Feeding problems

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Originally Posted by Megz

So my BP is being stubborn I just don't get it. The thing is I thaw it but I read that your suppose to heat it up so they can recognize it persay. So in the past i've heated it up no problems etc. recently she hasn't been eating. I have done the same methods etc and she hasn't eaten for almost 2weeks. I don't know what I'm doing wrong. She smells it and turns her head along side it and looks like she with strike but doesn't and if it touches her she gets scared. It can be in front of her face and she doesn't eat it. I dethaw them for a long time and I know they are completly thawed but I don't know maybe I need to heat them a different way. Any suggestions? She has refused 2 times now. Both times the rat was dethawrd and warmed up and smelled like rat .. Trust me. Don't know what to do. Maybe she doesn't like rats anymore although she has never refused before. I know they are picky eaters but still. Suggestions on methods of feeding or feeding in general?

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Heat it with a Hair Dryer!

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Originally Posted by Megz

I picked up a live gerbil on the 8th and she ate that. I am feeding her adult mice the size of her girth her girth is definitely not as big as it use to be so i dont want her eating something too big. If i made it unclear before sorry I never switched her from ratsshe has been eating rats since she was born except when i fed her that gerbil. She was eating fine for a long time and now shes just not and im not sure what to do here. the scale isnt wrong i double checked with another. should i take her to a vet i am trying not to worry. When i gave her the gerbil she ate it and i was told just to wade her out for her to eat the frozen. The problem with the live feed is if they scratch or bite so im much more comfortable with the frozen. i just dont understand why she would just stop eating and for so long :( I'm really scared because she rams her cage alot as if she is searching for food and yet she wont eat. when i put the rat in she came out of her hide so fast with her tongue flickering but then just lost interest so i can safely assume she is indeed hungry. I left it in there in case she wants it a bit later but i checked on her just a second ago and she is just sitting there with the rat in there totally not interested. Has this happened to anyone else. im really scared for her because she never did this and its all of a sudden now

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Im confused.....Your feeding her adult mice, but "I never switched her from rats she has been eating rats since she was born except when i fed her that gerbil". :confuse:

If your snake doesn't eat for a few week, it's ok and stop switching foods. My pastel didn't eat for 13 months. Yes there is some weight loss but not very significant. You just have to monitor the weight.

If after a few month of fasting, you can then start feeding a mouse or african Soft fur rat just to get it started and continue feeding its original food prey. The time you wait before taking action depends on the weight of the snake.

Sorry I definitely screwed up with that message. I have never fed her mice. She was born eating frozen rats and has been on rats ever since; except for wen I fed her the gerbil. I tried the entire method that "pickenpod" suggested. I woke up this morning thinking oh she are it and no no she didn't merely curled up with it. I don't understand. She was eating fine and now just stopped. I'm worried because the last time she ate was August 8th. Should I try frozen again or live rat and then frozen after that? I'm just worried about her. I knew from the beginning that bps were fussy eaters but this seems excessive. :( And to top it off I have frozen rats in the freezer right so ideally I would love for her to go back to frozen but do u think she will only eat live now? It doesn't seem to make sense how she just stopped eating the frozen.

If her weight is Ok you can keep trying f/t, if she's looking skinny I'd go with live... but not a gerbil

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Yah I went with gerbil because pet smart had the worst possible selection. Ok well her weight is at 937 so she hasn't lost too much. So ill try live and hopefully that kick starts it. Ill go with rat though :P if I do feed her live though my question is will she ever eat frozen again? I always get scared feeding her love because I don't want her getting hurt so frozen is ideal.

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Originally Posted by Megz

Yah I went with gerbil because pet smart had the worst possible selection. Ok well her weight is at 937 so she hasn't lost too much. So ill try live and hopefully that kick starts it. Ill go with rat though :P if I do feed her live though my question is will she ever eat frozen again? I always get scared feeding her love because I don't want her getting hurt so frozen is ideal.

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On the 30th you wrote this "she went from 954g on the 11th to now 906g" so if today she is 937....she is doing good on her weight! She has gained some weight back.

yah im not sure if that scale was right its weird i double checked but maybe it was wrong not sure how else she would have gained weight. what weight should i worry (as in if it goes down)?

Nobody freezes and thaws their rodents in the wild. They are built for live prey. Make sure the rodent is fed so its not hungry. Put it in with as little stress to it as possible, meaning don't dangle it for minutes by the tail. Stick close and have something you could stick between them if you see the rodent can get a bite out.


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Originally Posted by Crazymonkee

Nobody freezes and thaws their rodents in the wild. They are built for live prey. Make sure the rodent is fed so its not hungry. Put it in with as little stress to it as possible, meaning don't dangle it for minutes by the tail. Stick close and have something you could stick between them if you see the rodent can get a bite out.


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so your saying frozen is a lost cause now :(