Refused feed

I just got my 1 month old BP, and she came with a 12 day old pinky, which I attempted to feed tonight. It would have been her first feed at home, but she didn't take it. She's young so I'm a little worried, when should I offer again? I'm picking up some fuzzies for her tomorrow, but I'm worried I'll have worse luck with a large sized prey. Any tricks? I just dangle it in front of my 1 yr old BP and she strikes, so I did the same thing, but it was a no-go. I took her hide off of her, should I not have?

I should add that it was a f/t pinkie which she's been on until now.

To be honest, while I'm a little worried given her size, I'm also super impatient, I was really hoping she would feed tonight so I could start holding her tomorrow or the next day. She's adorable and it's killing me to not be able to take her out lol.

A fuzzy should be fine for her. I wouldn't have moved the hide off of her. Most of the time my balls are fed whilst in a hide, unless they're waiting at the front of the tub lol. Patience better be your best friend :) I say wait another week or at least a few days before another attempt.

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Originally Posted by MootWorm

A fuzzy should be fine for her. I wouldn't have moved the hide off of her. Most of the time my balls are fed whilst in a hide, unless they're waiting at the front of the tub lol. Patience better be your best friend :) I say wait another week or at least a few days before another attempt.

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Ok, she was apparently fed every 4 days, so I guess I should wait that long? She kinda looks thin to me? Like her skin is wrinkled and her body is kinda concave on the belly nearer the tail, is that normal in babies? the breeder said she was 100g but I haven't weighed her myself.

I guess I just want to know when I should start worrying and if she won't eat when do I take the next step, and what is it? I was so hoping she would be super easy to feed lol.

Kind of strange she looks thin if she was fed every 4 days... You can definitely stick to that schedule. I fed every 5 days when mine were smaller. I wouldn't start to worry until she hasn't eaten for a month or so, or if she starts losing weight. Do you know if this is her first f/t meal? Hopefully once she has some time to settle in, she'll eat like a champ for ya.

On the wrinkly skin, she's probably going to shed soon. What's her setup like? Hides? Temp and humidity?


Oh yeah, and send pics if you have them!

I guess I don't really know what thin looks like in a baby, but she does have wrinkled looking skin when she's bent. She was fed f/t from the get go, and apparently did just fine and hasn't ever been fed live. She was just dropped into a completely different habitat though. She was in a tub with her clutchmates and no hide on newsprint before and now she's in a glass enclosure with aspen bedding and hides. I have the 3 of 4 walls covered and the hides are snug fitting.

Do I just keep offering every 4 days for a month before trying something else, or should other steps (live feeds etc) be taken before then? Is there any point in leaving the dead rat in the enclosure on paper towel or something? Might she eat it even though it's dead and not moving, of she's alone in the dark?

The only pic I have is my avatar. I don't want to take her out to get pics and risk stressing her more.

Her temps are roughly 90 on the warm side (UTH) and 80-83 on the cool side. She's mostly just hung out in the warm hide. Humidity is 50%.

I just went through this whole thing so hopefully I can help in some way. My little guy was 160 when I got him 08/20/13 and he was born 6/8/13 and had only eaten 6 times before he was sent to me. (Never knew he was fed live so I had to switch him to f/t but anyway!) he wouldn't eat for me for a month and only lost a couple grams and took his first meal for me today.

So some questions for you would be are you feeding him rats or mice? Because I've discovered my guy is a mouse eater. I offered him rats but he didn't take them so when I switched to mice he took it immediately.

Also how are you preparing the rodents for him? Because I have to prepare his mouse a different way than my other snake to get him to eat. I have to leave his mouse under a heat lamp for a couple minutes until it is hot.

My last question would be how are you offering the rodents to him? Some snakes take the rodent when you dangle it by the tail, some take it when you do the "zombie dance" so make the rodent look alive. But I've learned with my little guy that those options don't really work with him. I have to drag the mouse around on the substrate of his tank to make it look like the mouse is walking around, with my other snake I just hold the rat above the substrate where it's floating around and wiggle it in front of her and she takes it immediately. But when I tried this method with my little guy it scared him to where he didn't want to eat. So sometimes you really have to figure out feeding for a new snake because it varies. But don't worry too much :) he will eat for you soon enough. We're going to help you out as much as we can.


