Taking home a neglected banana, any special tips?

So, I have decided I need to take this poor creature home with me as no one in this store I work at is showing any real concern and I am honestly enraged by what I am seeing. This banana has been in the store for months now. It never was a healthy weight, and the fact it literally refuses to eat, as the vet said it was possible it's so inbred it's stupid and cannot take food on its own, makes me cringe when I think of random person coming and buying it for their first snake.It has been assist-fed it's every tiny pinkie meal. It was in the private isolation room, getting daily betadine soaks, stressed 24/7, for probably a month until I pressed that we stop the soaks asap. Then they decided it looked like it was retaining weight and returned it to the sales floor where it was at least left alone.
However. I decided to check on it today when I was closing.
Holy hell.

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...o3ro1_1280.jpghttps://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...o3ro2_1280.jpg
It is a horror show. Skin drooping off every part of the body, ribs outlined, a spine so visible it could give you a papercut. Could not curl up, was unsteady. So mushy and squishy it made me uncomfortable because there was zero muscle.

Now I already own one thriving ball, and have always been on top of researching more. So basics I get. However, for this case, I was wondering if there was anything special I should do? Considering setup (do NOT tell me to put it in a 6qt tub with a bowl of water. I will not be using anything shoebox related.) or mainly anything I should do for the first time I try to feed?

First pinkie's are to small for it. Get him a small live hopper mouse to start off. Next get him a nice dark hide for his cage. You were correct the daily soakings were doing nothing but stressing him out. Keep his cage humidity correct and don't handle him until he starts eating regularly. I think I have seen this poor guy in a pet shop. Or one just like him. You aren't in the Columbia South Carolina area are you? These big box pet stores are stupid with the way they have their reptiles. I want call it keeping them as it's far from it. By the way thanks for trying to help it. I would rescue it myself, however they would just get another one to abuse.

holy heck. that baby is lucky you found him and are knowledgeable to understand. get that poor thing to a proper home, get nice secluded hides and proper temps, and let it relax.

+1 live hopper, and watch carefully as i'm sure it's p weak.

keep us updated, please! that's a beautiful baby, and it's happy you stepped in.

Yeah, I've been wrestling a lot with taking him home just because the last time a banana starved to death on the sales floor, they just got this one pictured in in his place. Not only is it on MACK reptiles for not waiting until the pythons are established on feeding, but it's on the us at the store to be CARING for them which always fall through. All the pythons get pinkies, which is idiotic.

But im afraid to buy him and encourage the sales. But I also don't want to just let him waste away. It's rough.

At this point I'm thinking I'd do a fuzzy to start, leave him alone more, and then maybe a hopper. I would love to see him improve and grow.

Can't you feed him a "pinkie" on paper but actually feed him a hopper? I'm sure they have to just freeze or throw away any extras every couple days


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Obviously under weight but also looks like skin is about ready for a shed.... I could never work around that, id flip my lid. Petsmart/petco is known for this. They are also known for discounting reptiles that look that bad and dont eat ect... I know of them selling Albinos & bananas for $30 when they are that bad. See what deal you can work out... And your right they will just get another... Maybe you need to emotionally detach yourself now or youll always be in this situation unfortunately.
If you get him, buy real pvc hides instead of decoration. Balls seem to do better in plain hides that do what there ment for instead of chain store decorative junk. A medium is perfect for him. $4.99. Get 2 and good luck with whatever you decide.
http://www.reptilebasics.com/hide-boxes

At this point I'll take it IF they agree to adopt him out. I don't want them to make a penny off of this poor creature. My store has never marked down reptiles regardless of their awful condition. It took over a year for them to mark the older, large ~3 foot ball, down 50% while it lived in a ten gallon sized tank. A coworker snatched her that very day.

See if you can get it free because it's in such poor shape.

If you have to assist feed again try a f/t large-ish fuzzy or small-ish hopper, and I would make it damp to help the feeder go down easier and to help rehydrate the snake.

