A little advice?

I may be totally off base with this - BUT - I would do one or the other, but not both. If the vet feels that he can go two weeks of not being tube fed in order to feed a mouse, I'd start with a live hopper mouse.

Did the vet recommend or attempt to assist feed? Prior to seeing the vet did you attempt any of the common tricks to get him eating?

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Originally Posted by rabernet

I may be totally off base with this - BUT - I would do one or the other, but not both. If the vet feels that he can go two weeks of not being tube fed in order to feed a mouse, I'd start with a live hopper mouse.

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Thanks, Robin, that helps tremendously! I'm positive he's not ready to go two weeks without feeding, so I will wait until he is much stronger to try going off tube feeding. He's just stabilized in the past few days.

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Originally Posted by jglass38

Did the vet recommend or attempt to assist feed? Prior to seeing the vet did you attempt any of the common tricks to get him eating?

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Yes, I did attempt quite a few tricks, including dangling and assist feeding. I'm pretty sure <now that I know a lot more> that the I didn't get the f/t'd warm enough beforehand, though.

How is his demeanor? Is he alert, tounge flicking and gripping ur arm when you handle him? Is he inquisitive in general or does he just lay around like a limp noodle? What is your setup like?

Oh yes, he's very alert, tongue flicks, tries to crawl up my sleeve. I've only taken him out in the last 2 weeks to feed and give him his antibiotic shots.
He stays in his hides, though. I figure that's due to feeding 2-3 times a week. I do see him in both hides at different times of the day.
Setup is perfect....20 gallon aquarium with a mostly covered top, 2 hides, water bowl, and he has a fake "tree" he really likes to climb on. Temps are 90-92 on warm side, 84 cool side, 50% percent humidity.

The skin on his lower body was loose when I took him to the vet, but it has definitely filled out and firmed up since then.

I got him from a pet store that had him housed with several other babies. They said they were feeding them live fuzzies, but I just know they were lying about that, now. He shows all the signs of having never fed before.

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Originally Posted by SarahMB

I got him from a pet store that had him housed with several other babies. They said they were feeding them live fuzzies, but I just know they were lying about that, now. He shows all the signs of having never fed before.

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I'm sorry you had to find out the difficult way. It's not uncommon to hear that a person working at a petsore would blatantly lie to a customer. In fact, they would say anything to make a sale if they had to imo. If he is alert and active as you say then I think he is defenitely ready to eat on his own. You should defenitely call the vet and find out an exact time frame on when to make the switch.

In the mean time, keep all handling to an absolute minimum. Fill his enclosure with loosely crumpled up newspaper. This will give him some added security. Make sure the cage is not in a high traffic environment and that he gets a good day/night light cycle. Then try and feed him an appropriate sized meal and see if he would take it. If he does not take it, try a smaller sized meal, maybe a different colored mouse a week later. Try these and see if you have any success. Good luck.

Thanks, Raj, I will take that advice. I don't have any crumpled paper in his enclosure, so I will add that. He stays in my daughter's room with the door closed, so traffic definitely isn't an issue.
Do you think I should try live, or f/t? I was only thawing at room temp before, but since then I've read that I should hold it in a baggie under warm water.

i cant really help you because everyone has already answered all your questions but i can tell you not to get discouraged. i know when a snakes not eating it's really dicouraging (atleast with me) and i cant imagine how you must feel having a non-eating snake right from the git-go. when he finally eats it makes you feel soooo much better so dont give up and dont let this keep you from enjoying the wonderful world of ball pythons. good luck Sarah!

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Originally Posted by SarahMB

Thanks, Raj, I will take that advice. I don't have any crumpled paper in his enclosure, so I will add that. He stays in my daughter's room with the door closed, so traffic definitely isn't an issue.
Do you think I should try live, or f/t? I was only thawing at room temp before, but since then I've read that I should hold it in a baggie under warm water.

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Live. Being that he probably has never taken a meal, the odds that you will get him right on FT are slim. Make sure the prey size is something he can handle. I am guessing since he is pretty thin you would want a mouse fuzzy or rat pinky (depending on what you plan on feeding him regularly). Put him and the fuzzy in a brown paper bag (lunch size), fold it down and clip it. Don't worry, he can breathe in there. Put it in the cage, not on top of the heat source, turn off the light and leave the room. Come check on him in a couple hours. By the way, yes, when you feed FT you want to get it defrosted of course, but nice and hot. I leave my FT soaking in water and feed them wet and hot. Never had a complaint. Let us know how it goes!