Feeding Problem?

Hi everyone,

I am currently trying to feed my python.
The mouse is in his tank on top of a rock currently.
My python has lashed out at him twice but did not get him.
Now he gets close to him like he will, but then moves away.
Or sometimes the mice will move and he will jump back like he is scared.
I don't know what to do.
I really would like for him to eat because he hasn't for weeks.

Any advice? Theories?
Please help...

Thank you,
~ Lady

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Originally Posted by Lady

Hi everyone,

I am currently trying to feed my python.
The mouse is in his tank on top of a rock currently.
My python has lashed out at him twice but did not get him.
Now he gets close to him like he will, but then moves away.
Or sometimes the mice will move and he will jump back like he is scared.
I don't know what to do.
I really would like for him to eat because he hasn't for weeks.

Any advice? Theories?
Please help...

Thank you,
~ Lady

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Does he normally eat live mice? How big is he and how big is the mouse? And how long has the mouse been in with him? Sounds like he's interested since he's striking. Do you have something to keep the mouse in, in case he doesn't eat? If so, maybe keep him and try again tomorrow night?

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Originally Posted by sho220

Does he normally eat live mice? How big is he and how big is the mouse? And how long has the mouse been in with him? Sounds like he's interested since he's striking. Do you have something to keep the mouse in, in case he doesn't eat? If so, maybe keep him and try again tomorrow night?

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I would say it's been at least 20 minutes.
I recent got him so this is his first design attempt with me.
I don't know what he has eaten before.
He's about a foot and a half and the mouse is about 3 or 4 inches long.
I do have something to keep the mouse in.

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Originally Posted by Lady

I would say it's been at least 20 minutes.
I recent got him so this is his first design attempt with me.
I don't know what he has eaten before.
He's about a foot and a half and the mouse is about 3 or 4 inches long.
I do have something to keep the mouse in.

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Can you contact the breeder and ask what he was feeding on?

Is there a way to contact who you got him from? I would ask. Be careful not to let the mouse get the snake I had one die at the hands of his food. Sometimes what helps is making the mouse bleed a little.

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Originally Posted by sin2001

Is there a way to contact who you got him from? I would ask. Be careful not to let the mouse get the snake I had one die at the hands of his food. Sometimes what helps is making the mouse bleed a little.

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Say what???

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Originally Posted by sin2001

Is there a way to contact who you got him from? I would ask. Be careful not to let the mouse get the snake I had one die at the hands of his food. Sometimes what helps is making the mouse bleed a little.

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I can't believe I have to say this - Do NOT injure a live mouse to make it "bleed a little". An injured/frightened rodent is much more dangerous to your snake.

Striking and "missing" usually indicates that the BP is being defensive, not trying to eat. Can you upload a pic or describe your setup (tank size, hides, temps, etc.)? How long have you had him and how often are you offering food?

Edit: I see you've only had him since the 8th, so disregard that particular question, and welcome to the site. :)

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Originally Posted by sho220

Can you contact the breeder and ask what he was feeding on?

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I got him from a girl that goes to my school.
She also got him from a friend so I would have to add that to the list of questions she has to ask him.
She gave me mice with him so I assumed she would know.
Then again she didn't seem to know much about him really which is a pain for me.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by sin2001

Is there a way to contact who you got him from? I would ask. Be careful not to let the mouse get the snake I had one die at the hands of his food. Sometimes what helps is making the mouse bleed a little.

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It's making the mouse bleed a little cruel?
I mean it sounds like an interesting way, but still, I'm not about to do that.
Plus, I still need to get the hang or grabbing onto mice let alone gripping to be able to make them bleed... a little

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Originally Posted by Annarose15

I can't believe I have to say this - Do NOT injure a live mouse to make it "bleed a little". An injured/frightened rodent is much more dangerous to your snake.

Striking and "missing" usually indicates that the BP is being defensive, not trying to eat. Can you upload a pic or describe your setup (tank size, hides, temps, etc.)? How long have you had him and how often are you offering food?

Edit: I see you've only had him since the 8th, so disregard that particular question, and welcome to the site. :)

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Thank you for the welcoming! :)
Yeah this is my first time trying to feed him.
I don't know about being defensive because the mouse wasn't even doing anything to him when he lashed out at him.
And like I said if the mouse did move he seemed to jerk back as if he were afraid of it.
When you say "missing" are you indicating that it is unusual that a python would miss on striking at it's prey?

P.S. I will upload a picture of his set up soon. A lot of people have been asking me that question haha

Please do not attempt to make the mouse bleed. Not only is it cruel (just because they are food does not mean they ddeserve to be abused and suffer) but as anna pointed out, a freaked out mouse is a lot more likely to harm your snake.

A defensive strike doesn't mean the mouse was doing anything aggressive, it could just be your new snake is telling it to stay away. From the sound of it the snake might not be gungho on eating tonight. I would probably opt to put the mouse in a container with some food and water. Give it a few (3-5) days and try again.

