Hognose Enrichment: They Were Asked, and They Chose
Researchers let western hognose snakes pick between an enriched side and a standard one. They chose enrichment, and the preference got stronger over time.
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Hognose Enrichment: They Were Asked, and They Chose
Most enrichment research measures what an animal does. The hognose study did something better: it let the snakes vote. For everything else about the species, see our complete Hognose Snake care guide.
Given a choice between an enriched side and a standard one, with shelters and a thermal gradient on both, western hognose snakes chose the enriched side, and the preference got stronger as the study went on. Boldness did not predict it. Every snake leaned the same way.
What the Research Actually Says
Nagabaskaran, Skinner and Miller set up a preference test. The enriched side had burrowing substrate, interactive stimuli and a large water dish. The standard side had paper towel substrate and a smaller dish. Crucially, both sides had shelters and a thermal gradient, so what was being compared was enrichment on top of adequate husbandry rather than enrichment against neglect.
The snakes preferred the enriched side, and the preference strengthened over time. It was stronger still when the enriched side happened to be the cooler one, which the authors connect to hognose burrowing behavior. No relationship was found between enrichment preference and individual boldness.
A preference that grows over the course of a study is worth more than a first-day result. Novelty produces investigation once. A strengthening preference suggests the animal worked out which side was better and kept choosing it.
Substrate You Can Vanish Into
The hognose rostral scale is an upturned, shovel-shaped digging tool. A snake on paper towel is carrying specialised equipment it will never use.
Give it enough loose burrowing substrate to disappear into completely, not merely to push around. Depth is the variable, and a mix that holds a tunnel rather than collapsing does the job better than any single material. Other quantities are available, and a proper depth needs more than one bag. Our tank setup guide covers the gradient this sits under.
Put the Digging on the Cool Side
This is the most transferable detail in the study. The preference was stronger when the enriched side was cooler, which means substrate depth and thermal choice reinforce each other when you place them together rather than competing.
Practically: deep substrate on the cool end, basking surface on the warm end, cover at both. The snake never has to choose between the temperature it wants and the behavior it wants.
A Water Dish Big Enough to Get Into
The enriched side in the study included a large water dish, and that word is doing work. A dish the snake can enter supports shedding and hydration and gives the animal an option it controls, which is the whole shape of enrichment for a reptile.
Cover at Both Ends
Two secure hides minimum, one warm and one cool, so being concealed never costs the snake its preferred temperature. Cork tubes and flats plus leaf litter break the floor up further, so the snake has cover everywhere rather than only in two boxes.
Hognoses are famous for their defensive theatre: hooding, hissing, and rolling over to play dead. Those are anti-predator responses, and a snake that performs them constantly during routine keeping is reporting something. Cover reduces how often it feels the need. Our handling guide covers reading those displays properly.
Priority Order
- Substrate deep enough to burrow into completely
- Deep substrate placed on the cool side, since that is what the study found preferred
- A water dish large enough to soak in
- Secure cover at both ends of the gradient
- Scent novelty and varied feeding presentation
- Rearrangement and objects, last
What Not to Do
Do not keep a burrowing species on paper towel long-term, since that is the exact condition the study's standard side represented. Do not put the deep substrate on the warm end, which pits two preferences against each other. Do not read the hooding display as personality, because it is a threat response. Do not handle a hognose that is mid-dig, which interrupts the behavior the enclosure exists to allow. And see our health issues guide before assuming a snake refusing food is understimulated rather than unwell.
For the rest of their care, see our Hognose cost guide, handling guide, and tank setup guide, or browse the rest of our Snakes care guide category.
Sources & Further Reading
4 sources
- Nagabaskaran G, Skinner M and Miller N (2022). Western hognose snakes (Heterodon nasicus) prefer environmental enrichment
- Burghardt GM (2013). Environmental enrichment and cognitive complexity in reptiles and amphibians. Applied Animal Behaviour Science, 147, 286-298
- Hutchings (2025). Recent scientific insight into the spatial needs of captive snakes. International Journal of Zoology
- Hoehfurtner et al. (2021). Does the provision of environmental enrichment affect the behaviour and welfare of captive snakes? Applied Animal Behaviour Science
❓ Frequently Asked Questions
Is there research on hognose enrichment specifically?
Yes. Nagabaskaran, Skinner and Miller ran a preference test on western hognose snakes, offering an enriched side with burrowing substrate, interactive stimuli and a large water dish against a standard side with paper towel and a small dish. Both sides had shelters and a thermal gradient, so the comparison was enrichment rather than basic husbandry. The snakes preferred the enriched side, and the preference strengthened over time.
Why does it matter that the preference got stronger?
Because it rules out novelty. A snake investigating something new once tells you little. A preference that grows across the study suggests the animal is learning the enriched side is genuinely better and choosing it deliberately.
Why did the cooler enriched side get preferred more?
The authors link it to hognose burrowing behavior. A burrowing species is naturally drawn to cooler, deeper conditions, so putting the diggable substrate on the cool side aligns two preferences instead of forcing a trade between them.
How deep should hognose substrate be?
Deep enough to disappear into completely, not just to push through. These are dedicated burrowers with an upturned rostral scale adapted for digging, and shallow substrate removes the behavior the snout is built for.
Does boldness affect whether a snake uses enrichment?
The study found no relationship between enrichment preference and individual boldness levels, so a shy hognose is not opting out of enrichment. Every snake in the study leaned the same direction.
Is the hognose defensive display a stress signal?
Hooding, hissing and playing dead are anti-predator responses, and a snake performing them regularly during routine keeping is telling you something. Reducing how often a snake feels it needs them is a fair welfare goal, and secure cover plus depth to retreat into is how you get there.
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Written by Michael Ryan
Mike keeps two rescued bearded dragons, Dex and Cera, and writes the care guides on BeastlyFacts from his own research and mistakes. He is not a veterinarian.
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