New snake. Have been reading all the FAQ, and posts. Still no luck.

[ZakuMedik]

Okay, first off i want to apologize for asking some of the most ask stuff here. I just want to make sure I am heading down the right path. I want to be a good owner, and I value everyones input.

Also i have no idea the sex, so I'm assuming.

So I got this snake about two weeks ago. She had not eaten in a little over a week when i got her. Got her home, set up the cage and left her alone for a week. Tried feeding her a f/t fuzzy (5g) in her cage, no interest. I added some "clutter" in the cage for her and checked my temps. High of 96 during the day on one side and a low of 78 on the other side at night. Using a ceramic lamp, and a mat underneath. Glass cage (i know) with a towel on one side. No i had the mat in the wrong spot, but i didn't want to stress her out more then i already did trying to feed her. First day after the attempted feed she was all over the cage, showing signs of stress, looking for an opening. She eventually calmed down and and dawn and dusk would come out and lay in a corner or in the middle, just smelling and waiting. So i tried feeding again after a week. Fuzzy f/t again. and to boost my chances i soaked it in chicken broth and offered it to her at night....... Didn't move at all. I left it in front of her hide over night. Still there in the morning.

SO today, i went and got a pinky f/t. When i got back, she was smelling around the cage again, not necessarily looking for an out, but what i hope was hunting. This time i took her out of the cage and offered it to her in a different box. A little interest, but no strike. I left the pinky in there with her while i rearranged the cage. Place two identical hides in there, and left the one she likes on the cool side. Moved the heat mat to the middle and added some substrate. When i checked back in on her, she had literally moved/pushed it around, but no strike. I offered it again to her, and she would come right up to it, even touch it and then turn away or continue past it.

I put her back in the cage and tossed another mouse. My next attempt is gonna be "braining" a fuzzy and see if she takes that. I'm also going to look around town to see if anyone will sell me live and try that.

I weighed her today and took a picture. I don't know how much she weighed when i got her though. Im sorry.

She is 72g

https://ibb.co/1zv60kF

https://ibb.co/fD0kQt4

https://ibb.co/vxMQkGL
A hide on each side, and one in the middle. Lamp on the right and heating mat in the middle.

[Craiga 01453]

Welcome to the forum and the wonderful world of snake keeping.

First things first, 96 is way too hot. You want to aim for 88-89.

VERY IMPORTANT: are your heat sources regulated by a thermostat?????


Also, you want to be consistent with what prey type and size you're offering. Ideally, you want to feed whatever the breeder was feeding. Stick to one prey, one size. Once your husbandry is fixed try again.

Also, you don't want to offer more than every 5 days at most. Offering too often stresses the snake and leads to further refusals.

You want to feed inside the enclosure. There's literally ZERO benefit to using a seperate feeding tub. It's old school and proven counter productive over time.

Don't waste your time braining either. In about 15 years in this hobby I've literally only heard of braining working ONCE. I don't even know where people still get that idea these days.

Finally, are you handling the snake at all? You want to hold off on handling until the animal is eating consistently. I advise three meals without refusal before starting handling.

Hope this helps. Let us know if you have other questions. We're happy to help.

[ZakuMedik]

My heat sources are not regulated via thermostat. I will buy literally whatever you suggest. Haha.

I'll work on lowering temps today. Unfortunately i don't know what the breeder was feeding before i bought.

I WAS waiting a week in-between offers. This morning I got a little excited i suppose.

I agree with feeding her in the tank. I thought i would give it a shot, see if she took.

I also agree with braining. I have never had to do it before. But again, I'm getting desperate

Definitely not handling. If i want to watch her in the tank i try to do it from a distance. I am really trying to focus on making her feel safe in there.


I appreciate the quick response.

[Zincubus]

Sorry .. I’m too stressed to plough through all the replies.

I had a quick scan of the first post only ..

Soooo ... I saw the photos and it looks as though it should be on small mice tbh
Maybe a fuzzy as a tempter .

I’d also try the hairdryer method ( I’ve sent you a pm with clear details..)



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[Craiga 01453]

My heat sources are not regulated via thermostat. I will buy literally whatever you suggest. Haha.

I'll work on lowering temps today. Unfortunately i don't know what the breeder was feeding before i bought.

I WAS waiting a week in-between offers. This morning I got a little excited i suppose.

I agree with feeding her in the tank. I thought i would give it a shot, see if she took.

I also agree with braining. I have never had to do it before. But again, I'm getting desperate

Definitely not handling. If i want to watch her in the tank i try to do it from a distance. I am really trying to focus on making her feel safe in there.


I appreciate the quick response.

Happy to help.

