How do you wake up your snake for dinner time?

My ball python is always in her hide until late at night. Is it okay to wake her up by moving her hide to try and feed her?

I have had this snake for 2 weeks now and she still isnt eating.... cage set-up is perfect, I have a herpstat regulating temperature, tight hide, and 65% humidity constant.

How often should I offer her food?

Note - when I do offer her food she strikes it in defense but shows no sign of wanting to eat??

I have tryed feeding live by both dangling food in front of her and leaving it in the cage for a bit. I was told she was eating live when I bought her....

Any suggestions...


Thanks

I personally do not wake my snake up to eat a meal. I prescent the room for about half an hour and that usually gets him into feed mode. I feed live. Once he has gotten the scent I put the prey into his ensclosure and then he eats. Hope this helps.

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Originally Posted by python1024

I personally do not wake my snake up to eat a meal. I prescent the room for about half an hour and that usually gets him into feed mode. I feed live. Once he has gotten the scent I put the prey into his ensclosure and then he eats. Hope this helps.

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Same here. I put my boxes of rodents on the floor in the snake room and come back about 20 minutes later. All my snakes are waiting impatiently at the fronts of their tubs by that time.

What i do since i cant scent room as my feeders breeding rack is in same room as snakes, is i take the rodent and blow on it through the holes of the tub or tank screen which ever you use. and you should see the snake slowly move about in the hide and begin to breathe heavily.

Then i offer the prey 3 inches form face when they have just their head sticking out to entice them to come out.

Like this..

WAKE UP SNAKIEEEEEEEE.....WHY ARE YOU SLEEEPING

Three great answers! I agree.

You should offer every 5 - 7 days. It sounds like she is scared of the prey. Is it too big?

I take mine out and hold them for a few min before I feed them. Just remember to wash your hands so you don't smell like a mouse. I've also set the mouse box inside their tank to prescent, but it was hard getting it out to release the mouse. She was so mad I was taking her mouse out. lol.

Bucket of cold water always does the trick!


Nah just kidding! I dangle the rat around and let it thump on the bottom of the tank. They then poke their heads out to see whats going on.

After I Pre-Scent the room, most of my snakes come bounding out of their hides.. I have a couple that get scared of me when they throw half of their body out of their tub and curl back in their hide only to slowly come back out again.

I have one very picky feeder, Tora, my original male ball python is about as fearful as fearing snakes could be. I remove his hide all together if I'm trying to feed him f/t and just place the rat on top of his curled up body. If you put a live mouse or rat in though, they should wake up on their own, most of the time.

I don't suggest handling the day of or after feeding at all.. it's just stressful on on the animal even if it's beforehand.

Feed every 5-7 days. I feed a lazy 7. :rolleyes:

I feed my BP in a separate cage, sometimes he's hiding sometimes he's basking, I just pick him up and place him in the other cage with the mouse. He'll hide his head for about a min, then goes into "feeding mode". Though my snake refused to eat for the first two weeks I brought him home, maybe yours just needs alittle more time to adjust.