Red tail not eating

[Quacking-Terror]

Hey all, never really thought I'd have to post this because our RTB is usually great about eating. However, this is the first time we've fed her in ~3.5 weeks and we just recently noticed that she has MITES. We're planning on treating her (and the other snakes in the house) for the mite issue, I'm just waiting for the money to arrive in the bank to buy the PaM. My issue is, I put a rat in her cage and she will not eat. She has been alternating between staring at it in strike position and staring at me for 15 minutes now. I'm actually quite concerned that the mites have something to do with this. It is a live rat and being watched closely by us, but she's not interested. Do you have any suggestions?

Edit: Nevermind folks! I think it might have had something to do with the rat cowering in the corner because I nudged it, it ran out, she snatched it right up!

[Evenstar]

Glad she ate for you!

As far as the mites are concerned, I have to recommend this product over PAM - http://www.reptilebasics.com/mite-killers

I had the opportuntiy (if you can call it that, lol) to try this at the Oct Tinley expo. Picked up a nice baby sunglow boa that I discovered had mites. Talked to Rich at Reptile Basics personally the next morning and he gave me a bottle of this. You can spray it directly on the snake, it is that safe. It kills on contact by destroying the insect's exoskeleton. I took it back to our room, sprayed my baby in the hotel room sink and watched the mites die immediately. Patted her dry, wiped down the tub with a little more and put in fresh paper towels. She was instantly mite free and I didn't bring home a single one of these buggers.

I know a lot of people recommend PAM, but lately some mites have shown to be resistant to it. And I'm always a little nervous using it - the warning label is huge. But Reptile Basics' Reptile Spray is completely safe, relatively inexpensive, easy to use, and every bit as effective. I keep a bottle of PAM on hand, but I have several bottles of Reptile Spray on the shelf and I'll reach for that first every time.