BP won't eat despite right environment, "normal"?

[LiseR]

Hello everyone!
Just registered here to get an international opinion on my BP. I had him (we think) given to me because the previous owner was too stressed out over his eating breaks.

Last year (2009-10) he stopped eating from he was bought from a pet store in October and started again in March without any immediate change in his surroundings. (Ie, he didn't start eating because we changed no of hides, tank size or anything.)

He eats live prey: hamsters, rats, gerbils and multimammate mice. Only refused food once when shedding when he's on his regular schedule.

This year, he's done the same thing: I transferred him to a bigger tank in October, and he stopped eating, and hasn't started yet - just refused a live gerbil today. He pokes out his head and looks, but just doesn't seem interested - normally he hits gerbils straight on.

Tank temperature, lighting, hides, humidity and all outer environment should be alright according to care sheets and other forums. I weighed him just now and he hasn't lost more than 30 grams (he weighs 1 kg.)

Question is: Should I just keep my cool and keep offering food at regular intervals and let him have his peace otherwise - ie., put it down to regular winter behaviour - or should I try things like transferring him to a sweater box, assist feed, or the like?

I appreciate any comments on this issue - he's my first python and they stump me a bit, to be honest! I'm used to greedy corns

[Stewart_Reptiles]

Given the size of the animal and the fact that his husbandry is spot on the only thing you can do is to wait it out.

BP often tend to skip meals or even fast during the winter months (often having breeding on their mind ) nothing unusual about it, space your feeding attempts, don't offer too large of preys, keep monitoring your BP, make sure you BP is well hydrated and wait.

It can take weeks even months, I know it is frustrating but it happens and patience in that kind of case is the key.

[anatess]

Yeah... this seems to happen a lot to ball pythons hitting the 1kg mark too.

Just keep monitoring the weight. I wouldn't be concerned unless he drops 150g.

[OhhWatALoser]

This year, he's done the same thing: I transferred him to a bigger tank in October, and he stopped eating, and hasn't started yet - just refused a live gerbil today. He pokes out his head and looks, but just doesn't seem interested - normally he hits gerbils straight on.

Tank temperature, lighting, hides, humidity and all outer environment should be alright according to care sheets and other forums. I weighed him just now and he hasn't lost more than 30 grams (he weighs 1 kg.)

how big of a tank? is the tank just a big glass box? the space or openness might be making him feel insecure. I have 1800 gram female that refuses to go into a 41 quart sterlite tub, I have to keep her in a 32 quart or she stops eating. They make look like their too big for the cage, but that's what the snake wants.

There is no such thing as a "right environment." What you see in the care sheet is just a place to start, MOST snakes will do fine with the 2 hide and water bowl setup. but some may want more cover. also there is a huge difference between 2 hides and water bowl in a dark rack, vs 2 hides and water bowl in a glass tank for the whole world to see.

It also goes the other way also, most of my snakes do not have hides at all, they just don't care, all they got is a water bowl, some do need hides, they are all different, you have to find out whats right for YOUR snake.

then throw in the fact that its breeding season, he might be off feed for that also, so might be a while before you figure things out.

[LiseR]

Thanks a lot for your inputs - they are much appreciated!
Good point about his viv. It's home-made out of what we call MDF board on these shores; it's basically wood chips pressed into wood sheets and treated with a white coating. He only has a view to the world at the front, see-through plexi-glass, and solid wood on three sides. I've tried covering up the "glass" with a dark cloth and that hasn't done anything.

He actually has three hides since he also uses his bowl as a hide.

When he ate regularly, he was in a glass viv covered by fabric on three sides, which imo offered more "see-through-ness" than the current setup. The only problem I can think of is that the current viv is white on the inside and he might experience that as "open space", but I've never seen this described as a problem anywhere.

[LiseR]

Having some problems editing, so forgive me another post << >>
New viv is significantly bigger than the old one - old one was 16x16 inches (and thereby rather small for a 3½ foot snake!), new one is 14x32 inches! This latter size fits the care sheet recommendations bigger, but do you think it's simply too big? I could always make it smaller with an insert, or simply switch him back to the old tank (where my corn lives now).

[doctor patches]

some snakes go into a quazi-hibernation thing over the winter, and when they come out of it they are ready for mating. that's how it is in the wild, at least.

[angllady2]

Given his size,sex and age, I'd say you are looking at totally normal breeding fast behavior.

My little het pied male, sitting at around 400 grams, went on a feeding strike about 4 months ago. He wasn't interested in food of any kind, though I tried each week when I fed the others. He did finally take a small mouse two weeks ago, but now he's lost interest again.

Monitor his weight, and as long as he doesn't loose a lot, try to remember the feeding strike thing is a lot harder on us than it is on them.

It helps to tell yourself: " He's not going to starve, this is perfectly normal, he's not going to starve, PLEASE eat something, he's not going to starve."

Gale