Smartie's Bar & Grill #75

No, you're right. I don't believe in the devil.
I'd rather have a pet rat than a pet snake though.

 

Well, he seems friendly but risking a bite from a wild rat is asking for it, right? I would say leather gloves but will it freak out if tamed with gloves only to have bare human hands handling?

To be tamed, they need as much handling as possible when young.

 

Went for a 6 mile trip to check out a supposed reptile cage I saw on FB. Claimed she was asking 200$ but "came down" to 100$

I offered 40$ (and felt that was too much) she balked and would not budge. It was homebuilt and roughly so. It was obvious it had sat outdoors some time. She offered to spray it out with a hose as a rabbit had been kept inside. The wood was crap. Personally? Id'a felt a fool for parting with 40$.

On my way home, I found a yard sale and inspiration struck. Found a nice, large filing cabinet for 10$. I'm going to make a very nice cage from it. Remove the drawers, cut out some sheet metal for windows of plexiglass. Maybe weld or use sheet metal screws where needed. 1/4 hardware mesh top. Sliding door track on the front, double doors. I think I shall post a photogenic thread in the near future on the build.

She's going to regret not taking the 40$. I'm glad she did not. She will watch it (continue) to rot in the yard. Glad it worked out.

 

Yellow rat snake doing it's thing. AKA..."chicken snake" will eat eggs and chicks.....But, chicken keepers call it the "rat tax". This one constricting a rat.

 

I usually build my own cages. A 55 gallon aquarium works for some stuff. This is the inside of a 90 gallon tank built of auto glass and mirror glass. I put triangle braces in for support. If I ever move it the task will require help and silicone to reseal the thing.

 

You can see the crayfish in this pick. Since fall is coming on they should "berry up".....Meaning have little crayfish. I lost a bunch of little ones last year, but got a couple survivors. Would like to save a couple hundred this year. I also have pools outside with crayfish.....cant count them.

 

Nicely done. My snake is in a 55 gallon, just want a more specific enclosure. A basking light (average one) is to high to be useful sitting on a screen lid atop a 55 and I dont want the lamp inside, this filing cabinet (turned on it's side) will have tons of horizontal room (and perfect height for exterior lamp)

The vertical space of a 55 is wasted on many reptiles.

 

That's alot of water! I found my 55 sitting at someone's curb. I did not trust it for a fish tank indoors so I set it up on my porch...good thing, a few months later I went outside one morning and it had an inch of water left inside.

At that moment, it became a terrarium. Cool crayfish, had one in a tank near two years before he returned to The Source

 

My outside pools have bluegill and a different kind of crayfish caught with a hook and line.

 

I always re silicone my tanks. I have a 40 gal with Angelfish. They are bigger now.

 

Well, obviously the snake's got to eat something. But as long as you can get it another mouse, I have heard that rats are smarter than mice, and know that "rat-people," if you don't mind the term, are quick to praise them as the superior rodent, for a pet. So if you like him(?), there's no reason you can't have both a rat & a snake. Though, I'd move them to different rooms, at least when it was the snake's dinner time; seeing that vignette play out repeatedly, so close at hand, might give your rat a nervous neurosis.

 

Or it could be that the first syllable of Hortense, is "whore." Was the rise in popularity of that term, coincident with the name Hortense, falling out of favor?

 

@FatBack

If you like the thrill of taking risks, you should get that kayak of yours out in the Gulf, soon. Ida's waves should probably be reaching Florida, in not too long, don't you think?

 

There is, of course, a third option, assuming you are a fan of game meat; and are a bit hungry.

 

I can get other mice but they cost 5 bucks and a 30 mile drive to the next county. I have a live mouse trap but have not caught any lately.

Still thinking on it, a wild rat is obviously a risk to handle. I shall continue isolated observation with gloved interaction.

 

I'm good, my "weekend" starts at 6 am.
Might just give the old van a break, stay home and fabricate this cage. Besides, it sucks to drive the 50 miles only to see red tide.

 

That's interesting. You've noticed a connection between hurricanes, even hundreds of miles away, and red tides?

 

Yep, pretty sure they don't cause it but they do help to spread it. I think the damn phosphate industry is responsible for the Lion's share of it

 

I would be VERY careful to be thorough in constructing a snake cage from a filing cabinet. Most of them have rather large openings in the back that are actually hidden from your view. Remember that even a fairly large snake can fit through a half inch opening

Most of the better snake cages I have seen are dry aquariums . Make sure there are provisions so it can get air.

Do cats regularly hunt snakes? I have only recently had my little cat pass away and for the last few months my house has been catless for the first time in decades. I have also recently noticed snakes both in the basement and in several closets Could there be a relation?

Snakes, I have been told, go in mortal terror of humans

 

I'm going to give it a good thorough checking out I'm going to be cutting out some steel for the windows on the side and adding a quarter inch hardware mesh top and inspecting closely for any of these nooks and crannies but so far up on initial inspection it looks to be suitable. My plan is to put two sliding glass doors on the front of it this is assuming I can find the tracks to go on it if I can't find them possibly I can improvise some.

If you've got snakes in the house my only guess would be there must be some food source that's attracting them?

 

Ah...beer thirty and my weekend begins. I only had to stay 20 minutes over before my relief mosied on in at her leisure.

 

Happy Monday y'all. Doing an Ida ck... everybody OK? @daisydotell

 

I,on the udder hand usually stay away from cages.One reason I don't
cotton the Zoo.I can't stand seeing animals { God's creatures } caged-up.
It reminds me of Grade school and being caged up in a classroom
with Nuns who like to act as if God's little helpers.

 

We were lucky we only got a bit of rain and some wind nothing major.

 

The electric line tree cutter people are having a field day at my house today. Now mind you I am not complaining. I always welcome free labor, especially tree work. They asked for permission to take down some trees that aren't technically growing into the lines but sure will be taking those lines down at some point in the future but for their removal. I had actually gotten quotes from my tree people for them, so it is like winning the pick three to get them removed for free.