Feeding my baby. Problems i think...

i've only had my snake for a week, but he was supposedly the best feeder out of all the babies the breeder had. they said they fed him every thursday morning so i tried yesterday and he was completely uninterested. nobody in town has live pinkies because they all say it's 'unethical' or 'inhumane' but the breeder said he only feeds live... would this have a huge impact? it was like the snake didn't even see it there (or smell it).

my main question is, how long should i wait to try again? also, i tried to feed it in a cloth bag, should i try something else? i have a spare 10 gal aquarium, should i try that? any other tips? out of the 5 or so sources i've read, i'm getting conflicting advice.

thanks, i love this forum!

btw, this is a spotted, not a ball.

Moved to general python.

How did you offer the frozen pinkie? (what process did you use for defrosting and heating?)

Ok, here goes. First you need to give him some space. Make sure your temps and humidity are up to par and do not try to guess. Use a digital Thermometer to gauge your temps and don't trust those little dial thingies. The margin of error on those things are too large of a percentage to get an accurate reading. Once your temps and humidity are set, leave him alone for two weeks except to change the water. Put a whole lot of crumpled newspaper inside so that he feels secure(This is a trick by Adam of 8BallPythons). Do these and then try feeding him. Good luck :)

Raj

i thawed the pinky in warm water...

two weeks? wow, ok. he should be very hungry by then i guess, haha.

temps and everything are good. i'm using a digital infra-red thermometer (precision instrument borrowed from work) so i know it's accurate. he's got two hides in a 55-gal tank as well as some other structural items, so i'd think he'd be good there too.

Ahh whoops, did you say it was a ball python? :oops:

spotted, not a BALL! haha ;)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by kzooherpetoculturist

spotted, not a BALL! haha ;)

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My ADD must be in high gear today :rolleyes: :D

he didn't eat again... do you think it's because i'm trying frozen and he used to be fed live?

I had trouble, back when I had Pythons, getting them to eat FT too. I used to dip them in chicken broth and then put the FT in a shallow tupperware container big enough for the snake to get into and then flop the snake right on top of them. Gulp every time.

Some say that BP are shy animals and need a week or two to adjust, but I never had any such issues with them, which is not to say it is untrue. Pythons in general can be very picky eaters most of the time and a FT mouse doesn't have the same smell as a live one, thus the Chicken broth helps them a lot.

~Jim

good tip! chicken broth?? i'll give it a go if i can't get someone to sell me live pinkies... this snake (spotted python) really is not shy at all. he's a little freaked out when you first pick him up but it really takes him just a moment to settle right down. or if you put your hand out he'll crawl right up on it.
the place i got him from said he was slamming live pinkies so i would think that the FT's are just not doing it.

i checked out your gallery, i really like that snake! rosy boa?

Yeah, I have three rosy's now...albino whitewater and two coastals...I used to have a Mexican, but my little girl opened his cage and didn't tell me and he escaped...I haven't seen him in over a month so I'm guessing he got outside...:depressed
You shouldn't have a problem switching him, it's just the first time that takes a little work...FT are a lot easier to stock up on and hold on to...but it's up to you, most don't see a problem either way!

thanks for your help man.

Hmmm..You said 2 hides in a 55-gal tank...If your new friend is just a baby, isn't the tank too big???? I know that's what I've read here over and over....for a baby, they need to have small tanks, or they're overwhelmed and stressed. And it took my Baby almost 7 months before she'd eat, but she's eatin' now!


Good luck! Just keep reading, researching and learning....It will come. ;)

hmm... i've never read that.

can anyone else confirm this? i was doing some research over the weekend and didn't find anything about a cage being too big. he cruises at nite and doesn't seem stressed at all... just very uninterested about the F/T pinkies. he cruises at nite to all parts of the viv and lays out in the open either on his tree or the lip of his water dish.

thanks for your help by the way! 7 months is a long time, i'm hoping he'll eat this week..