18
| PET GAZETTE | REPTILE
A FOCUS ON
EFFECTIVE DESIGN
FOR SNAKES
Continuing with thoughtful design
I
n the previous issue we
started to look at the
importance of effective
enclosure design, shape
and cage size with regards
to the provision of the third parameter of
overall nutrition, this being the provision of
positive physical and mental enrichment. I
suggested that the thoughtful provision of
naturalistic decoration, be that as being part
of a BioActive system, or not, (naturalistic
but not BioActive) would always provide an
environment in which an animal would be
able to - to a degree - exercise its body and
would be more likely to fi nd itself at home in
a lower stress environment. This would allow
the vital organs to function to a higher degree
as the body remained fi t and better exercised.
It would also help to lower the number of
potential stressors, thus keeping the harmful
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long term exposure to cortisol to a minimum.
By including physical and mental wellbeing
into the remit of nutrition, and then viewing
this as part of overall nutrition we accept that
these processes are indeed important, can be
built upon and then, by defi nition, will allow us
to see a greater level of positive change in the
animals in which we keep.
We are progressing at such a rate with
regard to species specifi c nutrition, in terms
of the food and water that they consume
and the levels of and pertinence of external
energy that we are able to provide them
with, that these animals are indeed able to
display a higher level of physical energy. This
energy is best spent well in order to keep the
animal fi t and well by the inclusion of a form of
decoration that is akin to its natural state and
within a size of enclosure that allows it to do
so effectively.
In this issue I would like to pay particular
interest to snakes and how we as keepers
and traders can help to design and build
enclosures that are of a suitable size and
orientation and that also include a range of
decoration that allows the snake to display
wild-like movement and behaviour. This is,
in my mind, a key and positive step forward
within this avenue of herpetoculture.
Sadly, many have historically kept snakes
in a very minimalist way, be that within racks,
tubs or shallow vivs. The seeming obsession
with the racking systems that were so
prevalent up until very recently was built upon
the theory that snakes could exist just as well
in reduced sized enclosures, that this may also
be better for them in terms of getting them
to feed and that an added bonus was that
the keeper could keep quite a few individual
snakes in the same or similar space as one
December 2018