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If I have a refusal, I'll leave it in overnight. I've had my pin take it over the night sometimes, other times he leaves it altogether. The month thing is just a generalization. If she starts looking really bad in a week, it might be time to take action. Or who knows, she might go for 2 months without losing a gram. It's different for all snakes that go off feed. You just need to use your best judgement. But you've only had her for a day, correct? No need to start freaking out just yet :)

Sorry I called it him that whole post I kinda forgot if it was a boy/girl once I started typing. But my little guy got a little wrinkly too when he wasn't eating but don't worry about that too much either. As long as she is drinking water and peeing it means she is hydrated. Make sure her enclosure is nice and humid to so she won't be dehydrated. But as long as she's drinking you'll be okay. You probably won't catch her drinking from the water bowl when you see pee in there than you know :)


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Forgot to ask, but are you sure she's a month old and has had her first shed? And do you happen to know how many times she's eaten for the breeder?

If it really has been eating every 4 days, it shouldn't be thin. Can you post a pic?

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Originally Posted by AlexisFitzy

I just went through this whole thing so hopefully I can help in some way. My little guy was 160 when I got him 08/20/13 and he was born 6/8/13 and had only eaten 6 times before he was sent to me. (Never knew he was fed live so I had to switch him to f/t but anyway!) he wouldn't eat for me for a month and only lost a couple grams and took his first meal for me today.

So some questions for you would be are you feeding him rats or mice? Because I've discovered my guy is a mouse eater. I offered him rats but he didn't take them so when I switched to mice he took it immediately.

Also how are you preparing the rodents for him? Because I have to prepare his mouse a different way than my other snake to get him to eat. I have to leave his mouse under a heat lamp for a couple minutes until it is hot.

My last question would be how are you offering the rodents to him? Some snakes take the rodent when you dangle it by the tail, some take it when you do the "zombie dance" so make the rodent look alive. But I've learned with my little guy that those options don't really work with him. I have to drag the mouse around on the substrate of his tank to make it look like the mouse is walking around, with my other snake I just hold the rat above the substrate where it's floating around and wiggle it in front of her and she takes it immediately. But when I tried this method with my little guy it scared him to where he didn't want to eat. So sometimes you really have to figure out feeding for a new snake because it varies. But don't worry too much :) he will eat for you soon enough. We're going to help you out as much as we can.


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I'm feeding rats, and that's what she was on before. I thaw at room temp for a few hours or in the fridge over night and warm up with a hair dryer. I just dangle, I'm not sure what the zombie dance is, or how to do it. I'd be afraid to drag it for fear of the aspen sticking to it and then her eating it.

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Originally Posted by Crazymonkee

If it really has been eating every 4 days, it shouldn't be thin. Can you post a pic?

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Like I said, I may be a poor judge of thin on a baby BP. I only have my avatar pic. My camera's battery is dead and I can't find the charger, but regardless I'd hate to take her out to take pics and stress her more. I don't know if she was actually fed every 4 days or offered every 4 days. When the breeder messaged me she said she had eaten 4 times and shed 3 times. and this was a little over a week ago, so she was fed at least once since then, since she told me that her next feed was to be in 2 days when I got her on Saturday, so I assume she's eaten 5 times. Mind you they were 12 day old pinkies. I weighed the one I had and it was 6 grams, which seems small to me. So I assume she has eaten 5-6g pinkies since she was hatched on Aug 6th. That's not really every 4 days then I guess.

Actually just keeping hydrated is not enough if the young one looses weight, especially if it doesn't have much weight to loose.


