Won't Eat

[AyyeeRon]

I bought a normal bp off craigslist list .....
When I bought the snake the guy said he was a good feeder. I got him home in a 40 gal breeder with Aspen bedding 2 hides . Side of terrarium are blacked out heat mat on one side with thermostat . Ambient temp side is between 80 at night and 83 during day ... the other side has heat lamp witch he seems to really like and its always 86 on that side ... he is always on the hot side .. he just went threw shed .. I gave him a humidity box and he shed great in one piece ... and took a crap right after ... he has not ate in 4 weeks the first I figured he was stressed from the move the second he started to go into shed and third he was really in shed and today .. i put the small rat on top of cage for an hour and he seemed interested until I put the rat in the tank with him ... humidity is 55 to 60 percent never more never less .. he was at 70 percent humidity during shed .... I have 2 other BP and they r having no problems at all .. ... the guy I bought him could not tell me the exact age .. he is rite at 4ft .... I change water every day..... I am taking out half log today and replacing with a rubber maid container I have made into a hide .... I have spent money on nice ones i thought he would like and he didn't so maybe simple will work better .. and suggestions would be awesome I want him to EAT!!!!! and he eats live ... that's what he was eating when I bought him so I was gonna try and change down road after he eats here .... the guy i bought him said it's not un heard of for bp to not eat in winter ... all my others are tho ... just starting to get worried ... idk....

[Stewart_Reptiles]

It's not unusual for adults to take time to adjust when they move, can be as long as 6 months to a year.

Make sure your husbandry is optimum offer smaller preys every two to three weeks and be patient.

Keep in mind that because an animal has ate every winter until now does not mean he will continue either

[AyyeeRon]

I appreciate it .. just wanted to ask someone that I didn't meet on craigslist .. I was thinking of offering a large mouse because he acts like he is interested ... but then seemed like he was scared of it ... idk I am not to trusting of the craigslist guy .... he won't answer the phone or text ... after the first day I got him home .. thankx

[Meghenebk]

Are you monitoring his weight? I wouldn't worry for another month or three unless he's dropping weight fast.

You could keep the whole cage covered in a towel or sheet, too, especially if the snake used to be housed in an opaque tub.

If he was only ever fed live, you could try that. Or do the zombie rat dance with tongs if he's used to moving prey. Use a hairdryer to heat up the head of the thawed rat. I had one that wouldn't switch to thawed prey until I brained the rat - poke a small hole in the skull so they can smell the brain and cerebrospinal fluid.

[AyyeeRon]

He seems to be very plump still lol but I am getting a scale to weigh him to monitor more close .. also I have almost the entire enclosure covered now .. I guess I'm going to cover the whole thing he was raised in a tub for most his life ... should I just put him in a tub? I figure that would stress him even more I did try to offer him the rat again later at night after a fresh kill ... I warmed it up and did the dance he still acted a little scared of it maybe going from a tub to my setup was pretty tramatic for him he acts normal .. always hiding and sleeping up at night

[Naginii]

When I got my BP in early August, she ate the third week after I got her (a small mouse) and then refused any food up until this week. Something I tried this week that I haven't in the past is that I grabbed a small handful of really urine soaked bedding from my male ASFs. I put that in the cage for about an hour before I introduced another male mouse and she took it pretty quick. This may be an idea for you in the future if your BP won't eat.

I guess my point I was trying to get at is that they can refuse food for a while after a move. Just monitor the health of the animal and make sure they don't start to get really skinny. It took mine several months and I hope that now I can get her to eat consistently! Even after not eating all those months she still had a nice plump look to her so I wasn't worried to be honest. I am THRILLED, however, she ate this week

[AyyeeRon]

I appreciate the reply I feel more confident .. I put in a new homemade hide on the hot side and he seems to love it .. just want him to be happy lol I figure he will eat when he gets hungry or settled in ... I keep him on the same schedule as my other 2 snakes even if he don't eat I don't handle for 48 hours plus the day of ... and I handle him Tuesday wensday Thursday around the same time .. he just chills on my hand I even accidentally fell asleep and he curled up in my arm pit .. yikes .... he seems to know when I come to get him out to ... he seems like he isn't stressed and doesn't show and signs I know about ... i did cover his whole enclosure up too ... i am just gonna let him do him till he wants to eat