My BP Won't eat :(

Hello Everyone!

I got my snake from a convention in Salt Lake City about 5 weeks ago. The guy that I got it from said my BP was about 1 1/2 to 2 months old and regularly eats.

When I took her home I left her alone for a week and made sure all my temps are properly setup with proper humidity as well.

Cool Side 75 - 80
Warm Side 88 - 92
Ambient usually around 83
Humidity between 40 and 60 percent on a consistent basis

I try to feed her every 5 days and below are the methods I have tried:

-F/T Warmed in hot water, not dryed, attempted outside habitat in alter enclosure (Failed) Week 1
-F/T Warmed in hot water, dried and fur fluffed, attempted outside habitat in alter enclosure (failed) Week 2
-F/T Warmed in hot water, dried and fur fluffed, scented, and basked for 10 sec under heat lamp, attempted feed in enclosure (failed) Week 3 (I resorted to assist feeding because I was worried and she ate it and kept it) (did not like doing this)
-F/T Warmed in hot water, dried and fur fluffed, split brain and heated, scented and 10 sec under heat lamp to raise temp, attempted feed in enclosure (failed) Week 4

I am going to try and feed her tomorrow night one more time before I attempt live feeding this coming weekend. I know she is super underweight and makes me believe she was not a healthy eater when I received her because if she was 2 months old, she would not be that small. She weight in at 73 grams when I got her, and now she weighs 68 grams. From everything I have read that is way underweight for a BP that is 3 months old :(

Are there any other ways I can try before going to live?

Thank you,

I would try the appropriate size live prey fed in it's enclosure...Should do the trick.

I would forget FT for now. Get her a live feeder ASAP.

I understand people want to feed FT all the time, but if it's not working, the snake needs food it will take first and foremost.

I also would go live if she indeed loose weight. Did he say if she was eating f/t or live??
She may have been eating regularly but it may have been live

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Alright, sounds good then. I'll attempt to feed her live. Just makes me sad :( Hard to feed live when you have to rats as pets in another room....but my snake needs to eat. So I will put the F/T on hold.

Thanks everyone for the replies. I will let you know how it goes on Wednesday night

I too have a pet rat, but I feed live. Actually my rat was supposed to be food, Splinter was gotten as a weanling for my first girl but she's a mouser so far. She struck 3 times but barely hit her (it was more of a defensive strike) so I took her out and she's part of the family :)
Anyone who owns a snake needs to be willing to feed live.

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Originally Posted by Crazymonkee

Anyone who owns a snake needs to be willing to feed live.

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I agree, and that is why I will do it. Just sux. And I have to find a place that has feeder mice. Not very common in my area.

Thank you though!

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Originally Posted by BloodStar

I agree, and that is why I will do it. Just sux. And I have to find a place that has feeder mice. Not very common in my area.

Thank you though!

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I have a place right in town that has adult mice and small/med rats, I have to drive an hour for the smaller ones. Pinkie, fuzzies, pups are not readily available where I am

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Originally Posted by Crazymonkee

I have a place right in town that has adult mice and small/med rats, I have to drive an hour for the smaller ones. Pinkie, fuzzies, pups are not readily available where I am

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Do you buy them in bulk? And just have a mice/rat cage to house them in? Or do you just go get 1 or 2 at a time?

The mice I do. I have a cage for them. The pinkies I can't can't cuz they won't live, I only need them for my hognose so I'll take a weekly trip

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Have you tried placing your BP in a smaller enclosure e.g. box or bag you got them in? Just thought that this is what was suggested to me should mine refuse to eat again (totally forgot to mention). If she shows no interest/strikes but doesn't constrict etc I was told to put mine in a box/bag with the rat inside (F/T not live of course) with her and place in the middle of the vivarium (or whatever you're using to house her) overnight. It's another option to try?

I had a 3 week old hatchling that wpuldnt eat FT and I tried a lot of things..finally went live last night and it was no problems..slithered around for a few mins smelling then struck and did its things...going to do 3-4 more live feedings,then try FT again,also switching to rats this weekend.

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Originally Posted by Crazymonkee

Anyone who owns a snake needs to be willing to feed live.

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Sorry but I absolutely disagree with this statement.
That is completely opinionated. Perhaps you feel this way about BALL PYTHONS specifically, but many other snakes should not be fed live, out of safety of the animals - perhaps snakes that are not as strong physically, do not have as strong a feeding response, etc. Each snake is individual. Having a "captive" snake is different than what would be found in the wild, unfortunately (or not?).

