Maybe I should call him Steve McQueen because I just got him settled in after his great escape!
I decided to move him to a 10 gallon tank since he seems more comfortable now, give him room to stretch his legs (so to speak
). His old -- and now current -- cage is about half the size of a 10 gal, which is fine until he gets to two feet long. Got another few inches to go.
Anyway, less than 12 hours later, and he found a way out of it. I got off work early and didn't see him right away so took the lid off and started removing his hiding places. They like to hide most of the time, no big deal. I only got half the stuff out when I started thinking "he's not in here". And I was right!
My jungle of a bedroom never looked so cramped and full while I was expanding the search radius from his table and beyond. There's a laundry basket with clothes to the right, and a closet with a pile of clothes and other junk in it to the left. Which one to search first? I figured he got out through the left corner, since there was a telltale spot of poo under it (I
know it was a tight fit getting out, he needed to make room lol), so went left into the closet.
Looked in the easy places first (in shoes, behind a box) before diving into the pile of clothes. It's tricky searching for him in clothes. He could be under them, but more likely, he's IN them. I was picking up each shirt and whatever and carefully shaking it out and setting it aside when it didn't release any sneaky reptiles. After three shirts I uncovered the floor just in time to see a tail slithering away, and I grabbed it.
I didn't think he was so strong or fast... I was holding onto him as gently as I could, but I could feel his little bones popping! Without hands, he somehow had a really good grip on a piece of clothing, but he was no match for me and my dexterity -- I got him out. He was cold, but fine. Nothing broken.
So back to his smaller tub. No frills, just a few hides and a water dish. No food, one week. They're easily stressed out and I imagine this got him nice and wound up. Trying to feed him when he's stressed could mean he won't eat, or worse, he'll eat and regurgitate later, and that's life threatening for him.
Phew! Too much excitement for both of us!