1st Hungry Strike

Well after a solid year and a few months of eating weekly my BP decided to go on her 1st hungry stike. Today makes the 4th Sunday in a row she has refused her weekly rat. I've been feeding her small F/T rats and up till recently she has never refused a meal. I guess I'll just keep her water dish full and play the waiting game.

What is her current weight and overall body condition? BP's can go quite a long time without meals assuming they started with good body condition before going off feed.

Stress might be causing her to refuse food. Did you change anything in her enclosure recently? I assume she has adequate hides, humidity, heat, etc?

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Originally Posted by shadowsnakes

What is her current weight and overall body condition? BP's can go quite a long time without meals assuming they started with good body condition before going off feed.

Stress might be causing her to refuse food. Did you change anything in her enclosure recently? I assume she has adequate hides, humidity, heat, etc?

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I haven't weighed her in awhile. She was plump but is a little thinner now though. She's still drinking water I know this. I have her in a 20L and have seen her out getting some water. I haven't changed anything either. She has two identical Exo Terra XL hides and her temps are 81 warm side and about 76 cool. Her humidity was a little low at 35% so I just misted her tank. I'll keep a better eye on it and see if it helps. I forget that my house dries out some in the winter months. During the other seasons I rarely have to look at her humidity unless she is getting ready to shed then I mist to get it up above 70-75% to help her out.

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Originally Posted by BillinIndiana

I haven't weighed her in awhile. She was plump but is a little thinner now though. She's still drinking water I know this. I have her in a 20L and have seen her out getting some water. I haven't changed anything either. She has two identical Exo Terra XL hides and her temps are 81 warm side and about 76 cool. Her humidity was a little low at 35% so I just misted her tank. I'll keep a better eye on it and see if it helps. I forget that my house dries out some in the winter months. During the other seasons I rarely have to look at her humidity unless she is getting ready to shed then I mist to get it up above 70-75% to help her out.

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Do you have a hotspot?

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Originally Posted by Crazymonkee

Do you have a hotspot?

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I've never really known what to do about a hot spot? She's been fine until now. I have a UTH on a thermostat on the warm side and an overhead heat lamp on that same side that keeps her tank really pretty stable.

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Originally Posted by BillinIndiana

I've never really known what to do about a hot spot? She's been fine until now. I have a UTH on a thermostat on the warm side and an overhead heat lamp on that same side that keeps her tank really pretty stable.

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What is your thermostat set at, that should be your hotspot

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Oh alright, been awhile. Like I said she has been fine for over a year. I got her in Sept 2012 when she was 8 weeks I think it was.
Anyways stat is set at 87

87 can be low for some snakes, but if she has been fine for a year I doubt this is the issue. Keep offering food on her regular feeding days and eventually she should eat. If she loses a lot of weight there might be a parasite issue worth investigating.

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Originally Posted by shadowsnakes

87 can be low for some snakes, but if she has been fine for a year I doubt this is the issue. Keep offering food on her regular feeding days and eventually she should eat. If she loses a lot of weight there might be a parasite issue worth investigating.

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Ditto

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I just read that BP's will refuse to eat during breeding season. The article said November or colder months is breeding time. She ( if she is a she? I've never had her probed or sexed) is about 17 months old, is this about the age they start to go in heat?

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Originally Posted by BillinIndiana

Oh alright, been awhile. Like I said she has been fine for over a year. I got her in Sept 2012 when she was 8 weeks I think it was.
Anyways stat is set at 87

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Like others said if she has been kept this way for over a year temps might not be an issue. I would ask though, how you are measuring your temps. Depending on your thermostat and probe placement, the actual temps your snake is feeling could be slightly different.


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Originally Posted by martin82531

Like others said if she has been kept this way for over a year temps might not be an issue. I would ask though, how you are measuring your temps. Depending on your thermostat and probe placement, the actual temps your snake is feeling could be slightly different.


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I just have an Acu-rite thermometer from Walmart in with her. It has a probe on a wire for outdoor use. I place that on the hot side and the whole unit on the cool side.

I keep all of my snakes at 84° average, no cool side no hotspot, but that is also in a thermostatically controlled heated room. Colder species snakes on the floor level, and ones that require higher temps on top. In a singular enclosure your temps may not be high enough ambient to allow proper digestion, and snakes that know it's too cold to digest won't eat. If your ambients are in the 70's, and your warm side is only mid-upper 80's, it may be too cold for them.


I like my Dubstep to go Wop Wop Wop Wop

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Originally Posted by BillinIndiana

I just read that BP's will refuse to eat during breeding season. The article said November or colder months is breeding time. She ( if she is a she? I've never had her probed or sexed) is about 17 months old, is this about the age they start to go in heat?

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That's a possibility. In the wild, breeding season is triggered by climate to a large degree. Another consideration is her age and weight. If you haven't weighed her, I'm willing to bet she's right around 1000 grams at that age. There's a pretty well documented tendency to go off feed around that size. I wouldn't start sweating a fast just yet. Keep temps/humidity stable and correct, and keep offering food at regular intervals. Eventually she'll take it.

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Originally Posted by patientz3ro

That's a possibility. In the wild, breeding season is triggered by climate to a large degree. Another consideration is her age and weight. If you haven't weighed her, I'm willing to bet she's right around 1000 grams at that age. There's a pretty well documented tendency to go off feed around that size. I wouldn't start sweating a fast just yet. Keep temps/humidity stable and correct, and keep offering food at regular intervals. Eventually she'll take it.