I have wanted snakes for a long time and never will I be willing to feed live UNLESS it were absolutely necessary... and I couldn't do it myself, I would have to get someone else to. It would break my heart.

In your situation OP, it is very unfortunate that you believe your BP was not fed enough before you got it. That is difficult for you, and will make switching to f/t difficult as well.
However, it can be done! Don't give up on that if it is really what you want to do. :)

But what comes first and foremost, as everyone has said, is the health of your snake. There are a tonne of threads on here about how to feed live, and then also how to switch to f/t (which it sounds like you have checked out and tried already).

I don't have any experience feeding live, so I cannot help you there... but I hope everything works out for you, and that your BP takes some food!

Good luck, and don't be discouraged!

I strongly disagree with yours... If u own a snake or any reptile that is known to eat live,u should be prepared to do so. If u don't have the heart to feed live then what???? I have s baby that wpuldnt eat FT no matter what I tried. Put a live fuzzy in and ate no problems. You have to do what you have to do in benefit of the animal and put your feelings aside.

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Originally Posted by NH93

Sorry but I absolutely disagree with this statement.
That is completely opinionated. Perhaps you feel this way about BALL PYTHONS specifically, but many other snakes should not be fed live, out of safety of the animals - perhaps snakes that are not as strong physically, do not have as strong a feeding response, etc. Each snake is individual. Having a "captive" snake is different than what would be found in the wild, unfortunately (or not?).

I have wanted snakes for a long time and never will I be willing to feed live UNLESS it were absolutely necessary... and I couldn't do it myself, I would have to get someone else to. It would break my heart.

In your situation OP, it is very unfortunate that you believe your BP was not fed enough before you got it. That is difficult for you, and will make switching to f/t difficult as well.
However, it can be done! Don't give up on that if it is really what you want to do. :)

But what comes first and foremost, as everyone has said, is the health of your snake. There are a tonne of threads on here about how to feed live, and then also how to switch to f/t (which it sounds like you have checked out and tried already).

I don't have any experience feeding live, so I cannot help you there... but I hope everything works out for you, and that your BP takes some food!

Good luck, and don't be discouraged!

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Agreed. "Prepared" Is probably a better word. You simply must be prepared to do whatever is best for the health of your snakes. If they only eat live, at some point you're going to have to make the choice between your snake starving to death, and the possibility of something going wrong during feeding. *shrugs*

(Like I said, if it were absolutely necessary. And I wouldn't do it, I'd ask someone experienced or willing to, if they could. That's my opinion. I don't feel anyone has to do anything they don't want to.
If it were that big of an issue for me, I'd give the snake to someone more able and find myself a f/t feeding snake. My snakes are both f/t eaters, and I bought them purposely because of this... I obviously wouldn't want to risk the health of my pets! That's not what I meant at all!)

OP I forgot to ask, have you tried using tongs and doing the little dance thing? If you do try f/t again, I have a suggestion (unless you've tried it already, in which case, my apologies for repeating):

Mine wouldn't eat the first week or two, but what I ended up doing (which worked) is I thawed a rat, put it in a baggie in HOT water, left the zip open and the cup right beside the tank for 15 mins. This usually gets my BP out and hunting, if he isn't already. I would then turn out all lights but one in a back corner so I could see, and get the tweezers and grab the rat in the middle, then slowly put it in the tank (not near my BP). I would jiggle it a bit, then slowly go a bit closer to the BP. When he noticed it (so he'd be about 6" away) I would start to entice him with it. Normally that got him to come closer. I would not move the rat closer to him, but wait for him to move towards it. I kept jiggling it, kind of acting like it was alive still. It could take a few minutes sometimes, but he always struck. When he coiled, I would give it another little jiggle for 5-10 seconds after, so he would coil tighter.

Now he knows the whole routine and it really doesn't take him long at all. Usually as soon as I lift the lid after scenting he's ready to go.

I also thawed the rat in with a mouse the first couple of times. I don't know if that made a difference or not though.

Anyways, good luck, whatever you decide!

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Originally Posted by Anya

Agreed. "Prepared" Is probably a better word. You simply must be prepared to do whatever is best for the health of your snakes. If they only eat live, at some point you're going to have to make the choice between your snake starving to death, and the possibility of something going wrong during feeding. *shrugs*

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Yes prepared is a better word for it. My first went for 2 months without eating f/t no matter what I tried. Was I to let her starve to death because I originally wanted to feed f/t???
I quickly changed my thinking in the best interest of her.