I would unplug the UTH (heat mat) until you get a thermostat. It's literally the most important piece of equipment we have as snake keepers.
Those heat mats can spike to temps upwards of 120° and cause horrible burns, neurological issues and even death. Your snake will be fine without the UTH til you get a tstat.

Ok, since you don't know what the breeder was feeding I'd stick to small adult mice or even hopper mice for a few meals. It's very important to be consistent though. I'm going to guess the breeder was feeding hoppers. But BPs typically eat hoppers for about 3-5 meals before moving up to small adult mice. So if you get hoppers don't get many.

Hahaha, no worries on getting excited, can't say I blame you. But patience will be your friend when keeping snakes. Just stick to 5-7 days between moving forward.

And I can understand trying a separate feeding tub, but again, you want to be consistent. No harm done though, just a lesson learned

And good job holding off on handling.

No need to be desperate yet, but I understand. Be patient and consistent.

First things first, get yourself thermostat(s). That will keep your snake safe while also making it easy to get your temps dialed in. There are lots of options, varying greatly in price and quality. HerpStat is basically the Cadillac of tstats, but they're a bit pricey. JumpStart is a good option, I've been using a few of them for years with no problems at all.

[hilabeans]

Howdy! Welcome to snake keeping!!

As Craig mentioned, you MUST get a thermostat on all of your heat sources. Seriously unplug them now if they are unregulated. Unregulated heat is the most effective way to cook your snake. The best thermostats out there, IMO, are the Herpstats. The number next to the Herpstat model is how many heat sources it can control. For example, I use the Herpstat2 to control the heating elements for both my ball python (radiant heat panel) and my hognose (UTH). I prefer the redline so the red light doesn't effect my snake's day/night cycles.

If you are using both a UTH and a CHE, you will need either 2 thermostats, or something like the Herpstat2, which will allow you to regulate both. If you're on a budget, check out the Jumpstart. Again, you'll need 2 Jumpstarts if regulating 2 heat sources.

Under tank heat mats must be UNDER your tank - not inside your tank under substrate. Position thermostat probe between the heat mat and the under side of your tank. If the probe is inside the tank it can easily get pushed or urinated on, water dumped on, which would render it useless to r3egulate heat properly and could cause your heat source to spike.

No stick-on thermometers or humidity gauges in the enclosure. Nothing adhesive - EVER - that your snake can access in any way. measure all temps with an infrared heat gun.

So much to learn so keep asking and absorbing!!

ETA: Just saw Craig's next reply - I guess you can say great minds think alike! So yeah... ditto obviously.

[ZakuMedik]

Got it!

After reading both posts, i just about fell out of my chair trying to unplug as fast as possible. I'm ordering two jumpstart just because i can get it here by Monday. Where the Herpstat, due to the covid stuff is kind of unknown when it will ship.

To follow up, I am ordering the thermostats, heat gun. and waiting until next week, trying to feed f/t again?

[Craiga 01453]

Got it!

After reading both posts, i just about fell out of my chair trying to unplug as fast as possible. I'm ordering two jumpstart just because i can get it here by Monday. Where the Herpstat, due to the covid stuff is kind of unknown when it will ship.

To follow up, I am ordering the thermostats, heat gun. and waiting until next week, trying to feed f/t again?

Sounds good!!!!

[hilabeans]

Love a person of action!! So rare in forum-land.

Another little gem to share, get two identical hides for both the warm and cold side. Often they will sacrifice their thermoregulation in exchange for a hide they feel more secure in. It's like me when I wear open-toed high heels in the dead of winter - I sacrifice my warmth because I want to look cute. To ensure your snake is not doing the snake-version of this, make sure both hides are the same, so they will choose which one is best based on temp regulating and not how cute they look - er, I mean which hide they like best.

You'll get your little one on the right path soon. BPs are tough, they can hang in while you dial in your husbandry, so fear not.

[ZakuMedik]

Love a person of action!! So rare in forum-land.

Another little gem to share, get two identical hides for both the warm and cold side. Often they will sacrifice their thermoregulation in exchange for a hide they feel more secure in. It's like me when I wear open-toed high heels in the dead of winter - I sacrifice my warmth because I want to look cute. To ensure your snake is not doing the snake-version of this, make sure both hides are the same, so they will choose which one is best based on temp regulating and not how cute they look - er, I mean which hide they like best.

You'll get your little one on the right path soon. BPs are tough, they can hang in while you dial in your husbandry, so fear not.

I have three hides. Two identical and one different. I only added a third because the tank is so big for her, and i read that adding another hide can make her feel more safe.

One more question. Does she look too skinny? when should i start to really worry?