Need some advice

[MitsuMike]

Ok here is the deal my Normal male is weighing in at 498 empty. He has been powering down food since I got him in Jan going from only 120 grams to 500 around April.
Feeding:
1: refused
2: small rat
3: refused
4: refused
5: 2 adult mice
6: refused
I feed on a 5 day schedule. Everyone else has been eating fine. I mean the pastel was off for 2 weeks but he was in shed so no biggie.
Now he is in shed himself which I fine weird. That is all he has eaten in like a month and he is in shed?
Well on that last feeding (tonight) I just recently go myself a colony of ASF rats and go 2 extra to experiment with. Well he refused the ASF. Not live, not stunned, not dead. So now I think to myself what is his deal? After he goes through shed I am def going to get his poo tested that is for sure but other than that what should I try.
BTW i have tried live, f/t (warmed up), leave the f/t in there overnight, make the rat bleed, ASF's. His feeding response has gone down BIG time since switching to rats. He had a killer response on f/t mice but now he is like w/e to rats. Only takes them in they are live (maybe).
I was thinking about getting a gerbil. I heard these are like crack. Now if I do this will he addicted and not want to eat anything else?
As far as weight wise he has been from 475-550 since early April. He seems to be more apt to eat after I poo. Then he is all good.
Plz help.

Also for temps and caging.
He is in a rack system (16 wt). The temps stay 90-93 hot and 77-79 cool i the tub but lately it has been going down to 86-87 randomly for some reason. Only does it on the top and bottom shelves. it's flexwatt cut in half but hasn't done this before except for the past 3 weeks. Thermostat is a Ranco. Building a new 41 qt and it is on the way. Should be ready by next week.

[MitsuMike]

There is a refusal in there between 2 and 3.

[jjmitchell]

My brother in law is having the same kind of thing with his male normally ate like a pig... he hit the 500 mark and has slowed down.... I would not worry to much, its kinda the nature of the beast. I have a few that eat every week and a few that is every other week..... Males will start to slow down and typicaly grow slower than females in my experience

[tonkatoyman]

Sometimes Balls will imprint on an animal. We have snakes that will eat anything you toss in the tub, and we have snakes that will only eat ASF. For an animal to imprint means they only recognized the one type of rodent as food. In your case mice. I suggest you return to mice to see if he starts eating again. if he does, then try taking a mouse and rubbing it all over a small rat and see what happens. That gets the mouse scent on the rat and might switch him to rats.

[MitsuMike]

I wasn't going to feed him til he got done shedding but up until now he has NEVER refused a meal.
I guess ill try mice again and see what happens.
And on a side note my ASF colony blow, not a snake in the collection likes them but my brand new black hole of a snake. Guess she will just finish off the colony. haha

[mommanessy247]

i thought snakes hunted by heat only...i didnt know they can tell different smells from one another. hmmm thats pretty interesting.

[NWReptiles]

Feel free to skip offering every other time, until he starts to take again.

A snake that has taken himself off of food, can be intimidated by repeated offerings, and in the process his return to feeding is slowed, not quickened.

Since he doesn't want to eat, let him take a break. He's in no danger.

[Sammy412]

Usually, when they hit the 5oog mark, is when I usually stop the every 5 day schedule, sooner if they seem reluctant to eat. May just be time to go to every 7 days

[darkbloodwyvern]

I agree with trying to offer less. Are mice a big problem to offer? I can understand if all you buy or breed is rats, but some are just more happy on mice. Males don't need to put on weight like the ladies do, thought it is easier for them to fast during mating when they are bigger. Just stick with mice. Give him a week or two of solitary time, don't bug him and just change the water and clean up poop and then try a single mouse. If he eats it, great! DON'T offer another. Wait a week, limit handling or just don't do at all. Offer another mouse and if he takes that, try another. Baby steps are sometimes necessary. You can't force him to eat and the more aggressive you are about it, the more likely he's going to freak out and feel even LESS like eating.
It took me a long time to realize BPs aren't Cornsnakes. Some can be that ravenous, but most can be a little stubborn and picky at least sometime in their lives. I would recommend very slowly introducing rats again AFTER he's eating consistently every week. Do all the scenting things, let the rat live in mouse bedding for a few hours or overnight so it smells mousey, rub it with a mouse. You may have to do this a few times before he trusts that it is food. Sometimes they will happily eat something one week, then refuse it the next. If the rats are more aggressive or bigger than the mice, he might be scared of them. Just take it slow and let him decide when he wants to switch, no pressure. You can't talk to him and explain it's food, so you have to let him realize it on his own! Good luck!!

[jefrow]

yea i say switch to every 7 days cuz it seems by your feeding schedule he has ate every other feeding attempt