Plains Hognose Snake Care Sheet

Life Span: 18+yrs

Housing: These snakes do very well in wooden vivarium's and tubs both, they are a relatively smaller species of snake and so don't require a massive enclosure. For the wooden enclosure a 3x2x2ft enclosure is the minimum size but the bigger the better, with a tub a 70ltr is plenty. Hognose snakes are natural burrowers and so need a big enough space to burrow within the enclosure, plenty of hides and some tubes to use as tunnels. 

Substrate: You can use a variety of substrate for these snakes, personally my hognose snakes do great on Lignocel bedding, but Aspen and woodchips are good options aswell. Again as these are burrowing animals you will need a large amount of substrate to allow the animal to show this natural behavior, the substrate should also be able to hold the shape of the tunnels created.

Heating: Either a bulb or a heat mat can work with these snakes however i find that heat mats work better. you will want the warm side of the enclosure to be around 32-34c and the cool side 25-27c. Always use a thermostat and if using a mat i would suggest a mat cover to stop the animal burrowing and laying directly onto the mat. 

UVB/Lighting: While UVB is not a necessity it will do no harm at all to add it to the enclosure, in fact you will most likely see small improvements in your animal.

Humidity: These animals have a relatively low humidity level at around 30-50%, they do need the higher humidity whenever they are in shed so a shed box and daily misting is recommended.

Diet and Water: Hognose snakes in the wild are toad eaters and so depending on who/where you get your snake they may already be transitioned onto mice, if not then they can be difficult to transition. Mice can make up a great diet to these snakes and i wouldn't recommend adding anything new to the diet as this can cause the animal to refuse food and lose interest as they are fussy eaters. A larger water bowl that allows the snake to soak is needed with daily water changes.   

Housing together: This is not a good idea at all, unless being used to breed these snakes should be solitary, even when breeding they need to be observed due to the risk of cannibalism in this species.