My Baby Wont eat

[Pete]

OK Here is todays situation I am not going to force feed him but I am stillo worried since someone told me I shouldnt touch it I got a new one and gave it to him He stalked it for a long time but wont eat it. I am going to take it to the vet tomarrow so we will see...ALSO If anyone here is from chicago Email me :Hiphopopotamus9@aol.com cause I have a couple questions and I am about to goto Loyola for college and I want to know how I would get into the herpetology field Hope to hear soon
<font size=1>[ This message was edited by: Pete on 2001-04-12 00:08 ]</font>

<font size=1>[ This message was edited by: Pete on 2001-04-12 12:27 ]</font>

<font size=1>[ This message was edited by: Pete on 2001-04-13 01:14 ]</font>

[Smok]

Hello Pete,

More info might help, what do you feed her? live/dead? how often? where? How does he live, and where? etc..

Don't worry, you'll get a lot of help here, and hopefully your baby will be eating soon.

[addsig]

[RavenLace]

Pete-
First off, there is no need to worry. Ball pythons are probably the most stubborn feeders out there. Often times, ball pythons will go off their feed during the winter months (October-May). Don't panic, this is quite normal! Ball pythons can go up to two years without eating and still be okay.

First off, what's the hot spot like? If it's too warm or too cold, that could be affecting his feed. Lay a thermometer right on top of the hot spot as if it was a snake laying on it. Leave it there for about 20 minutes and let me know what the temp is.

Second, the gerbil thing is a possibilty. Ball pythons come from Africa where jerboas (gerbils) are the main food source. You may very well have to train it to start taking mice again. To do this, just rub a mouse against a gerbil to get the gerbil's smell on it. If your snake doesn't take that, try feeding the gerbil to it first, then try a mouse directly after.

Also, your snake could be sick, but it is NOT likely. Check for ticks and mites, for they interrupt feedings. Also check for stomatitis (mouth rot). Mouth rot will look like cheesy goo on the gums of the snake. And last, your snake could have parasites. Check the stools of the snake. If it's very rancid, bloody, or mucus-laden then your snake has parasites (tapeworm, etc). This is very unlikely however, so not to worry. Unless your snake is losing dramatical weight at a fast pace, then you have nothing to fret over. [addsig]

	Mites Mites, close relatives of fleas and ticks

[Bry]

I agree with Raven. I wouldn't fret too much, if your ball passes all these health check-ups and the husbandry is the way it's supposed to be, then she'll come around soon enough. I acquired a Jungle Carpet Python in early October, and she finally started eating for me just a month ago. A 1-inch thick ball python that's about 1 1/2 feet long sounds about right. Have you noticed any weight loss? I didn't notice any weight loss in my JCP in that 5 months, but actually a weight and length gain. Going for food for long periods of time is no biggie for snakes. Ball pythons are often stubborn feeders.

Do you know if she was captive-bred or wild-caught? Wild-caught ball pythons have more feeding problems in captivity. If you bought her from a pet store, it's more likely she is wild-caught. Plus, if she was wild-caught, then you're more likely to have better luck with gerbils.

A small snake like yours is probably feeling stressed in a large cage. a 50-60 gal. cage is great for an adult, but might be a bit unnerving for a small baby. Try a 10 gal. or 20 long tank for your ball, and save the 50-60 for when she outgrows the 20 long.

Are you handling the food with your hands right before feeding? Try to limit hand contact to just the tail at the most. This worked for me, because my snake smells MOUSE, and not my hand. I tried every single trick in the book with my jungle carpet for 5 months. Then, one day I picked up the mouse and prekilled it and served it to the carpet using only tongs, and she finally took it. Ever since then, I've been doing only this, and she has eaten every time. Try this on feeding day, get back to me and let me know how it worked.

One last bit of advice, lose the hot rock because they produce very hot spots and your ball can get severly burned on it. Or at least cut the cord so you can keep it in the cage for decoration.

