Trip to a vet did not help my snake, please help

[lifesong]

Back to basics: what are you using to heat his cage? is is regulated? how? What are the low end & high end (max) temps. in cage (ON substrate where the snake is)?

Besides just the hides being inadequate, most here have better results with "clutter" in their BP cages: fake plants or driftwood & such things.

You haven't mentioned measuring his humidity either? Glass tanks need a modification to keep IN the humidity for a BP...you can just cover most of the screen top with
foil or plexi or most anything that doesn't allow air (& all the moisture) to escape.

A UTH, its regulated but I have the thermometer taped to the glass underneath since my current tank has no wire-holes. I set the thermostat to 92-94 because when measuring with my infrared heat gun the substrate on his warm side stays stable between 87-92 degrees. I had a humidity meter on the wall but reading some posts here saw some horror stories with having them come loose and sticking to snakes skin. My snake kept climbing on it so I took it off to avoid it being pulled off the wall accidentally. Currently I'm misting every few days. I try to cover the top tomorrow, it's a bit difficult because it slides in grooves in the tank instead of being placed and attached from the top down and the tolerances are pretty tight because it "locks" in place. I'll have to think of something creative to cover the screen with.

[Bogertophis]

Yes, he was eating well after I got him started. First was pinkies (petsmarts suggestion) then after a few weeks I moved up to fuzzies and then right before he stopped he had 1 or 2 weeks of "small mice" (all the mice are petsmart arctic mice brand).
Thanks for the info, I thought perhaps offering different temperature mice might help that's why I was doing 3 in a night (one normal temp, slightly cooler, slightly warmer, all thawed in room temp water then warmed up at around 100 degrees before feeding). Sounds like he needs to destress big time, I'll get the substrate removed from his tank tonight and put paper towels down.

Pet stores are well-known for giving lousy advice, & telling you to start a BP on pinkies was totally wrong. "Baby" BPs normally eat at least fuzzies but many are started on hoppers (very young mice with eyes open).* BPs have heat-sensing pits & you can bank on them wanting life-like WARMTH from their prey, if not fed live. Many here have success by blow-drying (briefly) the f/t prey after thawing & immediately before offering, if you continue only offering f/t. (they cool off fast, do this right next to the cage)

*as far as prey, BPs could also be safely** fed live baby rats of a size equal to the mice & it might be worth trying if you can get them, just because some snakes have taste preferences. A rat pink is roughly = to a mouse fuzzy, a rat fuzzy is roughly = to a mouse hopper. **mice or rats with eyes still closed will never bite a snake, they don't fight back until their eyes are open, & even then, hopper mice aren't very skilled yet at self-defense.

As far as hides to make him comfortable now (!) don't wait to order/buy another...you can modify cardboard boxes for the time being...he needs to feel safe & secure. Reptile Basics is one place to get good inexpensive plastic hides, fyi. If you get a hide that's bigger than your snake is now (to grow into) you can make it 'cozy' for him by crumpling some paper & stuffing it inside until he grows bigger...BPs like "back pressure"- feeling snug in hides so that nothing can sneak up behind them.

[lifesong]

As far as hides to make him comfortable now (!) don't wait to order/buy another...you can modify cardboard boxes for the time being...he needs to feel safe & secure. Reptile Basics is one place to get good inexpensive plastic hides, fyi. If you get a hide that's bigger than your snake is now (to grow into) you can make it 'cozy' for him by crumpling some paper & stuffing it inside until he grows bigger...BPs like "back pressure"- feeling snug in hides so that nothing can sneak up behind them.

Replacing the substrate with paper towels and crafting a cardboard hide right now. I've been waiting and hoping for the best for too long. Thanks for all the tips, I will update this thread when I make some progress on his setup, clutter, and humidity. Waiting at least few days before I try feeding again.

[Bogertophis]

A UTH, its regulated but I have the thermometer taped to the glass underneath since my current tank has no wire-holes. I set the thermostat to 92-94 because when measuring with my infrared heat gun the substrate on his warm side stays stable between 87-92 degrees. I had a humidity meter on the wall but reading some posts here saw some horror stories with having them come loose and sticking to snakes skin. My snake kept climbing on it so I took it off to avoid it being pulled off the wall accidentally. Currently I'm misting every few days. I try to cover the top tomorrow, it's a bit difficult because it slides in grooves in the tank instead of being placed and attached from the top down and the tolerances are pretty tight because it "locks" in place. I'll have to think of something creative to cover the screen with.

You want his warm side (on substrate) not over 90*, so tweak that down a bit for safety to 88-89*.

Those inexpensive stick-on humidity gauges are very inaccurate, & yes, the heat + humidity makes them come loose & stick to the nearest snake going by.

Misting doesn't do much for raising humidity...you might try making him a "humid hide". Get a plastic food container, cut a door-way in the top, & fill it with moist moss,
leaving enough room for your snake inside too. My snakes love to use them...they can smell the humidity & are drawn to it. You'll need to refresh the moisture at least
once a week, maybe twice. This will really help him for shedding too.

