Babies wont eat

I hatched my first clutch of the season on may 20th. So far none of the babies have eaten. All have been offered live rat pinkies. I know its still a bit early to consider forcefeeding but i dont know what my other options are. Some picshttp://img.tapatalk.com/d03657c7-2f64-d9cf.jpghttp://img.tapatalk.com/d03657c7-2f71-9499.jpghttp://img.tapatalk.com/d03657c7-2f80-ba5f.jpghttp://img.tapatalk.com/d03657c7-2f93-9836.jpghttp://img.tapatalk.com/d03657c7-2fa2-33f4.jpg

0.3 normal bp, 1.0 albino bp, 1.0 lesser bp, 0.1 spider bp, 1.0 jacksons chameleon, 0.1 veiled chameleon, 1.0 pit bull doggie

might try mouse hoppers, more movement equals more interest

I second the use of mouse hoppers.

Yeah try hoppers. Also, assist feeding would be the next step not force feeding.

What size are your hatchlings? Mine usually start fine on rat crawlers (aka fuzzies), which are larger than pinkies. I then try hoppers before resorting to assist feeding.

How many times have you offered, and how many days apart?

When did they have their first shed?

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Originally Posted by LotsaBalls

Yeah try hoppers. Also, assist feeding would be the next step not force feeding.

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Yea sorry. I wrongly use that term all the time. I meant assist feeding. No worries though, i know the difference :rolleyes:

0.3 normal bp, 1.0 albino bp, 1.0 lesser bp, 0.1 spider bp, 1.0 jacksons chameleon, 0.1 veiled chameleon, 1.0 pit bull doggie

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Originally Posted by Annarose15

What size are your hatchlings? Mine usually start fine on rat crawlers (aka fuzzies), which are larger than pinkies. I then try hoppers before resorting to assist feeding.

How many times have you offered, and how many days apart?

When did they have their first shed?

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They said exactly a week after being born. I've tried crawlers and hoppers and I usually try feeding every 5 days or so

0.3 normal bp, 1.0 albino bp, 1.0 lesser bp, 0.1 spider bp, 1.0 jacksons chameleon, 0.1 veiled chameleon, 1.0 pit bull doggie

I posted this in a similar thread a few days ago

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Originally Posted by Deborah

PATIENCE

I have hatchlings that have hatched a 5 weeks ago and have not taken a meal yet.

Not sure what you want to feed but this is what I do.

Offer rat first feeding some will take it some not.

Offer rat second and third feeding.

Offer mice to those that have refused rats previously.

Offer mice again to those that have refused the previous week

Offer mice in brown paper bag

Important things are to make sure the temps are not too hot, 6 quarts tubs do not allow much room to thermo regulate and I would consider providing temps of 88 on the warm side (not much hotter than that)

Have aspen bedding this allows them to burrow which means it allows them to feel more secure

Do not offer more than every 7 days.

Add crumble newspaper in the tubs of those that are hard to start.

Monitor their general look make sure they are well hydrated.

Note: I generally do not consider assisting before weeks 6 or 8 in most cases (that's an average).
It is base on overall look, health, weight, whether or not the animal absorbed it's yolk (in the case it did not it would be VERY different) etc.

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Originally Posted by Deborah

I posted this in a similar thread a few days ago

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I too am dealing with a hatchling that doesn't want to feed; she hatched on 05/05/12. I have done everything almost identical to what Deborah has copied and pasted in this thread. I started off offering rat fuzzies and pinks once a week for 3 weeks and then went to mouse fuzzies or small hoppers for the last 2 weeks. I tried to assist feed her a mouse fuzzy last night but wasn't successful. She was very calm during the entire process but she would never start swallowing the mouse. I held her calmly for about 10-15mins with the mouse in her mouth before carefully placing her back in her tub. Once I let go of her she spit out the mouse and went back in her hide. This is my first clutch and the first I've had to deal with this. I would think I was doing something wrong but all of the other hatchlings in the clutch haven't missed a meal since I started offering food and all but one started on rats. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

I use mouse hoppers for the first 2 then I try to switch them to. Live rat Pups

You mention that you have waited a week after they hatched, right? If this is the case, then you need to wait longer. They need to shed first, and then be offered food. It takes 7-10 days after they hatch until they shed (usually). Then they all get their own tubs, a day or two of settling in to their new tub, and then a meal offered.

Of course, looking at the date of when you started this thread, they've likely all shed... Give them a couple days of uninterrupted peace and quiet. Then try them again.

We had 2 last year that we had to assist feed. We didn't do that until they were 6-8 weeks old. If they absorbed the yolk, they have a little while still before assist feeding is necessary. Both are thriving now, though, and only needed assist fed 3 times each. Good luck!

With assist feeding, are you using tongs to get the fuzzy down deeper? Experience showed us that we had to use something (tongs or forceps) to get it a little deeper down the throat. Otherwise, they would just spit it out.

The few times I have had to assist feed, I actually just held the mouse in the snake's mouth until it stopped trying to spit it out, then stood/sat very, very, very still until the snake started to swallow. After one assist feed, most began feeding the time immediately afterwards.

I would say to OP to give them more time, and also if at all possible, describe hatchlings setup? Some babies prefer hiding spots, and I have found mine invariably feed better when provided even something as simple as a toilet paper tube to hide in. Just something to consider if you haven't done so already :)

-Jen