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Originally Posted by NH93

Sorry but I absolutely disagree with this statement.

I have wanted snakes for a long time and never will I be willing to feed live UNLESS it were absolutely necessary... and I couldn't do it myself, I would have to get someone else to. It would break my heart.

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Thank you very much for the incite. I will do it for the sake of my snake, but I love all animals and even though it is part of nature and such, I don't really want to contribute to death of such innocent awesome fuzzy creatures :) I may try F/T one more time tomorrow night. But she should weigh over 100 grams right now and she doesn't even come close.

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Originally Posted by NH93

Sorry but I absolutely disagree with this statement.
That is completely opinionated. Perhaps you feel this way about BALL PYTHONS specifically, but many other snakes should not be fed live, out of safety of the animals - perhaps snakes that are not as strong physically, do not have as strong a feeding response, etc. Each snake is individual. Having a "captive" snake is different than what would be found in the wild, unfortunately (or not?).

I have wanted snakes for a long time and never will I be willing to feed live UNLESS it were absolutely necessary... and I couldn't do it myself, I would have to get someone else to. It would break my heart.

In your situation OP, it is very unfortunate that you believe your BP was not fed enough before you got it. That is difficult for you, and will make switching to f/t difficult as well.
However, it can be done! Don't give up on that if it is really what you want to do. :)

But what comes first and foremost, as everyone has said, is the health of your snake. There are a tonne of threads on here about how to feed live, and then also how to switch to f/t (which it sounds like you have checked out and tried already).

I don't have any experience feeding live, so I cannot help you there... but I hope everything works out for you, and that your BP takes some food!

Good luck, and don't be discouraged!

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No one kills prey in the wild for hatchlings. A snake has everything it needs to eat appropriate sized live
prey, yes even captive bred ones.
Humans prekill and freeze them for convenience.
Please don't make people afraid or feel bad for feeding live.

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Quote:

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Originally Posted by NH93

OP I forgot to ask, have you tried using tongs and doing the little dance thing? If you do try f/t again, I have a suggestion (unless you've tried it already, in which case, my apologies for repeating):

Mine wouldn't eat the first week or two, but what I ended up doing (which worked) is I thawed a rat, put it in a baggie in HOT water, left the zip open and the cup right beside the tank for 15 mins. This usually gets my BP out and hunting, if he isn't already. I would then turn out all lights but one in a back corner so I could see, and get the tweezers and grab the rat in the middle, then slowly put it in the tank (not near my BP). I would jiggle it a bit, then slowly go a bit closer to the BP. When he noticed it (so he'd be about 6" away) I would start to entice him with it. Normally that got him to come closer. I would not move the rat closer to him, but wait for him to move towards it. I kept jiggling it, kind of acting like it was alive still. It could take a few minutes sometimes, but he always struck. When he coiled, I would give it another little jiggle for 5-10 seconds after, so he would coil tighter.

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I have tried something similar to this, but not that type of scenting. I will try your idea tomorrow. She seems healthy and happy. She comes out usually about an hour after I turn my lights off around 7 pm and climbs all over stuff and tries to escape :) Hahaha...She is also very active with her tongue "smelling" activities :) She just seems uninterested when I present the food......your idea seems worth a shot though before I attempt a live feeding. (Recruiting my roommate for this part if necessary) Haha

*grumbles*....but you've already contributed to the death of an animal. Someone already killed that mouse/rat/asf. Somebody already killed that cow/chicken/pig/sheep/fish for your dinner. What you guys really mean is "I don't want my figurative hands dirty". And that's a whole 'nother ballgame. And that's fine. But see it like it is.

Crazymonkee, I am not intending to make anyone feel bad or afraid. But neither should you, for saying "everyone has to be willing to do this one certian thing". These snakes are not wild, and so wildness has been taken away - like any captive animal. I disagree again with your statement, and if you feel strongly about it you can PM me and we can discuss it. It is all opinionated however, and subjectivity is not "wrong".

Otherwise, the original post has gone downwind - and I apologize for getting off track!

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Originally Posted by Anya

*grumbles*....but you've already contributed to the death of an animal. Someone already killed that mouse/rat/asf. Somebody already killed that cow/chicken/pig/sheep/fish for your dinner. What you guys really mean is "I don't want my figurative hands dirty". And that's a whole 'nother ballgame. And that's fine. But see it like it is.

