Pueblan off food?

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Originally Posted by Sunnieskys

Anyone have a mock up of this condo idea? Love it just can't picture it lol. And going back and looking at the care sheets his temps are 10 degrees lower than they should be. As soon as I get back to work I will get a larger watt bulb to raise temps. He is sitting at 75 on the warm side and no uth. Bad mommy!

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No wonder he's not eating...:colbert: LOL -I would recommend using UTH, regulated down to about 86*...these are not snakes that bask, they prefer to burrow.

I don't have pics, but just picture using a cardboard box* like a hide that covers the whole cage floor, open to the bottom. And cut a few holes so he can come up from
"the basement". *I've made custom hides before too (waterproofed sides, tile board top)- cardboard won't last forever- & most other things that are moreless the right
shape (like a kitty litter box) won't fit in a 20L. If you manage to do this, the "upper floor" will be closer to the light also, making it warmer. (UTH is still best for milksn.)

*you can also use a large flat piece of corrugated cardboard cut to fit tank, only 6" longer & 6" wider than the tank- then cut the corners out & fold side flaps so it's about 3" tall. Does this help? :confusd: Or did I confuse you even better? hahaha

I guess you've never seen those cages like some pro-breeders use: where they have a wall of built-in cabinets separated into multiple snake enclosures with glass
front doors that open, but each enclosure also has a hole in the floor that goes into a drawer underneath? (the drawers can also be opened) Snakes like kings &
milk snakes love that..."a 2-story". :D

I have an uth but it is not plugged in because im waiting on another jumpstart.

Snowmageddin has begun so it will be tueaday before i get all his good stuff. I have firmed up the heat in the living room too.

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Yeah, I heard you all are getting slammed with another snow storm...:( Stay safe & warm...

This has been a great read and very helpful!

thanks for posting and thanks to boger for all the great insight and advice.

I have a male MBK who has been off feed since mid November. It had me very worried at first as he was a ferocious eater for 3 months prior.

Once tenps started to drop toward middle to end of nov he began refusing.

I think he’s 2-3 years old. I’m unsure as I purchased him in August as an adult. He’s a big boy too at 1,000g. He hasn’t really lost any weight and I pretty much stopped offering him. He has a UTH that I keep about 86 but no other heat so lately his cage is around 70 ambient but at night and cold days can drop to 67-68.

Im assuming hoping and praying that all discussed here is what applies to my guy and once the weather breaks he will snap out of it.

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Originally Posted by Phillydubs

This has been a great read and very helpful!

thanks for posting and thanks to boger for all the great insight and advice.

I have a male MBK who has been off feed since mid November. It had me very worried at first as he was a ferocious eater for 3 months prior.

Once tenps started to drop toward middle to end of nov he began refusing.

I think he’s 2-3 years old. I’m unsure as I purchased him in August as an adult. He’s a big boy too at 1,000g. He hasn’t really lost any weight and I pretty much stopped offering him. He has a UTH that I keep about 86 but no other heat so lately his cage is around 70 ambient but at night and cold days can drop to 67-68.

Im assuming hoping and praying that all discussed here is what applies to my guy and once the weather breaks he will snap out of it.

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Snakes that brumate in nature take their cues from the daylight (length of days are shorter in winter) and from the drop in temperatures. They also have improved
fertility with a winter cool-down, and brumation is how they not only survive the cold but actually thrive. When I've brumated snakes to breed in the past,
their temperatures were only down to about 50* to mid-50's*. If you're not breeding them it's better to avoid brumation if you can, since their immune system
virtually shuts off when they're cold, so anything they might have been carrying & fighting off (unknown to us) can make them sick. Rarely, some snakes will even
die during brumation, or awaken sick, so brumation is not without risks.

Phillydubs, keep in mind that the warmth in your MBK's enclosure will determine his metabolism & resulting weight loss, so since he hasn't eaten in a while anyway,
you might want to lower his UTH some to mid-70's (if you don't want to risk brumation) & let him snooze a while. Put a towel over half his cage to darken it. Then
in a month or so gradually warm him up...don't offer food until about 2 weeks after his cage temps. have been normal. (he'll be thinking about breeding too, sorry,
I can't help ya there, lol) MBK's are awesome, I miss the pair I used to have. Just when you wonder if a snake will ever eat again, they turn into a bottomless pit...;)

Eeden didn't eat again. I upped the wattage on his light so he is warmer. No dice at all! Odyn won't eat either. I'm about to cry! Do I just stop until spring....seriously!

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Originally Posted by Sunnieskys

Eeden didn't eat again. I upped the wattage on his light so he is warmer. No dice at all! Odyn won't eat either. I'm about to cry! Do I just stop until spring....seriously!

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I'm not surprised. Once a snake gets the idea it's winter, you may or may not change their mind. I still suggest UTH heat...belly heat rises into cage, & puts the
warmth where they feel it best for digestion. Overhead lights less effective, since heat rises up up & away. Up to you...to keep trying or brumate a while. I know
it's frustrating, but he's just doing what evolution is telling him to do. You blew it, letting him get too cool, lol. But he might have gone off-feed anyway, just based
on day length. Try not to worry too much. If you can try belly heat &/or more warmth as he has now for another week or 2, that's probably what I'd do...& if that
doesn't change his mind, then slowly (over a week or so) cool him down & let him snooze a while. He'll probably be just fine...:snake: this is what real snakes do. ;)

And btw, crying won't change their snakey-minds, lol.

I'm just waiting on the thermostat and uth now. And I'm going to do the condo idea too. I don't have any place to bromate him.

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Originally Posted by Sunnieskys

I'm just waiting on the thermostat and uth now. And I'm going to do the condo idea too. I don't have any place to bromate him.

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That's good. As far as any place to brumate, if you have a closet that's on an "outer wall" of your residence, it's likely cool enough: first, floors are cooler than
higher up, & I'd be surprised (with the weather you're having) if such a closet isn't fairly chilly. That's just if he doesn't respond & eat with additional heat...

Keep in mind (IF you do let him snooze a while) that he doesn't have to be fully cold enough for serious brumation, just on the lower end of room temps. & in dark will keep him from losing too much body weight. Remember, temperature determines a snake's metabolism...cooler = slowed down.
Good luck...either way, don't worry...this is all normal snake stuff. ;)