first refusal now what do i do

[beardieguy]

well he refused his first meal since i had him.its been about 5-6 months and he ate everyweek.when i took him out to put him in his tub he started moving pretty fast.i stunned the rat and picked him up with the tongs and he got ready to strike for a couple minutes then he started moving fast again.his last feeding was a little to big could this be the reason also he usually goes into shed about now but he has no signs of it and he was out yesterday and wasnt stressed now when do i feed him again and what do i do with the live rat?please any help will do

[dalvers63]

Give him a week and then try again. By then you'll know if he's getting ready to shed and whether to feed him again.

As for the rat, as long as it's weaned you can set up a cage for it and keep it, or kill it and stick it in the freezer, or see about taking it back to the shop (if they'll take it back).

[beardieguy]

so i guess i shouldnt handle him too.i have handled him everyday since except 2 days after food and when he is in shed.i figured he was fine with it because he allways ate.should cut down?i really dont want to because hes been fine with it before

[beardieguy]

i have been reading posts and i have seen that some people feed small rats to adult bps is that right because mine has been on small rats and hes not even a year old he even ate a medium last week could that be why he refused this time.also hes laying with his head i little poked out of his hide like he usually does a couple days before feeding. im pretty confused here

[giaach]

In my opinion, I would suggest not handling him until his next feeding. He might have been fine before but right now he could possibly feel different. Also if he ate a medium size rat, he simply might not be hungry. Any idea what he weighs?

[beardieguy]

no i dont. i want to get a scale but how do you wiegh them ?i know he almost double my beardies wieght and she was 300+grams a few months ago lol shes fat and currently on a diet.but say a few days from now he come out of his hide and looks for food should i try the next day or still wait a week.also i killed the rat and put it in his tank im going to leave it for 2 hours just to see what happens he is currently staring at it now

[giaach]

Well I don't have a scale either but one of my stoner friends has one for uhhh weighing things.... I just get a plastic container that he/she could fit in. Zero it out on the scale then put him/her in the container and there you go, you got their weight. If your saying he's 600 grams and less than a year old thats insane. No offense but I find that very unlikely unless he's like 11 months. 600 grams in a year is great but sooner than that seems really fast to me. I could be wrong (probably am ha). Any idea how long he is?

[beardieguy]

that was just an estimate i have only had him that long he was 20 inches when i got him.hes between 31 to 33 inches last time he shed i measured his skin.he definitly more than 300 grams though for sure

[giaach]

Well a medium rat sounds like the right size meal. He's probably 400-500 grams which is awesome! Maybe he just wasn't sure about this meal. I take it he didn't eat the killed one? I would just wait a week and try again with a live one. I bet, seeing how you haven't had many problems in the past, he'll take it.

[beardieguy]

he seems pretty much like normal now.i think hes just not hungry yet.he didnt eat it within the hour so i tossed the rat.he never ate thawed prey before so i didnt think he would.he is doing exactly what he always does at night im going to wait for the night hes really seaching for food and then ill try the next night.