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I wouldn't assume anything I would call and ask exactly how many times it ate.
And they don't eat as soon as they're hatched. I would ask for a date for eat feed and if taken or refused. Hopefully she would have this info

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Originally Posted by MootWorm

If I have a refusal, I'll leave it in overnight. I've had my pin take it over the night sometimes, other times he leaves it altogether. The month thing is just a generalization. If she starts looking really bad in a week, it might be time to take action. Or who knows, she might go for 2 months without losing a gram. It's different for all snakes that go off feed. You just need to use your best judgement. But you've only had her for a day, correct? No need to start freaking out just yet :)

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Ok, I will try in a few days and leave that one over night. Since the pinkie didn't come in contact with her or anything I fed it to my 1 yr old. She can use all the feeds she can get LOL, she was "rescued" from a CL-like site at 11 months old and weighed ~140g. I've had her for a month and a half and she's up to 333g tonight after that pinkie LOL. The pinkie was just a snack, she had a weaned rat 2 days ago (I feed her every 5-7 days), but her feeding response is really strong.

Anyway, back to my baby, should I be weighing her? I am worried the handling will stress her more. My best judgement seems to be to freak out LOL. I need to relax. I've had her 2 days now, yeah, and I guess she's just settling in and I should allow that to happen.

Yes let her settle a few days!! :)

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Holy smokes, that's a tiny 11 month old! For your newest little lady, I'd weigh a day after your next feed attempt and keep a record from here on out.

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Originally Posted by Crazymonkee

I wouldn't assume anything I would call and ask exactly how many times it ate.

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Ok, will do, I emailed the breeder tonight just to let her know she didn't take the feed and asked if she had any tips. When she responds I will ask how many feeds she had. Not sure what difference it will make if it's 4 or 5 or 6 though, my goal is still to get her feeding asap.

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Originally Posted by MootWorm

Holy smokes, that's a tiny 11 month old! For your newest little lady, I'd weigh a day after your next feed attempt and keep a record from here on out.

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Yeah, I know!! And she seemed healthy, but like a healthy 3 month old LOL. She's seriously making up for lost time though. Her first feed after the move she was in blue and took the mouse, then her second feed I switched her to rats, and she took it easily. I bumped her up to a 5 day feeding schedule, except when in shed. She's become active and robust and a little feisty (she struck at the water bottle the other day when I was misting). Before she was cold (no heat source, he had a lamp but didn't use it and his night light was burned out), and hungry, and super lazy (with no energy to expend), and now she's warm and fed and so full of energy, it's really neat to see the change.

Anyway back to my baby, I will weigh after her next attempt. If she takes it I won't weigh, but if not I will and try not to stress her too much in the process.

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Originally Posted by Shera

Ok, will do, I emailed the breeder tonight just to let her know she didn't take the feed and asked if she had any tips. When she responds I will ask how many feeds she had. Not sure what difference it will make if it's 4 or 5 or 6 though, my goal is still to get her feeding asap.

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It will make a difference. If she's only taken 4 meals you may have less time to work with.... if she's taken 6 she might hold a lil weight to give more time. It may sound stupid but it's needed info.
Of course you want it to eat asap, the snake doesn't always do what you want. My hatchling held out for 2 months, you need all the info you can get

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Originally Posted by Crazymonkee

It will make a difference. If she's only taken 4 meals you may have less time to work with.... if she's taken 6 she might hold a lil weight to give more time. It may sound stupid but it's needed info.
Of course you want it to eat asap, the snake doesn't always do what you want. My hatchling held out for 2 months, you need all the info you can get

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Ok, thanks, I will ask. Do you agree that I should start weighing after my next feed attempt if she doesn't take it? I'm worried about the handling aspect, although she was very used to handling, the breeder has 2 kids (they looked about 6-7 years old) and she said they would take them out all the time.

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Originally Posted by Shera

I'm feeding rats, and that's what she was on before. I thaw at room temp for a few hours or in the fridge over night and warm up with a hair dryer. I just dangle, I'm not sure what the zombie dance is, or how to do it. I'd be afraid to drag it for fear of the aspen sticking to it and then her eating it.