Check this out for husbandry and care requirements. Ball Python Venue


[addsig]

<font size=1>[ This message was edited by: Bry on 2001-04-12 06:30 ]</font>

	Geek Auto Linker or Gallon Geek Auto Linker Gallon - United States liquid unit equal to 4 quarts or 3.785 liters

Hi Pete;
I just read thru the posts here and basically...the cage size is way too large for your lil snake. Go with a smaller like bry said..a 10 or 20..or just section off the cage you have and use only half of it. Also guys..he said he just took it to the vet..uhh..that's covered all the way thru the mouth swabbing and came out healthy. Yes, you could need to train your snake to go back to mice..it could be stuck on the gerbils. Also make sure that he is drinking, so he doesn't dehydrate. [img]images/forum/icons/icon_eek.gif[/img] [addsig]

[JuliusSqueezer]

Here is what I do..works every time...pick him up by his neck and put his nose to yours and look him in the eye and say...."LOOK BUDDY, either you eat this $##@$%^$$# Mouse that I paid a buck twenty nine for RIGHT NOW or tomorrow I'm gonna be wearing a brand new pair of snake skin boots!!!! You got that? Huh? Do ya punk? Make my day you piece of %$#@## no legged ##$^^$##@$%^ sorry excuse for a serpent. Then gently put him back in with the mouse and look how fast that cute fuzzy lil mouse who in all reallity would make a much nicer pet...goes bye bye.

[RavenLace]

Pete-

GET THAT F***ING HOT ROCK OUT OF THAT TANK BEFORE BREAK YOUR NECK! I'M SERIOUS. HOT ROCKS ARE THE NUMBER ONE CAUSE OF BURNS TO A SNAKE! TAKE THAT #$%^&#$%^&#$%^&#$%^& THING and CUT THE CORD. NO JOKE! [img]images/forum/icons/icon_mad.gif[/img] [addsig]

<TABLE BORDER=0 ALIGN=CENTER WIDTH=85%><TR><TD><font size=-1>Quote:</font><HR></TD></TR><TR><TD><FONT SIZE=-1><BLOCKQUOTE>
On 2001-04-11 20:20, Pete wrote:
Hey all Can anyone help me My snake wont eat hasnt eaten since October...Baby ball python almost 1 1/2 really skinny he is 1 in thick I am really worried help please...OK he eats live mice small lives in a 50-60 gallon glass tank she has a heat pad and a heat rock two trees big water bowl a flourescent light and repti bark as substrate....eats once a week until october usually ate in a 1-3 hour period I let a friend take care of him while I went out of town and he couldnt find mice so fed it a gerbil that was aug could that be it??

ok I gave it a mouse yesterday and it hasnt eaten it yet...so I am gonna try the prekill thing and tempt her with the mouse if that works or doesent Ill let yall know also two days ago I took him to the veterinarian and they checked for mouth rot sex mites and outside parasites...so I know she is free of those.. thank you for the help hope to hear soon...

<font size=1>[ This message was edited by: Pete on 2001-04-12 00:08 ]</font>

<font size=1>[ This message was edited by: Pete on 2001-04-12 12:27 ]</font>
</BLOCKQUOTE></FONT></TD></TR><TR><TD><HR></TD></TR></TABLE><TABLE BORDER=0 ALIGN=CENTER WIDTH=85%><TR><TD><font size=-1>Quote:</font><HR></TD></TR><TR><TD><FONT SIZE=-1><BLOCKQUOTE> </BLOCKQUOTE></FONT></TD></TR><TR><TD><HR></TD></TR></TABLE>You dont have to worry Balls can go for months without feeding.
Ok has your snake shed yet? because they dont eat intell they have shed there first time. also have you tried to force-feed? plus Ball pythons are very picky eaters. You might want to try a gerbel or something! [img]images/forum/icons/icon_wink.gif[/img]

	Mites Mites, close relatives of fleas and ticks

[dallasjosh_69]

GET THE HOT ROCK OUT! THEY CAN CAUSE SERIOUS BURNS!! As they age, they begin to develop HOT spots that a young snake will lay on and severly burn themselves.
And the last person that posted is right, they can be very picky eaters and go months at a time without food. If you are that worried about malnutrition, see a vet. Maybe, MAYBE, discuss the possibility of force feeding, but this is extremely stressful on both owner and snake.
Just my .02[addsig]

[JuliusSqueezer]

I have gathered from previous posts that Pete is a youth type person. Be careful who you give any advice about forcefeeding...I can see some kid trying to ram a mouse down a snakes throat with the back of a wooden spoon....In the very best case scenerio he properly purees the mouse and then gets grounded for life for leaving mouse guts in his mom's blender.

[RavenLace]

Pete, can you be a little more clear? Your posts are kinda just sentence fragments thrown together to make one long run-on sentence. It's difficult to understand you. [img]images/forum/icons/icon_biggrin.gif[/img] [addsig]

[RoyalRazer]

Do you know if he/her is going through a shed cycle? snakes won't normally eat when about to shed.There eyes get cloudy and there skin goes dull in colour.
[addsig]

UMM Razor?? Ya dug up a post that is like a year old + some hehe.. I hope that snake has shed by now hehe


[addsig]