Disappointed

[amaurer2]

My BP is a picky eater. No surprise there. I've fedd him three times since I've had him and I've always had to put the mouse in his cage at night and just go to bed. In the morning the mouse is missing and Emo's belly is fat. I just started feeding him rats and the last one was the same way. I bought a rat this time and the rat attacked the snake. I did some research and found that pre-killed or F/T is the way to go. I killed the rat (which I didn't really like to do) and he won't eat. Any suggestions on how to entice my BP to eat?!?!?!

[jrosen123]

You left a LIVE MOUSE in with your snake overnight? sorry to sound mean but What were you thinking?
sorry haha


I would try f/t, because if you do not like killing the mouse, and don't have a humane way to euthanize the mice, it is too difficult to pre kill your mice.

2nd. How is your snakes wound?

3rd. It may be even harder now to feed your snake because it was attacked

I would look up the different ways to entice your snake to eat, but for this week and maybe a little after, I would give your snake time to relax.

BUT if your snake is wounded (open cut,puncture etc) I would check out a vet if you think it is serious enough OR apply some neosporin (not the extra strength, or the one with painkiller) and change the substrate to papertowel or newspaper to reduce infection/contamination of the wound

good luck, I am sure several other members on this site will have EXCELLENT advice on your situation, they helped me when my snake was refusing f/t AND when she cut herself, they were very helpful

ps. Apply the neosporin whether you are seeing the vet or not (unless the vet gives you something else to put on)

Some ways I got my girl to eat, was ensure the temps and humidity are correct, ensure she is comfortable(enough hides, correct sized hides etc.) below is an excellent care sheet

http://www.ball-pythons.net/modules/...warticle&id=59

to feed her, try pre scenting the room she is in, they way I did this was I let the mouse thaw out on the screen top, or near her cage, which will allow her to smell the mouse and get read to eat. Another way which I tried that a vet recommended(along with pre scenting) is to slightly cut the head (top of the head) of the f/t mouse. This is supposed to give off a scent, and you want to try and make the mouse look appetizing.

good luck

[cinderbird]

There is some excellent information out there about feeding live. None of that information includes leaving a live, grown mouse unattended with a snake overnight.

You can feed your snake live, you just have to do it responsibly. Most owners that i know feed live give a snake 20 minutes or so (where they keep an EYE on them) to eat. If they do not eat in that time the feeder rodent is removed and kept until the next feeding attempt (5-7 days later). I always recommend pre-scenting before feeding. Leave the rodent out in a container that will allow your snake to smell it for 30-60 minutes before feeding. This should get your snake into feeding mode.

Some snakes switch to F/T easily without a hitch, some dont. You may need to work with your snake to get it to take F/T. This may include weeks of not feeding (because of refusals) or doing a zombie dance, etc.

[jrosen123]

doing a zombie dance, etc.

ha, officially going on my favorite herp terms list
I have had to do that a few times.


I got so caught up in talking about f/t that I forgot to mention that feeding live is STILL an option...my apologies

as it was said above, there IS a safe way to feed live, but you should be watching it to make sure another attack doesnt happen, and again like it was said above, even if the mouse/rat does not attack the snake, leaving it in there for too long can stress the snake aswell

[cinderbird]

ha, officially going on my favorite herp terms list
I have had to do that a few times.


I got so caught up in talking about f/t that I forgot to mention that feeding live is STILL an option...my apologies

as it was said above, there IS a safe way to feed live, but you should be watching it to make sure another attack doesnt happen, and again like it was said above, even if the mouse/rat does not attack the snake, leaving it in there for too long can stress the snake aswell

man im almost done writing a book on captive care of BPs (previews soon, i promise) so ive got most of the info in my head and come back to the forums to spit it out to people who need it.

I love my girl, but she is pampered as can be. She wont eat unless its dancin'. My hondo on the other hand...little garbage disposal. She will eat ANYTHING any time any where any reason.

[jrosen123]

Your writing a book? Awesome

My normal girl is the same way, if its not movin its not food

And yes previews soon please haha

[amaurer2]

How long can you leave it in there before it's no good to eat?

[jrosen123]

Most owners that i know feed live give a snake 20 minutes or so (where they keep an EYE on them) to eat. If they do not eat in that time the feeder rodent is removed and kept until the next feeding attempt (5-7 days later)

thats sounds about right

[SatanicIntention]

To the OP, what is your husbandry like? What size enclosure is the snake in?

The majority of the time, refusal to eat is going to be a keeper error. Yes, some snakes are just picky. They may want just mice, just rats, just ASFs, gerbils, whatever.

I would check your husbandry a few times, make sure it's warm enough. If he's in a tank, possibly switch him to a plastic tub. He may not feel confident enough in a big tank, even with hides, to want to have a strong feeding response.

[FlowRock]

Never leave a living prey unattended in your snake cage, honestly, never!