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Okie dokie that's how I warm up rats for my other snakes that aren't picky. And the zombie dance is when you hold the rat either by the nape of the neck or by the middle of the body and kinda wiggle it around in front of the snake to make it think its alive. And I use aspen as substrate too and don't worry about them eating it. When my big girl wraps her rats she wraps a bunch of substrate up with it and I just gently rub it off the rat with the tongs, and if she has some stuck in her mouth I just pick it out. But if they inject a little bit they will be alright. In the wild they probably eat a bunch of dirt and whatever else is on the ground when they wrap up their meals so it's okay. I always wipe off a bunch of the substrate though when there is a bunch of it stuck on. Just in case :)


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Originally Posted by Shera

Ok, thanks, I will ask. Do you agree that I should start weighing after my next feed attempt if she doesn't take it? I'm worried about the handling aspect, although she was very used to handling, the breeder has 2 kids (they looked about 6-7 years old) and she said they would take them out all the time.

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Yes let her completely alone (except to check temps etc) until next scheduled feed. If attempt fails weigh her. It'll only take a few mins. Write down date and weight and feed (refused/ taken) and keep a log.
She may not have eaten much at all if the kids were always taking her out.
Next.... breathe ...you've only had her 2 days, relax :)

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Originally Posted by AlexisFitzy

Okie dokie that's how I warm up rats for my other snakes that aren't picky. And the zombie dance is when you hold the rat either by the nape of the neck or by the middle of the body and kinda wiggle it around in front of the snake to make it think its alive. And I use aspen as substrate too and don't worry about them eating it. When my big girl wraps her rats she wraps a bunch of substrate up with it and I just gently rub it off the rat with the tongs, and if she has some stuck in her mouth I just pick it out. But if they inject a little bit they will be alright. In the wild they probably eat a bunch of dirt and whatever else is on the ground when they wrap up their meals so it's okay. I always wipe off a bunch of the substrate though when there is a bunch of it stuck on. Just in case :)


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Ok, cool, I'll try the zombie dance, I hope she takes her next feed, it will be a slightly larger prey than she's used to, I hope that doesn't cause a problem. If she won't take it I'll leave it in there, and I won't remove the hide next time. Fingers crossed.

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Originally Posted by Crazymonkee

Yes let her completely alone (except to check temps etc) until next scheduled feed. If attempt fails weigh her. It'll only take a few mins. Write down date and weight and feed (refused/ taken) and keep a log.
She may not have eaten much at all if the kids were always taking her out.
Next.... breathe ...you've only had her 2 days, relax :)

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Thanks, I will do that. I will update on Friday when it's her next feed.

Thanks so much for the help everyone, I've learned a lot and it's eased my mind. As long as i have a plan I don't freak out.

Awesome! :) I'll keep my eye out for update

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Ok, I got more info, she has only eaten 3 times, not 4 or 5. Her 2 clutch mates are going into shed, so she might be too (maybe why she looks a little wrinkled when she bends). Should I attempt to feed her when she's in shed since she's so young? I know for adults that most people don't, but I don't know what to do in this case. As a reminder her hatch date was Aug 6th.

Actually some of us offer food whether they're in shed or not. Some of us veterans recommend things though we try to offer different advice so that way it's simple to explain.

I tell people they can offer, but don't be discouraged if they refuse but I always offer. If I tell you to go ahead and it doesn't eat and somebody else asks then you accidentally word it wrong and so on it gets worded differently every time somebody passes it on, so most of us will just say to let it settle.

Another thing I do is offer food on feeding day to a new animal regardless if it's the day after. I don't recommend this to people because it's just easier to say to let them settle because of all the variables and it being a new snake and some people not being familiar with everything. Everybody does things differently though.

I also offer when in shed. So far she's eaten every time.
It's really up to you if ya wanna feed during shed or not.

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Ok, great, I totally understand, I will try when she's in shed, I don't care about wasting some $0.80 feeders, I just care about her health.

I just saw her and her eyes look clear, so I'm not sure that she's in shed anyway. She wants out BAD though! I just went up and she was somehow lying on the ledge of the double sliding doors and I watched her quietly for a bit and she is definitely looking for a way out. She actually managed to reach her head all the way to the top (it's a 16" tank) and she can't be more than 18" long, she was basically standing on 2 inches of tail. Is this a bad sign or is it normal? It's so much different from the tub she was in. Temps were 81 ambient, and about 88 on the floor of the warm side, and 55% humidity, so I don't think temps and such are the issue. I will post some pics, you can see if she looks thin or not. Maybe she isn't, and I'm just used to the width vs length of my 300+g female (she can't be over 2 feet herself).

http://i45.photobucket.com/albums/f8...ps54432189.jpg

http://i45.photobucket.com/albums/f8...ps9e317515.jpg

http://i45.photobucket.com/albums/f8...ps7ef9faab.jpg

She's a gorgeous little snake! Hard to tell from the pics, but her body condition looks pretty good as far as I can tell. You might want to bump up the temps and humidity a tad, especially if she's going into shed.

From the pics I wouldn't say she is thin. As for trying to get out.... they are known as escape artists for a reason!! :)
Don't worry too much about it, unless it's a constant thing.
She's very pretty!!

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Ok, I'll bump up the temps a bit and mist a little more, I went to mist now, but she's still out and trying to escape, so I'll wait until she gives up and goes back to a hide. I'm glad you guys think she doesn't look too thin. her tail looks thin to me and sort of wrinkled, but I guess the rest of her is ok and she certainly isn't lacking strength! Thanks for the compliments, I think she's pretty too, and I can't wait to get my hands on her LOL, I hope she starts eating for me soon!

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Originally Posted by Crazymonkee

From the pics I wouldn't say she is thin. As for trying to get out.... they are known as escape artists for a reason!! :)
Don't worry too much about it, unless it's a constant thing.
She's very pretty!!

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She's a gorgeous little girl! :) and I totally agree. Don't worry about the climbing. My little guy that actually looks around the same size as your little girl comes out everyday at 6 or 7 when the sun starts going down and climbs around his tank and flips and flops around until he gets tired and finally goes to sleep lol. As long as their not doing it day and night constantly they are just exploring :) have fun watching her climb around they do some pretty funny stuff when they are out and about.


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Originally Posted by AlexisFitzy

She's a gorgeous little girl! :) and I totally agree. Don't worry about the climbing. My little guy that actually looks around the same size as your little girl comes out everyday at 6 or 7 when the sun starts going down and climbs around his tank and flips and flops around until he gets tired and finally goes to sleep lol. As long as their not doing it day and night constantly they are just exploring :) have fun watching her climb around they do some pretty funny stuff when they are out and about.


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Thanks :) It was about 6:00 when she started up. She's been taking breaks in her hide then coming back out to explore some more. I hope it means she is just exploring her new enclosure and not that she's stressed out by it.

I picked up some feeders tonight, they are a little bigger than the stuff she had before but not too much bigger. The breeder suggested trying again after 2 days, so that would be tomorrow. I'm not sure though, does anyone think that might be too soon, or is it fine to try again?

I've had very little luck with feeding only 2 days even 3 days after and attempted feeding. With Bubo I had to try weekly attempts. Or if your doing every 5 days with yours than every 5 days. Feeding day for me is on Monday and before Bubo started to eat I would attempt on Monday and it would fail then I would see him looking hungry on Tuesday so I would try again on Wednesday but he wouldn't take it even though I knew he was hungry. So waiting 5-7 days between each attempted feeding allows time for the snake to get really hungry and once he/she is ready to eat he/she will :) so I would wait a while before your next attempt, sometimes you do more damage when you try too soon.