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Anya - You are very correct. Even keeping F/T Mice in the freezer is contributing to the death. Everyone just has their own points of views and opinions. The important part is being willing to do what is necessary to ensure the safety of the BP which I am well aware of and willing to do. It's easier to be naive and assume the frozen mice were put down nicely and will serve their purpose.

But either way everyone has been correct in their own way :)

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Originally Posted by NH93

Crazymonkee, I am not intending to make anyone feel bad or afraid. But neither should you, for saying "everyone has to be willing to do this one certian thing". These snakes are not wild, and so wildness has been taken away - like any captive animal. I disagree again with your statement, and if you feel strongly about it you can PM me and we can discuss it. It is all opinionated however, and subjectivity is not "wrong".

Otherwise, the original post has gone downwind - and I apologize for getting off track!

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I apologize as well, the wildness has not been taken out of them, captive bred tigers still have their wild instincts.

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I lucked out and found a place about 15 blocks from me that sells all size mice and rats from pinks to adults. Gonna pick up some pups and fuzzy rats this weekend. Have a little 1 gallon ank imma keep them in.

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Originally Posted by NYHC4LIFE8899

I lucked out and found a place about 15 blocks from me that sells all size mice and rats from pinks to adults. Gonna pick up some pups and fuzzy rats this weekend. Have a little 1 gallon ank imma keep them in.

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Fuzzies can't live without their Mom and unless the pup is a weanling it can't either. So not a good idea

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I feed live.

I don't have the time to dance F/T rats in front of 80 snakes, nor do most breeders with a decent sized collection. The natural instinct of these animals is far from gone just because you put them in a rack.

A tame house cat will still kill a live mouse and eat it.....

I'm not sure how helpful this will be but my BP hadn't eaten for the first couple of weeks I had her and I found success tonight :D

I left the rat thawing by the vivarium so as to allow her to smell that it was tea time and was a little encouraged that I saw her head slightly out of the hides (She usually hides right at then back). I heated it and prepared to do the "zombie dance" when, like a clutz, I dropped the rat into the vivarium at an angle where I couldn't quite get the back end again so I used the tongs to wiggle the rat slightly on the floor, nose facing the hide door. Before I had time to blink she had struck and constricted.

If all the F/T techniques just aren't working then understandably go to live feeders, anything for the health of your BP but thought I would share my little piece of very strange, and new experience (first time feeding a BP so a little over happy)

Good Luck!!:)

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Originally Posted by Anya

*grumbles*....but you've already contributed to the death of an animal. Someone already killed that mouse/rat/asf. Somebody already killed that cow/chicken/pig/sheep/fish for your dinner. What you guys really mean is "I don't want my figurative hands dirty". And that's a whole 'nother ballgame. And that's fine. But see it like it is.

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Originally Posted by Crazymonkee

Fuzzies can't live without their Mom and unless the pup is a weanling it can't either. So not a good idea

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ok cool,then I'll just buy them as I feed my snakes.thnx

No problem

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Originally Posted by Crazymonkee

No problem

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So one question,a fuzzy or pup can't live 4-5 days without its mom,cause I feed my snakes every 4-5 days

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Originally Posted by coreydelong

I feed live.

I don't have the time to dance F/T rats in front of 80 snakes, nor do most breeders with a decent sized collection. The natural instinct of these animals is far from gone just because you put them in a rack.

A tame house cat will still kill a live mouse and eat it.....

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A lot of very large breeders with hundreds and even thousands of animals feed f/t. Even though the usually have workers to help, but it's still possible to feed a very large collection f/t. It's just more convenient for some to buy a bunch of f/t feeders in bulk to put in a freezer than caring for a whole colony of rodents that need constant maintenance. So it's just a matter of what works best for you and your animals. Sometimes it's easier for some to feed live and for some to feed f/t. :) and if we acquire or produce an animal that will only eat live than we should be willing to fulfill its needs :)


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Originally Posted by NYHC4LIFE8899

So one question,a fuzzy or pup can't live 4-5 days without its mom,cause I feed my snakes every 4-5 days

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No. They need milk to drink. They would stave before you could feed them.

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Originally Posted by NYHC4LIFE8899

So one question,a fuzzy or pup can't live 4-5 days without its mom,cause I feed my snakes every 4-5 days

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Nope you'd have a bunch of starved dead babies. They need milk everyday.

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How did the breeder or person you got her from feed her? Methods or steps? Have you tried that.

