No movement

[BlueOrleans1290]

Thank you so much. I will definitely try and take a breath. Sometimes its hard to relate to an animal that may eat once in several weeks lol. I will follow everything to a T and will probably try soon. I will keep everyone posted.

[Hugsplox]

I just want to drop my 2 cents worth in, and none of this is me taking shots at you, I promise I have good intentions. I think Bogertophis, Dakski, as well as several others, have given you some fantastic advice. I agree with them she looks very very thin in the photo you posted with her tail coming out of the hide. As everyone else as said, the #1 priority is getting her to take something. At 6 months my male BP was eating rat pups , but your girl is way to thin for that, so I would work with whatever she was eating when you got her. If she won't take F/T, maybe see if she'll take a live prey item. You can always transition her later, but the priority is to get her eating. I don't remember seeing this and I apologize if I missed it, but where did you get her from again? Is it possible to contact the shop/breeder/friend to discuss how she was eating prior to get you getting her? I agree with Bogertophis again in that, I don't think she got to that size in the few weeks she's been with you and in all seriousness, this may be an issue that has next to nothing to do with you.

All of that being said, if you don't fix the issues that contribute to the problem, you're not going to fix the problem. There are some husbandry issues that need to be addressed for long term success, but I don't want to overwhelm you and have you changing a bunch of things and stressing her out more. At a minimum though, as other's have mentioned, the hide situation needs to be fixed. She's going to stay where ever she feels secure, and if that's in a cool hide where she's gonna have some digestion issues, then that's where she's gonna stay. You need two hides, one on each end, and both need to be the same so she doesn't sacrifice warmth for security.

Like Dakski said, take a deep breath and try to relax. We're here to help and no one is laying the blame squarly at your feet.

[BlueOrleans1290]

I got her from a breeder. He said [and showed pictures] that she was eating live fuzzy rats. They look the same size as the ones I've been trying to feed her. She currently has 3 hides right now, one is just kind of. A wood arc to help if she wants to shed and have something to really rub up on, its on the cooler side, the one that she was in this morning when I left was about 84 to 86 degrees, she has a small little nook where she likes to stay. She was in the other one for a while yesterday. The Temps in that one is about 87-90 degrees.

[BlueOrleans1290]

I know you aren't trying to put the blame at my feet. And even though I try to take a deep breath. It still boils down to the fact that I love my lil bean. And I'm going to be stressed untill she eats.

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I've checked at so many places around me, and none of them sell live anymore.. I'm running out of options and out of places to call.

[Bogertophis]

I know you aren't trying to put the blame at my feet. And even though I try to take a deep breath. It still boils down to the fact that I love my lil bean. And I'm going to be stressed untill she eats.

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I've checked at so many places around me, and none of them sell live anymore.. I'm running out of options and out of places to call.

I agree with the additional advice you've been given since my most recent posts. If she isn't done shedding (& btw, I didn't know that until now, since you spoke of planning to feed her today) it's best to let her finish that, with your help if needed, like with a humid hide*. A "humid hide" is normally an optional-use hide in the enclosure, but *in THIS case, it might be best to restrain her in a ventilated temporary container with a damp towel for a while (an hour or 2), to help ensure this gets done. Keep the container reasonably warm too, so she's not too cold to actively complete her shed.

Shedding requires both good nutrition & good hydration from the snake's body to get it done & intact. The fact that she's having trouble is a symptom of her overall condition.

I'm curious about something: did you know when you bought her that local sources could not supply you with the live prey she requires?

And did the breeder know you couldn't get live feeders?

Have you asked to buy live prey from the person you got this snake from? I would, if I were you. Or ask about a possible return. I know that's hard to hear, but I'm just being realistic. This snake needs to be eating, & what if changing her to f/t right now doesn't work? I know that someone posted a while back something to the effect that "hunger always wins" but that's not quite true, especially with a young snake already in poor condition. When a snake (or any other creature, including a person) feels too poorly to eat, they may have no appetite, & without help, cannot recover. That (& also to administer medications) is the reason people have I.V.'s when in the hospital...that liquid nutrition helps them recover until their natural appetite & ability to eat returns.

There might be something else going on with this snake- but while a vet visit might help, it could actually make things worse right now, because it would be very stressful for her- and since I don't think that her current condition has much to do with anything you did, it seems unfair that you get stuck with what could be an expensive vet bill now too. Vets aren't typically helpful with husbandry issues, nor do they have the time to review everything as we are doing here- they deal best with medical & surgical issues.

I have bred & sold some snakes in the past: they always went with a record showing the hatch or birth date, the feeding record & care instructions. I would never knowingly sell or give a snake to someone who could not obtain the required food- that's just not fair to the snake or to the new owner.

[BlueOrleans1290]

I actually did not know because the just stopped selling them about 2 months ago and I hadn't been in a while. He didn't know either. I did find somewhere and I will have a live fuzzy by the end of the night.

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I have asked to buy one. And he hasn't responded.. but thankfully I found a place even if it's an hour away lol..

[Bogertophis]

You said I needed smaller prey.. could I cut the rat at about 3/4ths?

No...don't do that, snakes have a hard time trying to swallow such things, it's likely to fail.

And I didn't exactly say that...I'm not seeing the size of your prey item next to the size of your snake, so it's hard to judge "from here" (online).

What I meant was she should be on smaller prey than you might otherwise assume she'd eat. In other words, don't try to feed her something that's the same size as her mid-body- I doubt she can handle that right now- it would be best to feed her once a week on smaller & more digestible items (mice even, if available) IF she'll eat them for you, so she can replenish her skinny body. She will need to gradually build up to eating the size rodents recommended in the feeding chart.

[BlueOrleans1290]

Would the container be less stressful than a soak? I can definitely try it. If all her shed comes off when would you suggest I attempt to feed her? Hopefully soon because I don't want rat poop in my room lol.

[BeansTheDerp]

I know that some pet stores will not let people buy mice or rats for feeding but you could check with the pet shops. I really hope you can find food for your scale baby and I wish you the best of luck and hope sasquatch gets better!

[Bogertophis]

Would the container be less stressful than a soak? I can definitely try it. If all her shed comes off when would you suggest I attempt to feed her? Hopefully soon because I don't want rat poop in my room lol.

BPs feel safer in their hides- and a container with a damp towel in is pretty much a "hide". Whereas soaking usually involves a lack of traction for the snake, which is why they hate it so much.
So in this instance, a container is preferable if you can manage that.

Most snakes (especially those not known for eating) won't eat immediately after a shed (also the handling this will involve). If you get a baby rat today, I can't promise she'll eat it right away, OR that the rat will last until she's willing. "Rat poop in your room"? Boo-hoo!