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Originally Posted by AlexisFitzy

I've had very little luck with feeding only 2 days even 3 days after and attempted feeding. With Bubo I had to try weekly attempts. Or if your doing every 5 days with yours than every 5 days. Feeding day for me is on Monday and before Bubo started to eat I would attempt on Monday and it would fail then I would see him looking hungry on Tuesday so I would try again on Wednesday but he wouldn't take it even though I knew he was hungry. So waiting 5-7 days between each attempted feeding allows time for the snake to get really hungry and once he/she is ready to eat he/she will :) so I would wait a while before your next attempt, sometimes you do more damage when you try too soon.


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That's my only concern, doing more damage because I'm being paranoid. The breeder said to try after 2 days, so I am going to try that just this once. I am going to be sure to scent the room really well and try the zombie dance thing, and also leaving it in there for a few hours. If it doesn't work again I'm waiting a full 4-5 days. I don't want to be this mother hen that worries too much and screws everything up. LOL, I'm seriously reconsidering breeding...well, kinda, not really. I'm definitely getting all of my future breeders as babies, just so I have the experience!

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Originally Posted by Shera

That's my only concern, doing more damage because I'm being paranoid. The breeder said to try after 2 days, so I am going to try that just this once. I am going to be sure to scent the room really well and try the zombie dance thing, and also leaving it in there for a few hours. If it doesn't work again I'm waiting a full 4-5 days. I don't want to be this mother hen that worries too much and screws everything up. LOL, I'm seriously reconsidering breeding...well, kinda, not really. I'm definitely getting all of my future breeders as babies, just so I have the experience!

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Omg you sound just like me! We're total twinsies when it come to this lol. I was freaking out SOOO bad when I got Bubo and he wouldn't eat. It took him 5 weeks to finally get him eating for me and I worried night and day and lost sleep over the whole thing because I worried about him so much and I was scared he was going to starve himself or something. So I know how you feel 100%. But you can try feeding him when the breeder said just to try and see if it works, you never know. But when Bubo wasn't eating it discouraged me so much it made me reconsider breeding too but now that he's back on track so am I :) and now I have experience getting a picky eater to eat and switching a snake from live to f/t. So just take this as a learning experience that will help you in the future :) in case you get another troublesome feeder or produce one :)


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Originally Posted by AlexisFitzy

Omg you sound just like me! We're total twinsies when it come to this lol. I was freaking out SOOO bad when I got Bubo and he wouldn't eat. It took him 5 weeks to finally get him eating for me and I worried night and day and lost sleep over the whole thing because I worried about him so much and I was scared he was going to starve himself or something. So I know how you feel 100%. But you can try feeding him when the breeder said just to try and see if it works, you never know. But when Bubo wasn't eating it discouraged me so much it made me reconsider breeding too but now that he's back on track so am I :) and now I have experience getting a picky eater to eat and switching a snake from live to f/t. So just take this as a learning experience that will help you in the future :) in case you get another troublesome feeder or produce one :)


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LOL, yeah, I find myself thinking about it all the time and worrying, and I'm having trouble focusing on other things. The waiting is the hardest part, it makes me feel helpless, like I should be doing something, except that I know that doing anything will only make things worse and screw everything up. I need to breath and be patient! I'm sure once I get her to eat and see that everything turns out fine, I will be so much more relaxed with the next one. Kinda like having children. Congrats on getting Bubo to eat and switch him to f/t!

I put a rat in the room with her to thaw under the heat lamp and she's out of her hide now. Hopefully it's because she smells it and is hungry and not because she wants to try to escape LOL. If it doesn't work tonight, I'm waiting 4-5 days before attempting again.

She took it! Yayyyy! The zombie walk worked! This wasn't a little puny 6g pinky like the breeder gave me, it was a nice juicy 12g fuzzy. I'm so happy!!

Congrats!!! See, all that worrying was for nothing :)

Yeah I know, I guess I was worried a little quick, I've only had her 4 days, I guess eating after 4 days is pretty darn good :)

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Originally Posted by Shera

She took it! Yayyyy! The zombie walk worked! This wasn't a little puny 6g pinky like the breeder gave me, it was a nice juicy 12g fuzzy. I'm so happy!!

