Whats a WC bull snake? I'm sure the WC is in reference to the area of the country I'm in, but what does it stand for?
WC = wild caught
How long should he be soaked and how often?
Put him in a container with a small amt of water, and let him soak for an hour or so. There are multiple approaches after that - ranging from putting him in a damp pillowcase, putting a wet towel in the enclosure, wetting down the substrate , etc.[/quote]
I'm of the mindset that if it doesn't happen readily in nature that it probably shouldn't be attempted in captivity. I can't think of anything in nature that would approximate being tied up in a wet pillowcase.
Nature doesn't normally subject them to too dry conditions to the extent that they can't properly shed, either....
Temp range is varied right now. Previous advice told me to cool him down to appropriate "brumation" temps, so he's in the basement with daytime temps in the mid 80's and nighttime temps in the upper 50's.
You're confusing the heck out of him, lol. Warm temps during the day, and brumation temps at night is not a situation I would choose - sure, it happens in nature; but if you want to keep them that way, you have to expect them to respond the way they would in the wild. Either warm him up or cool him down.
Are you familiar with wild or captive bred bull snakes?
Yes.
And is there much of a difference in your opinion?
Yes, Captive bred is the way to go
From what I've read captive bred snakes are generally more docile and easy to care for than wild, as well as healthier overall.
Not much difference in terms of care, IMO. Bulls (pits, in general), tend to be hissy and put on aggressive displays...that's part of their charm. Some will mellow significantly with time, some calm down with handling, and some will always fuss to some extent. It's part of keeping them. WC seem to be jumpier though, and more inclined to follow through with their threats (at least by making more serious threats, if not actually biting). Another generalization would be that CB animals tend to be in better condition than WC...more stable temps, healthier prey, more regular feedings, treatment of parasites - the things that go along with maintaining animals in captivity - are all contributory.
How do I manage sheds that aren't coming off?
see comments above. Personally, I tend to soak, then wet down substrate; or soak and peel.
How do I (or should I) brumate/hibernate him? Start/stop months? Overall brumation temps?
Brumation is their down time. Not strictly required, but many people swear by it (I've seen articles theorizing that not brumating colubrids decreases their longevity, but I don't recall seeing any studies that provided evidence of that). The object is to cool them enough to slow their metabolism...to simulate their winter denning conditions. I simply move mine to the basement. It's usually around 60-65 when I bring them down, and (depending on the winter) will go as low as 45-50 at times. I usually keep them down for 10-12 weeks. When I bring them back upstairs, I don't add supplemental heat for a few days, but will usually offer food within a day or two (my house is usually 70-72, because I keep a variety of snakes in different areas).
Since you think he's reacting to seasonal changes outside than I guess it would make sense that whatever I do he will slow down thru the winter, right?
The changes could be indoors or out - temperatures decrease indoors and out, changing light cycles, etc are factors. This is his first season out of the wild, and the conditions are somewhat sporadic - as I said before, his body doesn't know what to do with the conditions it is encountering.
From what I've read, snake owners will weigh food and track feeding and growth. Is this overkill or should I consider it?
Personally, I don't do that with any of my snakes. I track feeding with hatchlings until they are around 3 months old, then I tend to drift away from that and make note of exceptions - ie when something skips a couple feedings in a row, unusual defecation, retained or skipped shed, etc
Does he require UVA/UVB light? From what I've read, some people think that incandescent is fine.
There are mixed opinions on this. Mine get ambient light from the windows, or the room lights, depending on where in the house they are.
What should humidity level be like? It's dry in my house, especially in the winter.
Bulls are fairly tolerant of humidity (or the lack of) - they occur in a wide range of habitat throughout the middle to western US. I rarely have problems as long as they have water available at all times. I try to keep my house at least 35-40% RH through the winter, though, both for the snakes and my own comfort.
