Horned adder — Fact Sheet

Bitis caudalis · Horned adder

📋 At a glance

🏠 Enclosure

• Minimum 90 x 45 x 45 cm for one adult in a locked, escape-proof venomous room.
• Two positively lockable shifts, protected service port and independently locked doors.
• Substrate and cover must follow known locality; never sacrifice full visual accounting.
• House singly; never free-handle and never service an open occupied compartment.

🪨 Enclosure furniture

• Secure warm, cool and slightly humid retreats; anchor all rock, branch and shrub cover.
• Keep the snake fully separable from water, waste and lock maintenance.
• Label species, individual, count, venom hazard, emergency contacts and bite-plan location.

💡 Lighting

• Broad visible light for 10-12 hours, then complete darkness.
• Optional measured Ferguson Zone 1 UVB over part of the enclosure, with full shade.
• Guard or externally mount every lamp; replace UVB by measured output or maker guidance.

🌡️ Temperature

• Basking spot: 30-33 °C

• Warm zone: 23-28 °C

• Cool zone: 20-23 °C

• Night: 16-21 °C

• Measure air, surface and substrate separately; thermostat every heat source.

• No heat rocks, under-substrate heat or unguarded lamps.

💧 Humidity & water

• Background 30-50%; local shedding support 50-65%, with ventilation.
• Clean, stable bowl serviced only after protected shifting.
• Follow locality and recorded sheds; never keep the whole substrate wet.

🐁 Diet

Core:

• Appropriately small frozen-thawed whole vertebrate prey every 10-14 days, adjusted by weight.

Limit:

• Rodent size and frequency; these small ambush vipers become obese readily.

Avoid:

• Live rodents, wild-collected prey, hand-feeding and unsupervised force-feeding.

Supplements:

• None for suitable whole vertebrate prey.

💤 Seasonal management

• Do not cool an animal of unknown provenance.
• Match only a documented lineage’s cycle; monitor weight, hydration and all temperatures.
• Do not expose captive animals to wild weather extremes or breed an unfit female.

🩺 Health — warning signs

• Open-mouth breathing, bubbles or abnormal sounds → urgent respiratory assessment.
• Swelling, discharge or retained shed → protected veterinary examination.
• Sustained weight loss or refusal → review prey, locality climate and parasites.
• Bite → emergency services and hospital immediately; no home treatment or home antivenom.

Use a veterinarian experienced with venomous reptiles and a pre-agreed hospital plan.