Exo-Terra Cages

Unless you are handy with hot glue and a drill it really hasn't been possible to walk into a store and buy a "ready to go" Green Tree Python cage. Hagen changed all that when they introduced the Exo-Terra, a glass terrarium that is very well designed and quite a bargain.

This cage was at first viewed with some suspicion by the Green Tree Python community and the low price was part of the reason for that - we bought one late last summer just to see if it worked. It does and then some.

They range from 12" cubes to almost 24" cubes but typically Green Tree Python folks go for the PT-2605 Exo-Terra which is 18" x 18" x 18".

The street price on this unit is about $75 and it includes the fake rock styrofoam background. Hagen products are carried by all major pet stores and the big box places like Petsmart have thse units in stock.

Outfitting this cage is lots of fun and there are many options and ways to do it.

Substrate

Good old paper substrates will work fine in this unit but most folks don't use them because they aren't the most attractive. Cypress mulch can be a good choice but lots of folks have been having fun with different types of fish tank gravel, the large "river" stones are the most common and attractive choice.

If you want to enjoy that moving water sound this cage will support 3-4" of water in the bottom, that's how we have our unit setup here at Spruce Nubble Farm. You need to filter and heat the water and the styrofoam background will allow you to hide the units that do this work very well. The first step is to trim about an inch off the bottom of the background, this is best done with a razor blade so you need to be very careful. Once the background is trimmed it will be about an inch off the floor of the terrarium when installed. A submersible fishtank heater and small powerhead can then be hidden behind the background, here is a picture of our setup

Get the smallest powerhead available whihc will be more than sufficent for the job, smae thing on the heater. Please be sure to get a fully submersible heater , the other types won't work in this situation.

A large rock or two in the bottom will add dimension to your setup and they look good as well.

Heating the Cage

If you aren't using water in the bottom of your cage a simple under tank heater will do a good job of providing background heat. The Exo-Terra has a slightly raised bottom plate to accomodate your heater, just stick it to the outside of the cage.

A hot spot is created by using a small ceramic heat emitter, we have found that a 60-75 watt is more than enough to do the job. You'll need a fixture with a ceramic socket for this as well as a thermostat to connect it to.

Lighting

A simple 18" florescent fixture can be had at any big box store like Wal-Mart for about $15. You want to plug it into a timer which is around $10 at the same store. Something to be aware of is that pet stores sell assorted fish tank "lights" and "hoods" , most of which are quite attractive but they'll blow it for you if you are trying to create a low cost cage. There are also some really nice Exo-Terra stands that fall in the same category.

Remember, Green Tree Pythons do not require any special full spectrum light but some folks like to use them becasue they think it makes the snake look better. You want to set your timer so that the lights are on for 12 hours and off for 12 hours.

Perches

The folks at Hagen make flexible natural looking perches they call Jungle Vines, they are bendable and twistable so they can be lots of fun to install.

We'd recommned getting a few of each size, they look really good when they are twisted together. They come in small, medium, and large which denotes the thickness of the "vine".

Once you have decided how you want to put them together you can just bend them into a shape that will be supported from the floor of the enclosure.

Leaning your vine "leg" into the corner of the terrarium will giv iet more support and make sure your Green Tree Python won't disloge it or casue your perches to fall. IF this does happen it isn't a big dela, you just need to keep playing around until you find a shape that your snake likes and that will stay in place.

You want to be sure and have one section of the perches under the hot spot you created to give your snake a chance to expereicne the high temps they need for digestion and good overall health.

Humidity

Like all cages you need good gauges to measure your individual situation. Whether or not you use a water bottom and what the ambient humidity is in your home will have a serious impact on this issue. The way to make an "adjustable" vent for the Exo-Terra is to use a piece of plastic placed across the top screen. If you need more humidity cover more of the screen and if you need less then cover less - pretty simple.

We recommend misting once per day to achieve about 100% humidity in the cage, ideally the cage should "dry" back out to about 50% over the next day before you spray again. Generaly spekaing it is better to err on the side of "too wet" than "too dry".

Shopping List

-Hagen Exo-Terra PT-2605 Terrarium ($75)
-Gravel or Cypress Mulch Substrate ($10)
-Large rocks for the bottom of the cage if you want them ($10)
-Submersible fish tank heater and powerhead if you want a water bottom ($35)
-Water bowl if you don't use a water bottom ($5)
-Assorted Jungle Vines (at least 3) for perches ($25)
-Small cermic heat emitter, 60-75 watts ($20)
-Fixture with a ceramic socket for the emitter ($12)
-A Thermostat with probe ($35)
-18" florescent light and timer ($25)
-Temperture and Humidity Gagues ($15)
-An empty spray bottle ($5)

The above list = $267.

You can get fancy or stay simple, many of the choices are just about what look you like.

Finished Cage