Baby KSB Feeding

[kiwitwist]

I have two new female Kenyan sand boa babies (they are almost 4 weeks old) I am trying to get to eat f/t. I am wondering if I should feed them live pinkies, since that's what they were started on, at least one more time before I try for brained f/t again? I have offered brained f/t pinks after being thawed in very hot water. They seem to have a tiny bit of interest, one of them even drank the surrounding water, but then they lose interest and just want to crawl around (probably to find somewhere to burrow). I tried holding them upside down with their heads oriented towards the brained bit, and they tongue flick it, but then want to crawl away. My other baby kenyan (he's older by a few months, I got him back in August), I did that with him just to see what the feeding response should look like with a brained pink- and holy cow, the response was immediate and rather enthusiastic. However, he's already taken several f/t pinks from me without having to brain them or hold him upside down oriented towards the pinky, so he's probably already pretty used to it, I just kind of wanted an example of what a hungry kenyan using those techniques might do. Oh, and I usually feed all my snakes in a container that is not their enclosure.

Additional information, one of the babies ate a live pinkie maybe a week and a half ago, the other baby has eaten two live pinks, one being more recent, maybe 4 days ago. (This was with the breeder, before I obtained them, they have not eaten for me yet.) The slightly bigger one is beginning to rub herself like she may shed, and she has less interest in the food. I am less worried about her because she is a little larger. They are being kept on repti-cal sand with a water bowl with an undertank heater (with tile against the glass to diffuse heat). No overhead lighting. Feeding attempts have been at night, as they are nocturnal. (This is the same for my male which is eating just fine.) I'm not sure how long it is okay for a baby to not eat for, so I don't know at what point I should be worried. I mean, I know kenyans usually don't take their first meal until about two weeks after birth after they have shed, and they are almost 4 weeks now, so the one that has eaten twice may even be a bit ahead of the game.

I've heard other techniques such as leaving them in a paper bag overnight in their enclosure with the dead pink. I haven't tried that yet. I don't want to stress them out too much with too many different attempts. But wouldn't the pink in a bag get cold? I have read it is easier to get them to eat f/t if it is really hot/warm? Any thoughts?

Ps- omg brained pinkies smell disgusting.. And then the babies smell so gross after moving their bodies over the dead pinks like a hundred times trying to get out of their feeding container...

The anery girl, she is only a tiny bit smaller than her sister:


Normal girl:


Sisters


And just for fun, my enthusiastic-ly eating albino male:


Hand for size reference:

[brobertson]

Wow! Long post! First of all, I would recommend trying to feed inside the enclosure with Kenyans. Pre-scent the room (make sure the prey items are thawing where the snake can smell it) warm up the pink very well with a hair dryer, then use tongs and hover it just above the substrate. If you can pass it in the snakes field of view, chances are good that it will strike. Another technique that works well. Is leaving the snake in a deli cup overnight with the prey.

On a side note, I would recommend using aspen bedding instead of sand. It holds their burrows much better, and sometimes a small husbandry change is all a snake needs to eat. Lastly, what are your cage temps?

Best of luck!
Benek

[kiwitwist]

Wow! Long post! First of all, I would recommend trying to feed inside the enclosure with Kenyans. Pre-scent the room (make sure the prey items are thawing where the snake can smell it) warm up the pink very well with a hair dryer, then use tongs and hover it just above the substrate. If you can pass it in the snakes field of view, chances are good that it will strike. Another technique that works well. Is leaving the snake in a deli cup overnight with the prey.

On a side note, I would recommend using aspen bedding instead of sand. It holds their burrows much better, and sometimes a small husbandry change is all a snake needs to eat. Lastly, what are your cage temps?

Best of luck!
Benek

I have tried deli cups for several hours, paper bag inside enclosure over night, dangling in front of face in enclosure, holding upside down with head oriented towards the head of the pinky, all brained f/t pinkies. I haven't tried live pinkies, which I may do soon, just to get them to eat again. I don't want to starve them trying to get them to eat f/t...

Since your post, I have changed them to aspen bedding, as that is, in fact, what the breeder had them on before I obtained them. My male Kenyan is on reptical sand (and is eating just fine) so I had them on it as well. You know, plus, they are called SAND boas, so I figured sand substrate was best. Anyway, I'll see if that change does anything for them...

As for pre-scenting the room.. I can't really do much besides what it smells like when things are thawing/brained.. I mean, it's all set up in my living room. Which is next to the kitchen. It's all kinda one big thing. And besides that, I thought Kenyans liked lizard scent better than rodent scent?

[kiwitwist]

I gave in and fed them live pinks today, they ate them no problem. Guh. I figure I'll get some more weight on them before I try switching again. Seems like it will take a combination of "hungry enough" and the tactics I have already tried. But I don't want them losing too much weight trying to make them hungry.

[kiwitwist]

Female Kenyans - The anery has now taken 3 F/T brained pinkies for me (yaaaaay!). Sometimes, with a little more effort than I would like (It's not like feeding my male at all- he's a pro, no braining required), but I have been able to get her to take them. The normal, however, has not taken any from me. I use the same tactics, brained, hot water, sometimes multiple soakings (after noticing she hasn't eaten it after leaving her alone for 2-4 hours, I will re-warm it with hot water), and I've left her alone with it over night. I did the same last night, and by morning, anery had eaten her brained pink, normal had not. And of course, after a night of stinky brained pinky, I just throw it out, because there is no re-freezing that, it's just nasty... Pretending to make the pinky move does nothing for her, putting either of them in the feeding container makes them immediately want to get out and explore my countertop, they won't focus on a pinky not even if I dangling them above the pinking and make them look straight at it while I'm wiggling it with the tongs. Any other suggestions for getting the normal Kenyan to take F/T besides periodic re-warming and braining? Last she fed was 10/5/12 on a live pink. She doesn't appear to have lost any weight. She should be hungry by now, I saw both of them crawling around the enclosure yesterday, so I had assumed they were hungry, which is why I tried to feed last night.

Recap: What has worked for the anery- I put them in small gladware containers with air holes, a small piece of paper towel to sit on the bottom, and put the warmed and brained pink in there with them. Then put both gladware containers into their enclosure and leave them there until they either feed, or I re-warm them before I go to bed and leave them there overnight.

[brobertson]

Good to know that one is eating F/T, I'm sure with a little persistence you can get the other going! Any updated pics? I love me a KSB!