What size prey are you feeding? I'm pretty sure my first feed to my pewter was rejected because it was too small. I tried with a 12 day old pinky (that the breeder gave me), and it was a no go, but I tried 2 days later with a fuzzy and she took it no problem. Have you tried leaving the f/t prey in there over night? Maybe right in front of the hide? I was planning to do that if she refused the second time on advice of people here, but I never actually tried it. It might be time to at least offer at least one live feed though. Whatever you chose to do next, I wish you luck.

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Originally Posted by Monty the BP

How did the breeder or person you got her from feed her? Methods or steps? Have you tried that.

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I got her during a pet convention, so things were pretty chaotic. I didn't get the chance to get all the details, he just said that she had been eating about every 5 days since her hatching. He failed to mention whether it was live or not and I failed to ask :(

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Originally Posted by Shera

What size prey are you feeding? I'm pretty sure my first feed to my pewter was rejected because it was too small. I tried with a 12 day old pinky (that the breeder gave me), and it was a no go, but I tried 2 days later with a fuzzy and she took it no problem. Have you tried leaving the f/t prey in there over night? Maybe right in front of the hide? I was planning to do that if she refused the second time on advice of people here, but I never actually tried it. It might be time to at least offer at least one live feed though. Whatever you chose to do next, I wish you luck.

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Hey Shera!

I thought it was bad to leave F/T in the cage to long for the risk of growing bacteria? Assuming that the snake did not end up eating it by the end of the night. I am trying to feed her Hopper Mice. They are maybe a mm smaller than the largest diameter of her body. So they seem to be the right size. And like I said before, she has eaten 1, in the last 5 weeks. I just can't get her to do it again.

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Originally Posted by BloodStar

Hey Shera!

I thought it was bad to leave F/T in the cage to long for the risk of growing bacteria? Assuming that the snake did not end up eating it by the end of the night. I am trying to feed her Hopper Mice. They are maybe a mm smaller than the largest diameter of her body. So they seem to be the right size. And like I said before, she has eaten 1, in the last 5 weeks. I just can't get her to do it again.

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You could try a small adult mouse. They prey should be equal to or a lil larger than the widest part of the snake, or you could try a rat pup equivalent to the size of a small mouse. It may have been started on rats and may not recognize the mouse as food

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Originally Posted by Crazymonkee

You could try a small adult mouse. They prey should be equal to or a lil larger than the widest part of the snake, or you could try a rat pup equivalent to the size of a small mouse. It may have been started on rats and may not recognize the mouse as food

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Well that could be true...I'll see what I can find for rats and maybe go that route. Thank you for the info

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Originally Posted by BloodStar

Well that could be true...I'll see what I can find for rats and maybe go that route. Thank you for the info

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Best of luck to you! Let us know :)

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Originally Posted by BloodStar

I got her during a pet convention, so things were pretty chaotic. I didn't get the chance to get all the details, he just said that she had been eating about every 5 days since her hatching. He failed to mention whether it was live or not and I failed to ask :(

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Can you contact him? Maybe he will have some answers for you. Have you tried feeding at night when active and if nothing just leaving the mouse/rat in there to see if she eats when your not looking

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Originally Posted by Monty the BP

Can you contact him? Maybe he will have some answers for you. Have you tried feeding at night when active and if nothing just leaving the mouse/rat in there to see if she eats when your not looking

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Tonight will be my last attempt F/T feed before I resort to live, and then assist if that doesn't work.

I have the hopper mouse de-thawing right now in the fridge in a baggy. Tonight about 30 minutes before she usually ventures out of her hide I am going to put the baggy in a tub of hot water right outside the cage for about 15 minutes to continue the dethaw, help heat up the mouse, and scent the area. Then I will blow dry and fluff the fur and dip in hot water to raise the temps up, but not to hot to where it cooks at all. Then Ill try haha and hope for the best. If she doesn't take right away ill probably leave in her cage for about an hour. If no take, then ill resort to live this weekend.

And that is a good idea, I will have to do some research to get his information and see. The thing is though, I bought two BPs from him, same age and same sex. My other BP is doing fine with F/T mice. But Ill see if I can dig his info out.

Thank you!

Wooooot!

If you can't gather by my response. She ate tonight!!! Finally! After five freaking weeks of fighting her she ate :)

I'm super stoked. Thank you everyone for your contributing ideas and assistance. I will rest easy tonight :)

Awesome news!! :)

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