I think she's saying missing as in they strike out but end up going over or just to the side of it a couple times? My male normal does that when he's not hungry he strikes out but won't hit the rat a couple times then ball up an do it again if the rat comes too close.

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Originally Posted by RoseyReps

Please do not attempt to make the mouse bleed. Not only is it cruel (just because they are food does not mean they ddeserve to be abused and suffer) but as anna pointed out, a freaked out mouse is a lot more likely to harm your snake.

A defensive strike doesn't mean the mouse was doing anything aggressive, it could just be your new snake is telling it to stay away. From the sound of it the snake might not be gungho on eating tonight. I would probably opt to put the mouse in a container with some food and water. Give it a few (3-5) days and try again.

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I was never going to attempt to do such a thing.

I can see what you are saying about him saying stay away.
I'm a little worried though for he has not eaten in weeks...

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Originally Posted by carlson

I think she's saying missing as in they strike out but end up going over or just to the side of it a couple times? My male normal does that when he's not hungry he strikes out but won't hit the rat a couple times then ball up an do it again if the rat comes too close.

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Oh okay.
Yeah that's what he would do.
In the end I also think he became irritated or overly defensive because when I tried to get the mouse out he would jerk towards my fingers.
(I'm thinking he was not too happy about the situation that mommy had him in for too long)
I honestly thought he was trying to get the mouse, but was scared that's why I was giving him time.
Now I feel bad for leaving something so unwanted in his tank :(

Do you know how much your new baby weighs? Depending on size, some bps go months without eating during the winter.

I wasn't trying to be mean about the mouse thing, just trying to drive the point home that no animal deserves that. For you, the person who suggested it, and anyone else iin the future who might come across the thread looking for advice :)

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Originally Posted by RoseyReps

Do you know how much your new baby weighs? Depending on size, some bps go months without eating during the winter.

I wasn't trying to be mean about the mouse thing, just trying to drive the point home that no animal deserves that. For you, the person who suggested it, and anyone else iin the future who might come across the thread looking for advice :)

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It's okay.
I honestly woud never do that and was a bit shocked by the suggestion of it.

I actually don't know much about him.
I have vet visit scheduled for the 27th.
I am excited for it because his past owner didn't seem to know much and I want to be sure he is healthy and know how much he weighs, how long he is, etc. so that I can better care for him and know him.

Good start :) I'm glad to hear how much you care about him! Too many reptiles get subpar care especially after the "coolness" factor wears off.

Just so you know, most of us have a kitchen scale (~$20 at Walmart/target) that does grams. Simply put a bowl large enough to hold him on it, put him in and subtract the weight of the bowl. (Some models have a "tare" feature, where you put the bbowl on and hit tare to zero out the scale) its an invaluable piece of equipment for keeping an eye on your snakes health :)

Note: try to weigh when he is "empty". 4-5 days after a meal, for a more accurate weight :D

[QUOTE=RoseyReps;2017273]Good start :) I'm glad to hear how much you care about him! Too many reptiles get subpar care especially after the "coolness" factor wears off.

Just so you know, most of us have a kitchen scale (~$20 at Walmart/target) that does grams. Simply put a bowl large enough to hold him on it, put him in and subtract the weight of the bowl. (Some models have a "tare" feature, where you put the bbowl on and hit tare to zero out the scale) its an invaluable piece of equipment for keeping an eye on your snakes health :)

Note: try to weigh when he is "empty". 4-5 days after a meal, for a more accurate weight :D[/QUOTE

Thank you!
I don't know why anyone would ever buy an animal expecting not to love and take care of it.
I think that might have been what happened to him with his past two owners sadly :(

About the scale.
I will add that to my list of things to get for my little boy :)
Thanks so much!

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Originally Posted by carlson

I think she's saying missing as in they strike out but end up going over or just to the side of it a couple times? My male normal does that when he's not hungry he strikes out but won't hit the rat a couple times then ball up an do it again if the rat comes too close.

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Yep, exactly what I meant by the quotation marks. Although BPs can miss a strike, it is much more likely that he's trying to scare off an unwanted intruder. Give him a few more days without trying to feed him or handle him. Make sure he has at least two snug hides (not log-style, but cave-style), and just eye-ball that the mouse isn't much bigger than he is at his widest point. Then, try again. Also, and I think it sounds like you are doing this already, make sure you are feeding him in his enclosure and not in a separate box. Moving him to feed can add to the stress and cause more non-eating. And like Rosey said, a digital kitchen scale is an invaluable tool with these little guys. I use mine almost daily (35+ snakes), and it has eased my mind many times when I was worried one was eating, or given me a warning when one was losing too much weight, as well as allowed me to double-check that I was feeding an appropriately-sized prey (10-15% of the BP's weight, and then small rats [50-80g] weekly for life once the BP hits 500g).