Anyone else’s BP do this?

[Bluebell_1990]

So I have lucifer (1 and a half years old male) since having him he’s had a really good feeding response takes it straight away until tonight I tried to give him his normal prey size but this rat was brown he picked up heat single went to strike and then stopped tried to push it away with his body the head temp of prey item was 37c (96.8f)and body was 35c(95f) is this because of the colour? Or is he just decided he doesn’t want to eat I’ve left it in with him incase he decides to eat it but just wondered if anyone else has had this problem he’s been looking around now he’s in food mode so I picked up the prey and started the whole jiggly dance but nope nothing


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[Armiyana]

BPs can get super picky about the size and color of their rats or mice....or even just preferring one species over the other.

I had a male that pulled this for a while and refused frozen thaw for years before finally going back to it after a 6 month food strike.

[Bluebell_1990]

Ohh nooooo am hoping he has it if not I’m going to get some more tomorrow and I’ll make sure they are what he normally eats


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[Bogertophis]

What color rat is he used to eating? I've heard of some BPs refusing "different" color prey, but it might just be a coincidence too. When was his last shed? Snakes also refuse to eat when they feel a shed coming (they seem to feel it well before we can see physical signs), or maybe he refused for some other reason. He's also a young adult male BP, so more likely to refuse meals now & then- especially if the prey is larger than it should be. Even large adult male BPs usually "do best" (ie. refuse fewer meals) if prey is no bigger than a small rat. How often is he being fed? Maybe it's time to extend the time between meals-? Also, if this prey item was from a different source, perhaps it was fed differently & therefore smelled a bit different to him. BPs have many "excuses" for not eating... good luck figuring him out, lol.

[Bluebell_1990]

It’s been 12 days since he last ate he is due a shed but he’s very much in feeding mode I’ve got from the same place I did last time I’ll try going and getting him a different colour tomorrow and if still nothing I’ll try again next week fussy boy! thanks for the good luck I think ama need it haha


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[Bluebell_1990]

Also he’s on 90g weaner rats but I compared with his body just today and it is slightly smaller than him


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[Argentum]

Mine will go into feeding mode when they're about to shed. One will eat even if she's in heavy blue, so I keep an eye on her and don't offer if she's getting close. The other two, one will hide his head and wait for me to leave then start searching again, the other will strike but not eat, if they're starting to go into shed. Every snake is different, and they can change their habits without telling you about it. I've heard of bp's even being gender specific about their rodents, let alone color and species.

[Bogertophis]

... I've heard of bp's even being gender specific about their rodents, let alone color and species.

I can believe that, since male rodents have a lot more scent (& they scent-mark) compared to females, so snakes could be forgiven for thinking they're different creatures...though in the wild, they wouldn't survive very well if they passed up such perfectly edible prey. I wouldn't be surprised if such "pickiness" is the result of such extensive captive breeding in BPs (& inbreeding for morphs), and the fact that most all BPs, no matter how picky they are, are able to survive (& even go on to reproduce) "thanks to" humans catering to their preferences. I keep & have kept many other kinds of snakes- all of them "less popular species" & you seldom see such picky eaters as you do in the world of BPs. Just saying... (why I love rat snakes...lol)

[Bluebell_1990]

Thankyou to both of you well it was looking promising it was definitely a male rat he showed a lot more interest got ready to strike then when he did he missed and hit his hide I checked him he’s ok but then when I tried again he wouldn’t eat I think he scared himself he then went back into feeding mode again he’s not in blue and his colours havnt changed as of yet but I know it definitely is coming up to him going into shed I’ve left the rat in with him again left a scent trail once he was all tucked in his hide and see if he eats it hopefully he will wanted him to have a meal before he shed but if he doesn’t I will try again next week if he’s not in blue by then


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