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YAYYYY!! so glad she took it! :D congrats on getting her to eat! Yay for the zombie dance haha. Now you can sleep easy at night knowing her belly is full! I know your super duper happy, having them eat their first meal with you is one of the happiest moments. I'm glad you don't have to worry anymore. Keep us updated on her :) it's so fun watching them grow.


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Originally Posted by AlexisFitzy

YAYYYY!! so glad she took it! :D congrats on getting her to eat! Yay for the zombie dance haha. Now you can sleep easy at night knowing her belly is full! I know your super duper happy, having them eat their first meal with you is one of the happiest moments. I'm glad you don't have to worry anymore. Keep us updated on her :) it's so fun watching them grow.


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Thanks, yeah I was on a bit of a high after she ate, it's such a great feeling. Tomorrow's my birthday, so I'm so glad I can relax and have a good time without worrying. I'm so happy that she took this bigger 12g rat, the breeder feeds 6g pinkies until 3 months!

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Originally Posted by Shera

Thanks, yeah I was on a bit of a high after she ate, it's such a great feeling. Tomorrow's my birthday, so I'm so glad I can relax and have a good time without worrying. I'm so happy that she took this bigger 12g rat, the breeder feeds 6g pinkies until 3 months!

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Awww happy early birthday! I hope you have a wonderful time :) and ill be switching Bubo over to rats when the month is over. I had to drop him down to mouse hoppers just to get him eating but he will be back on rat pups soon hopefully. So glad everything has worked out for you :)


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Originally Posted by AlexisFitzy

Awww happy early birthday! I hope you have a wonderful time :) and ill be switching Bubo over to rats when the month is over. I had to drop him down to mouse hoppers just to get him eating but he will be back on rat pups soon hopefully. So glad everything has worked out for you :)


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Thanks, and good luck transitioning to rats. When I did it for my 1yr old (she was on mice when I got her), I thawed both a rat and mouse in the room with her to scent the room, then rubbed the mouse on the rat and she took the rat no problem. I just pitched the mouse, but you could refreeze to scent again next time.

Thanks to everyone for your help :)

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Originally Posted by Shera

Thanks, and good luck transitioning to rats. When I did it for my 1yr old (she was on mice when I got her), I thawed both a rat and mouse in the room with her to scent the room, then rubbed the mouse on the rat and she took the rat no problem. I just pitched the mouse, but you could refreeze to scent again next time.

Thanks to everyone for your help :)

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Yeah I think that's what I'm going to have to do with Bubo. The breeder I got him from said that he fed him hopper mice at first then transitioned him to rat pups, but when I first tried to feed him I offered him rat pups and he would never take them and then on the 5th week I dropped him down to mice and he snapped them right up. He ate two the day I fed him. So hopefully I can get him on one rat pup instead of two mice with the scenting trick. The weird thing to me though is that when I heat up mice I can never smell it but when I heat up a rat the smell is super strong! Lol. But hopefully he transitions nicely. Happy birthday! :) haha.


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Originally Posted by AlexisFitzy

Yeah I think that's what I'm going to have to do with Bubo. The breeder I got him from said that he fed him hopper mice at first then transitioned him to rat pups, but when I first tried to feed him I offered him rat pups and he would never take them and then on the 5th week I dropped him down to mice and he snapped them right up. He ate two the day I fed him. So hopefully I can get him on one rat pup instead of two mice with the scenting trick. The weird thing to me though is that when I heat up mice I can never smell it but when I heat up a rat the smell is super strong! Lol. But hopefully he transitions nicely. Happy birthday! :) haha.


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Yeah, the rats totally stink eh? I've totally noticed that too, with the f/t ones. Also, I used to have a pet rat, I used to bathe him and he would still smell. I think rats just have an odor. I had mice too at one point and they didn't have that same stink. As much as I love rats, I don't do well with smelly high maintenance rodents as pets. I do sometimes find a really pretty patterned rat in my bags and wish I could bring it back to life, because it would make a really cute pet. For a rat lover I sure do have a ton (like 60) dead rats in my freezer LOL.