Seems Rather Inactive?

[BuddhaLuv]

I tried to research some old posts about my current issue (no issue?) but the one I did find was from 2007 and when Dr. Del replied the original poster never did.... sigh. It fit my question perfectly too LOL. So here we go...

My adult male BP has been acting very different the last week or so. He's usually pretty active at rearranging his viv which is how I know he's been out and about in the evenings. However, the last week or two I haven't noticed him doing anything really. He stays in the same hide. His last meal was a med. f/t rat 4 weeks ago. It isn't unusal for him to have a good several months of feeding and then stopping so this didn't really cause me to worry. He hasn't had any urates for a couple weeks. He is an older guy (not sure exact age). His last shed was 10/5/09 and he pooped 10/6/09. I have only had him since 4/27/09.

I took him out tonight and put him in a tub just so that I could clean out his viv and normally he always cruises around his tub. However, tonight he simply stayed coiled and actually buried his head when I tapped him lightly. His belly looks maybe sorta kinda peachish LOL. Eyes are not blue though. When I put him back into his viv it seemed as though he wasn't seeing very well though. He would lightly run into a leaf and then duck etc.. till he went into his other hide.

Shed coming soon maybe? Any ideas? I am such a paranoid snake mama that I started tearing up tonight.......sigh.

Oh his cool side temp stays around 74 and his warm side between 88 and 90.

[mpkeelee]

the last week or two I haven't noticed him doing anything really. He stays in the same hide. His last meal was a med. f/t rat 4 weeks ago.
His belly looks maybe sorta kinda peachish LOL. Eyes are not blue though. When I put him back into his viv it seemed as though he wasn't seeing very well though. He would lightly run into a leaf and then duck etc.. till he went into his other hide.

Shed coming soon maybe? Any ideas? I am such a paranoid snake mama that I started tearing up tonight.......sigh.

Oh his cool side temp stays around 74 and his warm side between 88 and 90.

maybe now that he is nice and settled in and knows his surroundings he feels secure enough to hide out most of the time and just chill out.
i never see mine unless i go in there and pull her out

after his last meal 4 wks ago have u tried offering and he just refused??

hes prolly getting ready to shed to bump up the humidity and let him do his thing. just keep an eye on him for any concerning changes and see a vet if u get too worried. nothing wrong with an exam once in a while

[dr del]

Yeah,

I seem to have the habit of killing threads.

I think your lil guy could be going into shed mode as you suspect.

The peach colour was kind of even and all along his belly?

No red spots or anything?

I'd make a point of peeking at him over the next 5 days or so to see if he goes blue.

I found my snakes eat on a more regular basis once I moved on to small rats rather than larger meals but even then my males are being kind of picky just now.

The big male will happily eat two mice every week but will turn his nose up at rats of any size, the lesser has refused his rat two weeks running and last night the black pastel (only 366g bless his little cotton socks ) decided he didn't want either the usual mouse or the small ASF I was trying to tempt my non-started hatchlings with.

I do have one big female with small follicles so I am hoping that her scent is the reason the lesser is being fussy. The big male was always in love with mice and occasionally finiky about rats. And I think the little black pastel is just being a spoiled little brat.


dr del

[mpkeelee]

if u werent so knowledgeable u wouldnt kill threads! lol im just kidding. we love it when u help us, please continue.

[BPelizabeth]

I think he might be getting ready for a shed as well. Mine get really mellow and just want to lay with us when we take them out. This is prior to going blue as well. They each look different when they are getting ready for a shed but they all have the same actions.....they don't do anything. Sometimes Elizabeth will act like this for almost 2 weeks prior to the actual shed.

[BuddhaLuv]

Dr. Del- You thread killer, you I just find it interesting that some take the time to ask but then if the question requires more info...poof, they disappear The peach color was pretty much even and all along his belly from what I could see. Definately no red spots though or anything else funky looking. I am hoping you are right that he just may be prepping to shed. I will check him during the next week and let you know how he's doing and if any changes occur.

The last time Tanveer refused feed for 4 months straight! That is probably why I am not panicked over just 4 weeks LOL. I must say that this forum saved my sanity at that time though and I didn't have any breakdowns LOL. He is the first snake I have ever owned and I have learned so much here! I just kept offering him food on a weekly basis and finally he gave in Maybe I should offer him a small rat and see if he'll take it. It's sort of a game then with feeding them isn't? They are little control freaks LOL. If I were to switch to small rats would I feed him less then every 12 days then?

Mpkeelee- I have offered him a rat every 5 days or so and he has just been totally uninterested. I bumped up his humidity after I read your responses Maybe he is just all snuggly and waiting around to shed. He has atleast been moving in his hide here and there. How often would a big guy shed normally? He is about 1300 grams and a bit over 3 feet.

Thanks sooooo much for your replies!!!! I would have replied yesterday but I ended up playing pirate poker and had a bit too much Rum

[BuddhaLuv]

Guess what??!!!! He's shedding!!!!!!!!!!!!! Yippee!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thank you both soooooooo much! You really calmed my fears the last couple days. He is definately movin and groovin now

[Moofins07]

Yay! I love it when things get resolved.

Sometimes they can be sneaky little stinkers and we'll miss the blue phase entirely. The first shed my little girl had with me, her blue lasted at least three days. Her next shed, she was like, "I'm in and then I'm out." She was blue for only 12 hours or so, I swear.

Snakes.

[BuddhaLuv]

Moofins,

The first shed Tanveer had with me was also the only time I have seen him the blue phase LOL. You are right, they are sneaky! I was getting pretty worried about him because he is usually such a busy body late at night. He'd make a great set designer in Hollywood So a couple weeks ago when he stopped coming out I knew something had to be up LOL.

He had a complete shed, pooped plus had urates all this evening so I am guessing he's good now LOL. Is it pretty common for them to poop when they shed because I swear that is the only time he ever goes?! It's so weird!

[mpkeelee]

He had a complete shed, pooped plus had urates all this evening so I am guessing he's good now LOL. Is it pretty common for them to poop when they shed because I swear that is the only time he ever goes?! It's so weird!

a complete shed, good for you. they wont poop or until after the shed usually so thats normal. my girl hides the whole time while in shed and only comes out when shes done shedding and poopin, so if i see her out i know i have a nice surprise waiting for me in her hide. lol