Providing the general needs of any snake species is critical in keeping it healthy and long living. Chondros were once thought to be a difficult species to keep in captivity, but once the techniques of general care were learned this has been proven otherwise. In my opinion, this species is one of the easiest I have ever kept. You will find that the information listed on this website is pretty standard around the chondro community. Most people will use the same types of setups, with small variations to accommodate their preferences.

Housing

I keep my hatchlings in 3 gallon Rubbermaid/Sterilite tubs in a rack setup. Each rack is heated using flexwatt or heat rope and are kept around 85 degrees on the warm side and 80 degrees on the cool side. I use newspaper as a substrate because it's cheap, and very easy to replace. I do not like to use other types of substrate such as cypress mulch, coconut bedding, and other types of loose substrate. This type of substrate can look great in a nice display cage, but over the years I have learned that keeping the cage simple has been easier to keep clean. The reason for this is sometimes it is very hard to see any fecal matter, and I do not want the substrate to stick to a thawed mouse. Plastic coat hangers are used for perches and I arrange them in a way so they are held up by the edges of the tubs. Humidity is easy to maintain in this type of setup and should be kept around moderate to high during the day. Constant humidity will cause mold so a period of dryer air during the late night hours is preferable. A brief spraying in the morning to let the humidity rise will work great. During shed times, I spray more heavily and keep the cage at high humidity until the snake is finished shedding. I tend to not trust any of the hygrometers that are sold as they are not very accurate, but you can put in a cheap unit to have a general idea. There are more expensive units out there to measure the humidity but they are not necessary. If you get a foggy look on the plastic, glass or plexi-glass of the tub or cage, the humidity should be close. If it disappears early then you will need to increase your spraying or cut down on air circulation.  You will need to drill holes in the tubs to allow for air exchange. You will have to determine how much air exchange you will need based upon where you live.

Yearlings are kept in very similar setups as hatchlings, but the tubs are approximately 5 gallons with PVC perches 1 inch in diameter. Only one perch is used.

I keep all my adults in larger type display cages. Most adults are kept in 24x18x18 plastic cages from Boaphile Plastics. This is ample room for even the biggest females. I use a mix of Helix heat panels and Pro Product heat panels in all of my adult cages. The panels are attached on the top portion of the cage, either on the left half or the right half. This will allow for the proper heat gradient and the ability of your snake to thermo regulate. This type of heating is perfect for  high humidity environments and the panels will not get hot enough to burn your snake.

Feeding

I feed all my chondros when the lights have been off for about two hours. I use a 12 hour light cycle, since chondros are found very close to the equator. The lights turn on at 9:00am and turn off at 9:00pm. Most of my chondros will eat during the day, but I do not want them associating daytime cleaning activity with feeding.  Hatchlings are fed every 4-6 days. This is kept up for the first 20-30 meals, which I believe is critical in having the snakes as well established as possible. Yearlings are fed around every 7 days and adults are fed around 10-14 days. All my snakes are fed with frozen thawed mice and rats.

Cleaning

I use several different items when I clean the tubs and cages. Virosan is used to disinfect the tubs on a routine basis. I also use a 10% bleach solution for water bowls that have been defecated in and will use this on the tubs once a month. You should keep a regular cleaning schedule on all your snakes. Having clean water bowls and fresh water will keep your snake happy.