As far as covering the screen, you need to leave a little space for air to flow, but by laying something on top covering most of it, it doesn't have to fasten to the screen or
cage, nor does it need to be perfectly fancy...just so it does the job for now 'til you figure out a more attractive option. (you could cover a piece of cardboard with some
plastic coated "Contac" paper to keep the cardboard from absorbing moisture...anything like that will work fine)

[lifesong]

The q-tip in the vent is the least of my worries. All the prey you just mentioned is too small. My snakes might get a pinkie or two before they are on to fuzzy rats and then pups. Most of the live mice you get at the store if that’s the only place you have are 15-20 grams. Snake should have no issues with that. We can’t be inside your husbandry all the time. Live prey especially a mouse is a good indicator in my opinion if something is truly off. I have rarely if ever had a BP refuse a live mouse. I’d also try smaller hides. Those open air hides have never seemed to work when people post on here. My concern is it sounds like you are looking at that as a last resort (live mouse...) I would say if you try shoving mashed up dog food down it’s throat it will only make things worse. Same with force feeding. You have no experience in either. Sorry just being honest.

No worries at all, thank you for the honesty and advice. I want this snake to get better.

[Bogertophis]

The reason that your well-intentioned vet trip didn't help much is because most vets really don't specialize in basic snake-keeping skills...they are trained to practice
medicine, & like all doctors, are usually pressed for time. As you may have noticed, discussing the "how-to-care-for" stuff takes time...it's not where their focus is, &
many really don't know that much about non-medical care, but it's this stuff that's usually the best place to start...it's most likely the issue, or at least a big part of it.

There are some vets that are really knowledgeable snake-keepers too, but they're hard to find...takes luck to be near one. Even if your snake has some issues
(they get exposed to other sick snakes in the pet trade), by offering the best environment & reducing their stress, their immune system can often fight off things
they were exposed to.

[ballpythonsrock2]

I agree with the others about security being the number one reason your snake isn't eating. If you haven't yet you need to cover the sides and back with at the very least paper. But you can also use Styrofoam, or R-21 insulation.(Lowes or Home Depot) R 21 insulates really, really well (better than Styrofoam) and can be cut with a scissors. You can put the R-21 or Styrofoam over the paper even.

Sounds like you have got the uth and it's temp right. You can get the black hides from ReptileBasics dot com and even Amazon sells small black hides by Pangea for 8 dollars a hide )small. 8.50 for medium.

My next question is how is your ambient temp. A low ambient temp can cause a snake to quit eating. I like to have mine up around 80 or 82(even better) Can you use a dome and night bulb (Zilla black light)-Petco or che on a thermostat to help keep the ambient heat in the low 80's Amazon sell thermostats as well. As far as cheaper but lesser dependability than say a Herpstat go you can buy a Vivosun. There a LOTS of low end thermostats. The best high end thermostat is Herpstat which costs more but is high quality. and there is also the VE which reptilebasics sells which is good quality as well.

The VE 300 which sells for a decent price on Reptile Basics runs 3 devices which might be good if you end up using that larger front open tank you pictured but that will need to be way down the road once your snake is eating and a lot bigger. But you could still get the ve-300 now. And run your uth and a heat bulb or che. with it. plus one other device.

And I agree with Moose after you get the security and (maybe) ambient temp straighten out you should get you a live mouse from Petco or another store. There I said it. That store (Petco) sells live feeders and other local pet stores do too. God Bless Em. And I think it is more cruel to starve a snake or any animal then to have a mouse die in less than a minute in the way nature has worked out. Not too many snakes getting frozen thawed feeders delivered to them in the out doors. In the US or Africa, South America, or anywhere else for that matter.

[Cheesenugget]

Follow Deborah's sticky on how to get picky eaters to eat. You can find the link in the ball python section. It works. Offer live hopper.

Secondly, most chain stores suck when it comes to animal care, even a cat or a dog. Last weekend I argued with a Petsmart employee about their ball python who was very skinny, probably about 55g, with stuck shed covering his whole head, neck and eye caps, with no water bowl in the tank and drying the tank using aspen, covered in little translucent bugs. They dare say that snake was eating fine and dandy while it struggles to get comfortable and its spine protruding. So what I'm trying to say is: do your best and forget everything that they taught you.

[PitOnTheProwl]

Three words: Live Hopper Mouse.......

[303_enfield]

Three words: Live Hopper Mouse.......

Or hit facebook,craigs list an the like for African Soft Furs!!!!!
Live hopper mice = good. Live hopper ASF = best.

You read everything posted. Your fixing the housing. Now, leave the snake warm an lights off for three days (darkened room or what ever). Then offer a hopper. The snake will eat. If not, not likely, wait three more days an try again.

I didn't see this posted so take a look.
https://ball-pythons.net/forums/show...ding-Guideline

Good luck!