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care of slow worm: |
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samthechef666 Member Joined: 08 Sep 2003 No. of posts: 1  View other posts by samthechef666 |
Posted: 08 Sep 2003 can anyone give me any info on the care of a captive slow worm? i got one given the person has had it for 3 years, its approx 7 inches long. apart fromkeeping the ground moist and feeding worms, they didnt say anything about it.
can anyone tell me about this lizard? sam |
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GemmaJF Admin Group Joined: 25 Jan 2003 No. of posts: 2090  View other posts by GemmaJF |
Posted: 09 Sep 2003 Hi, Slow-worms are reported to live long lives in captivity, and should be relatively easy to keep. I'm not sure the advice regarding damp substrate is right, it may lead to blisters forming. I would use a dry substrate but provide a hide box (ice-cream tub with half a side cut-out) filled with damp sphagnum moss. Slow-worms spent most of their time hidden, so a deep substrate in which the animal can bury itself would be ideal. They also bask (though not often in the open) so some form of temperature gradient should be provided, lighting should be subdued. They will take most suitably sized invertebrates, I believe they particularly like small species of white slug, giving plenty of variety being the most important consideration. Gemma Fairchild, Independent Ecological Consultant |
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Maricia Member Joined: 17 Sep 2003 No. of posts: 3  View other posts by Maricia |
Posted: 20 Sep 2003 Regarding the care of slow worms in captivity, I have 2 baby ones about 2 wks old. You mention watching the temperature.Can you give me more info. Are they OK outside in an ice-cream box etc. as you describe. My box is inside a large wahing up bowl. How big should the slugs be as these are only babies. How do you know what sex they are? Your help would be appreciated. |
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GemmaJF Admin Group Joined: 25 Jan 2003 No. of posts: 2090 View other posts by GemmaJF |
Posted: 20 Sep 2003 I personally do not agree with the taking of a gravid female from the wild. Putting that aside - At this stage the slow-worms being quite tiny should perhaps be offered commercially available hatchling or "pinhead" crickets. Also you may offer ôsweepingsö collected by brushing a butterfly net through shrubs. Anything that is small enough that they can actually eat them. Collecting aphids from rose stems is another option, if chemicals have not been used in the area. At this small size keeping in a well ventilated ice cream tub would be OK, however you have to decide if you wish to keep the animals or are just watching them for a while. Further, if they are outside in a tub they cannot protect themselves from frost and if in sunlight it will rapidly over heat. If keeping them long term in captivity: You will need to provide a heat source in a properly designed vivarium, they can not generate their own body heat. I would suggest as the determined selected temperature for slow worms is 23C (source given elsewhere) some form of heating is provided as the animals attain a greater size so that they may thermo-regulate normally. (This is important for digestion and other body functions) A heat source giving a "hot spot" temperature of say 25-28C will allow the animals to warm themselves. By placing this heat source to one end of a vivarium a temperature gradient will be formed giving a cool end where the animals may cool-off. As a rule of thumb, if the animals use the heat source all day it is too cool, if they hide at the opposite end, too hot. Each set-up will vary. I have no idea how to sex a neonate slow-worm, as they grow males usually loose the dark vertebral stripe and markings on the flanks, females retain these. Once a year or two old, they usually are getting easier to distinguish. If you have a garden, why not make it a suitable place for native reptiles to live, this is much more interesting than trying to keep them alive in tubs Gemma Fairchild, Independent Ecological Consultant |
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Maricia Member Joined: 17 Sep 2003 No. of posts: 3 View other posts by Maricia |
Posted: 21 Sep 2003 Thank you for advice re the baby slow worms. The female was found whilst we were on holiday & we had no idea she was pregnant. My son-in-law brought her back to show his small children & was going to take her back from whence she came, the following day. However, the next morning she produced her offspring, a total of 11. We took care of them to make sure they were OK & then put them back except for 2 which we have kept. We do not intend to keep them for ever, but they are small & we feel sorry for them! Have got some meelie worms & will sweep some bushes as you suggest. Do not think we could really make our garden a haven for reptiles, etc. Will they be OK without heat for the time being? Many thanks for your advice. |
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Gemma Fairchild Krag Committee Joined: 14 Feb 2003 No. of posts: 193 View other posts by Gemma Fairchild |
Posted: 22 Sep 2003 Hi Maricia, I didn't mean to sound harsh, I wish the conservation status of native reptiles was such that collection wasn't a problem, unfortunately it can be in my mind. (I find that slow-worms out in the open during August/September are often gravid females trying to get as much basking done as possible before the big day  )
As they are in a tub, the easiest way to look after them is to keep them indoors at room temperature, with a drop in temperature at night. Do take the lid off occasionally though to ensure the air remains fresh. If you have a thermometer, try to ensure they are positioned where the optimimum temperature of 23C isn't exceeded, but is achieved for part of the day. ----RAUK e-Forum---- 
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Caleb Forum Coordinator Joined: 17 Feb 2003 No. of posts: 448 View other posts by Caleb |
Posted: 22 Sep 2003 Gemma- have you actually managed to feed slow worms on crickets, sweepings etc? I kept slow worms many years ago, and adults would only ever accept slugs or earthworms. I did try to rear neonates once- it was extremely difficult to find enough food for them, as they would only take tiny earthworms which were chopped into pieces, or tiny slugs. I gave up in the end, and released them. A friend of mine also tried to rear some, with similar results. Dave Billings wrote an article in the BHS Bulletin in the early 80s (I think) on care of slow worms in captivity- if I remember correctly, his method for feeding the young was to supply them with lumps of soil or leaf litter that would contain organisms they could eat. |
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Gemma Fairchild Krag Committee Joined: 14 Feb 2003 No. of posts: 193 View other posts by Gemma Fairchild |
Posted: 22 Sep 2003 Hi Caleb, I've not tried feeding them anything since I was about 8 years old 
I think I took the same route and released them fairly quickly in a compost heap, I guess a good source of tiny white worms. Maricia, I think your best option would be to release them. Slow-worms often live in gardens and allotments with compost heaps totally undetected, they are very small when born, but as Caleb points out, they are difficult to feed in captivity - they will grow more quickly if released back to the wild. ----RAUK e-Forum----
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- care of slow worm |