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Tried again today and she refused. That makes 5 straight weeks. She is weighing in at 996 grams though. Her eyes and nostrils(?) mouth etc. look nice and clear. I mean she doesn't look bad, but she is showing a little looser skin. She was really plump so I'm sure she has loss some weight. I still see her drinking now and then which is good I'm sure.
I'll keep trying next week.

Mine did his first hunger strike, its been 3 months now, he hasn't showed any signs of weight loss. Checked all the usual, I had him for seven years and this is his first strike.

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Originally Posted by BillinIndiana

Tried again today and she refused. That makes 5 straight weeks. She is weighing in at 996 grams though. Her eyes and nostrils(?) mouth etc. look nice and clear. I mean she doesn't look bad, but she is showing a little looser skin. She was really plump so I'm sure she has loss some weight. I still see her drinking now and then which is good I'm sure.
I'll keep trying next week.

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Try a live rat (I think I saw that you do FT....if not, ignore this).

She ate some time last night. I have been using a separate tub to feed her, but all of a sudden this wasn't working. I know there are mixed opinions on using a feeding tub, but I use cypress mulch for bedding and have always been afraid of her accidentally ingesting wood chips.
Anyways I left the thawed and warmed rat in her every day tank all night and she eventually ate it. She must have gotten tired of crawling over it? LOL

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Originally Posted by Expensive hobby

I keep all of my snakes at 84° average, no cool side no hotspot, but that is also in a thermostatically controlled heated room. Colder species snakes on the floor level, and ones that require higher temps on top. In a singular enclosure your temps may not be high enough ambient to allow proper digestion, and snakes that know it's too cold to digest won't eat. If your ambients are in the 70's, and your warm side is only mid-upper 80's, it may be too cold for them.


I like my Dubstep to go Wop Wop Wop Wop

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I can't remember where I saw it, but I read something about a "greenhouse effect" when there's no thermal gradient. Supposedly it's unhealthy, but I can't remember specifics. Have you heard anything to that effect, or had any issues?

I'm assuming you haven't had issues or you wouldn't do it, but I'm curious.

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Originally Posted by BillinIndiana

She ate some time last night. I have been using a separate tub to feed her, but all of a sudden this wasn't working. I know there are mixed opinions on using a feeding tub, but I use cypress mulch for bedding and have always been afraid of her accidentally ingesting wood chips.
Anyways I left the thawed and warmed rat in her every day tank all night and she eventually ate it. She must have gotten tired of crawling over it? LOL

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Glad she's eating, but if you're concerned about her investing cypress, put the prey on a paper plate.

Personally though, I've always used cypress, and never had major issues. I've had to take substrate out of hee mouth before she swallowed it, but she's so laid back... I can put my mouse smelling hands in her tank whenever. Never been nipped. Your snake could be different though.

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Originally Posted by patientz3ro

I can't remember where I saw it, but I read something about a "greenhouse effect" when there's no thermal gradient. Supposedly it's unhealthy, but I can't remember specifics. Have you heard anything to that effect, or had any issues?

I'm assuming you haven't had issues or you wouldn't do it, but I'm curious.





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I believe Jeff from Boaphile Plastics does room heat with no supplemental heat. He seems to be doing pretty well. I know of a few others as well.

Snakes are eating, shedding, defecating, producing urates, shedding, good body tone, strong and growing very fast. Everyone seems "happy."

The whole room is sealed and insulated


I like my Dubstep to go Wop Wop Wop Wop

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Originally Posted by Expensive hobby

I believe Jeff from Boaphile Plastics does room heat with no supplemental heat. He seems to be doing pretty well. I know of a few others as well.

Snakes are eating, shedding, defecating, producing urates, shedding, good body tone, strong and growing very fast. Everyone seems "happy."

The whole room is sealed and insulated


I like my Dubstep to go Wop Wop Wop Wop

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Interesting concept. I wonder if it affects digestion. If so, I'm curious what would happen if the temp was raised a dew degrees after feeding.

See, that's why I should never get new info. I sit and analyze it WAY more than is probably healthy!

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Haha I figure if belly heat should be about 91° hot side for digestion, that's 91° at the belly only, I am providing 84°-86° around their whole body.

If you would average out the core temp of the snake with both methods I bet ambient would be the same as belly because a larger percentage of their body is warm. Make sense?


I like my Dubstep to go Wop Wop Wop Wop

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Originally Posted by Expensive hobby

Haha I figure if belly heat should be about 91° hot side for digestion, that's 91° at the belly only, I am providing 84°-86° around their whole body.

If you would average out the core temp of the snake with both methods I bet ambient would be the same as belly because a larger percentage of their body is warm. Make sense?


I like my Dubstep to go Wop Wop Wop Wop

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I was actually thinking about that. With an endothermic animal like people, ideal temp is 98.6. I would imagine that exothermic animals would have an optimal temp as well, and it sounds like mid 80's is it.

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It sounds like it may be that she hit the 1000 gram wall. All of my 1 1/2 year old females but one or two have hit it recently and suddenly my rat population has exploded! LOL I'm confident that when spring gets here that they'll start eating again. I'll also be getting rid of my night drop here in a few more weeks now that all of my girls have been bred.