Problem feeders

I got a f pastel and a f lesser from a friend of mine about 90 days ago and he told me they were power house eaters. Never missed any meals and showed me on their cards. U took them home and to this day they will not eat I've tried frozen thawed, prekilled, and live rats and nothing ever happens. Idk what to do I have had a few go off food and now are eating and these two i cant seem to get them to take interest in rats. Any help would be greatly appreciated

Sent from my Verizon Wireless 4G LTE DROID RAZR MAXX

Can you tell us a little more about their setup? Their morph, sex, and past history does little to help us decipher what the problem might be.

Their size (weight), temps, humidity, type of enclosure, hides, etc. That would be useful for us to figure out how to help. What have you attempted to feed them and how often?

Wow, 90 days ago? Some info would definitely help...are they in hides 24-7 or exposed and just won't take food?

I've left a thawed rat in the enclosure overnight and found it gone the following day. Sometimes they just need to be left completely alone.

I have them in a sterlite 28 qt rack with one hide on the hot spot and a water bowl on the cool side newspaper as a substrate flexxwatt heat tape as a heat source on a thermostat set at 90 degrees they both are females and one is a lesser and the other is a pastel. I have a lesser pastel under them and he never misses a feeding http://img.tapatalk.com/d/13/04/10/4epupaju.jpghttp://img.tapatalk.com/d/13/04/10/y3ypunyd.jpghttp://img.tapatalk.com/d/13/04/10/emagyhe4.jpg

Sent from my Verizon Wireless 4G LTE DROID RAZR MAXX

Squeeze some more hides in there. They are still a little on the small side to need so much open space. I would also put them on aspen bedding.

Yes, either more hides or a smaller tub. You could also crowd the tub with some crumpled paper to make it feel more crowded.



Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Kaorte

Yes, either more hides or a smaller tub. You could also crowd the tub with some crumpled paper to make it feel more crowded.

What was the previous owner feeding? What have you offered?

Maybe try live?

Do you handle then often? I think its crucial to get them back on feed. They seem small.

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2

---

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2

I've tried live, pre killed, frozen thawed rats and still nothing even tried putting them in a small container just big enough for them to barely get around and put a pre killed in with them and maybe I haven't had them 90 days i may have over estimated that but it has been over a month and I'm sure they are comfortable with the space because I have a male lesser pastel the same size in the same size container with the same hide and water bowl And he has no problems at all feeding. The room stays at 82 degrees and a humidifier keeps the room at about 40% humidity.

Sent from my Verizon Wireless 4G LTE DROID RAZR MAXX

I don't handle them very much just to clean their cages and give fresh water.

Sent from my Verizon Wireless 4G LTE DROID RAZR MAXX

Just because another snake in the rack eats fine doesn't mean the others will behave the same.

Are you waiting at least a week in between feedings and changes to the environment?

Id still add another hide and maybe some crumpled paper. I've had this trick work in the past.

Also, one month is only 30 days. Which is much different than 90 days!

Did you quarantine them I hope?

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2

Yeah i attempt to feed once a week not any sooner. No i didn't quarantine them they have no signs of sickness and the person I got them from is a good friend of mine and hasn't had any sick one's in his snake room till he knows that they are well and I trust him with it. I'm going to try and put some crumpled paper in their totes and maybe put a black piece of paper in front of the opening so they don't see me when I go into the room and maybe try again in two weeks

Sent from my Verizon Wireless 4G LTE DROID RAZR MAXX

Sounds like a good plan. Do you have access to ASFs?



Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2

Yeah i have some actually I just don't want to use them because they say if they get on asf they won't go back to rats

Sent from my Verizon Wireless 4G LTE DROID RAZR MAXX

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by bradthebanker

Yeah i have some actually I just don't want to use them because they say if they get on asf they won't go back to rats

Sent from my Verizon Wireless 4G LTE DROID RAZR MAXX

---

I'd really like to know who "they" are. I feed all my snakes ASF and have no problems getting them to switch back to F/T rats. It has little to do with the ASF and more to do with just ball pythons being picky feeders in general. If you have a picky snake, it isn't going to matter what you offer it. The type of feeder isn't going to impact its pickiness.

Give the ASF a try.

I see this misconception all the time that ASFs are like crack to ball pythons, but I really have never heard of any study or evidence that suggests that once they have an ASF they will eat nothing else. Probably because it isn't true.

Ok ill try that. Should I prekill the asf first because I know that they can get rather nasty and may injure the snake?

Sent from my Verizon Wireless 4G LTE DROID RAZR MAXX

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by bradthebanker

Ok ill try that. Should I prekill the asf first because I know that they can get rather nasty and may injure the snake?

Sent from my Verizon Wireless 4G LTE DROID RAZR MAXX

---

I feed 30 live Asf a week and I've only had one minor injury. Just don't leave the Asf in there longer than 30 min and it won't be able to do enough damage.

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by bradthebanker

I'm sure they are comfortable with the space because I have a male lesser pastel the same size in the same size container with the same hide and water bowl And he has no problems at all feeding.

---

So....by this logic, I should love fried liver because my neighbor does?

30 days is only 4 weeks, which means you either have been offering more than the once a week like you stated or haven't offered anything for more than one week in a row. Clutter up the tub and stop switching things up at every feeding, and especially don't move them just to try to feed them.

Ok thats good to hear that they are not as bad as I thought. Are they more nutritious than rats?

Sent from my Verizon Wireless 4G LTE DROID RAZR MAXX

I don't think they are any more or less nutritious.