Good luck.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by ferrislongdog

At this point I'll take it IF they agree to adopt him out. I don't want them to make a penny off of this poor creature. My store has never marked down reptiles regardless of their awful condition. It took over a year for them to mark the older, large ~3 foot ball, down 50% while it lived in a ten gallon sized tank. A coworker snatched her that very day.

---

freaking shame.. Over and over they do this too and think about how many stores there are.. Disgusting thing to do to living things. They have a Albino and a Pie down to $99 at our local store and a normal for $25.. I feel terrible but i wont have anything to do with them. These stores treat living things like shelves full of decorations to sell. Like Barbarians.

Yup, and they usually will not give away an animal, not even in terrible shape.

They make more money if it dies. Write off.

Such a shame. Someone needs their ass kicked over that.

I'm not the best to offer advice by any means but it looks dehydrated to my untrained eyes - I'm sure there's methods available to alleviate that problem

Also never use their vet again. :mad:

I'm thinking a better opinion from the vet would've been "maybe it isn't eating because it's kept in awful conditions and stressed constantly and people keep handling it every day for unneeded soaks"

Ill be asking my manager just what qualifies an animal for adoption. Hamsters with missing toes or neurological issues are free. Gerbils that are violent are free. I hope to use this "the snake has a condition where it cannot eat on its own, it is not fit to be kept as a pet for a random customer and is very unhealthy, and requires a home that's prepared for complications"

i just cant bring myself to pay full price for an unhealthy, unfit animal.

The snakes are the WORST kept pets in the store. Always dehydrated because no one realizes they NEED humidity (banana actually has a mossy hide because I put it in there) and all of them underfed. Wrinkly, skinny, listless creatures. Well not so much the normals. They're cheap and sell quick.

Quote:

---

the vet said it was possible it's so inbred it's stupid and cannot take food on its own

---

That has to be the most idiotic statement I have heard from a vet :rolleyes:

Provide OPTIMAL husbandry by doing this https://ball-pythons.net/forums/show...-hatchling-101 to a T and I mean to a T not just part of it and you should be on route to a healthy animal in no time as for the vet well the lack or reptile knowledge (BP in particular) shows, so I would avoid that vet at all cost.

Quote:

---

do NOT tell me to put it in a 6qt tub with a bowl of water. I will not be using anything shoebox related.)

---

I don't care what YOU want to hear, your animal needs to be in a 6 quarts tub with proper husbandry until it starts eating on it's own and gaining weight (this is temporary), it works it's proven and if you refuse to give it a try the animal is better off at the store, when you want to save an animal YOU MUST be willing to listen and make changes that are proven.

That poor baby! :(

Seriously, PLEASE start him in a tub. Small enough to feel very very safe to the snake, get the humidity spot on, keep the temps perfect, and it's a bonus if he is more confined...he's using fewer calories to thermoregulate, get to his water...

You can always post all the facts on every form of social media you use. That would help undo what ever profit the company makes.

I couldn't work there, I'd just get myself fired trying to fight crap like that. Our local PetSmart doesn't carry any pets. If it did, I wouldn't be able to shop there (and they seem to be the only place to get a glass tank that isn't cracked upon delivery.)

Sweet looking baby.
Please follow Deborah's and DLena's advice!
You can give it a *nicer* enclosure later, right now the top priority is to get the animal healthy.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Deborah

I don't care what YOU want to hear, your animal needs to be in a 6 quarts tub with proper husbandry until it starts eating on it's own and gaining weight (this is temporary), it works it's proven and if you refuse to give it a try the animal is better off at the store, when you want to save an animal YOU MUST be willing to listen and make changes that are proven.

---

I was thinking the same thing, thank you for saying it.

This is about saving an animals life, not someone's personal views on husbandry. Do what works. For the animals sake.
Sometimes just moving them into a "shoebox" in the proper setup is enough to get one "going". Its been through enough.

If the snake lives and thrives you can always upgrade the setup in time.

OP, any way we can get an update? Just stumbled upon this and am very curious about this poor thing's wellbeing.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro