that extra heating is needed, you can install a low wattage bulb on the ceiling of your Brown House Snakes vivarium, on the same side of the enclosure as the heat mat to provide a little extra heat. Any bulb above 15w should be covered with a bulb guard to prevent thermal burns to your snake.
All lighting must be turned off at night. An inexpensive timer can be used to do this job for you. These can be bought from most hardware stores.
FEEDING
Brown House Snakes can be fed weekly on an appropriately sized mouse. The mouse should be roughly as thick as the snake at mid body. Feeding is not usually a problem with Brown House Snakes. The food can be fed with forceps or simply left in front of your snakes hide. A hungry Brown House Snake will actively prowl its enclosure when it wants feeding.
Frozen mice can be bought from most shops that sell snakes and can be thawed when needed. They come in several sizes including pinkies, fuzzies or fluffs, small/medium/large adults.
Brown House snakes are usually more likely to take food if you are feeding them at dusk.
SEX
To be sure of the sex of your Brown House Snake it will need to be 'popped' at a young age or 'probed' when it is older. If you are unfamiliar with these methods of sexing you should take your House snake to a vet to be sexed rather than attempting it yourself. It is worth asking your vet if you can do it yourself under his/her guidance so that you are familiar with the technique and can do it yourself in the future.
In general a male snakes tail will be longer and thicker than a females but this is not a completely reliable way of sexing your snake.
HANDLING
Brown House Snakes generally have a nice temperament and gentle disposition for handling, and are unlikely to bite. When handled from a young age these snakes become tame and easy to handle as adults.
GENERAL MAINTENANCE
Your Brown House Snakes enclosure should be checked for faeces on a daily basis and cleaned out completely with a reptile-safe disinfectant every month. All cage furniture should also be disinfected at this time and the substrate should be replaced.
A good cheap disinfectant is a solution of household bleach and water at a ratio of 4% bleach and 96% water. This can be sprayed and then wiped off the vivarium and cage furniture. It is very important that everything is then rinsed thoroughly with water and then allowed to dry before returning your House Snake to its enclosure.Your snake should be given fresh water at least twice weekly.
copyright-petsnakecare.net 2011
