Snakes that only eat f/t?

[dsmalex97]

Ok well I'm starting to get worried now. My one normal boy stillll has not taken a meal. Its been since end of may, maybe beginning of june since he ate. Starting to lose some weight. Nothing scary but hes definitely not the same. Here the thing I always feed live though, and always rats, or a live mouse. I never really tried feeding him frozen mice. And i know thats what hes used to, he was actually an adoption. He always took live though, he just stopped for some reason. You think maybe he wants a stinky f/t mouse? And are there snakes that ONLY take f/t?

[BallsUnlimited]

what are the temps in your tank?

[Kaorte]

I would assume that yes, there are some snakes that get spooked by live food and will only eat pre-killed or frozen thawed if left in their enclosure.

I have some snakes that will only eat if I dangle the rodent, and others that will only eat if I set it down in their enclosure and leave for a while.


Most of the time though, a snake stops eating because its husbandry is off. There is a good sticky here listing many reasons why a snake will stop eating. You should check it out.

Also, a description of how you have the snake housed, how often you offer food, prey size and snake size and age would be helpful to determine why he is not eating.

[dsmalex97]

I'm not a newb by any means so I got my husbandry right. Recently I moved him back an forth from my g/f's house to my house. It didn't bother him at first but like maybe 2 weeks after he was moved he stopped eating. I got him in a 20 gallon long tank with uth with thermostat. Small heat lamp to bump up ambient temps, and I also taped black background around the sides so he gives him a sense of security and to kind create a "rack" vibe. He seems like he loves the set-up and loves my room. Jasper is kind of shy guy so when people are out, hes not and my room really gets no traffic so it works out nice. I have a piece of driftwood in there too that he comes out during the day sometimes and just sits on it and basks under the light. He's become social and has adapted a routine into his life so I think my setup is good. He's the only snake with a setup like this, my others are in tubs for some reason he didn't like the tub that much it was weird. He was always on the move trying to get out, so I felt bad and put him in a 20lgal long. I think he might have had a bad expierence with a rodent a while ago, or maybe while I was feeding so he gets spooked.

I'm going to get a f/t tomorrow and see. I'm going to feel soooo bad if he takes it and thats all I had to do!! Although, I have tried f.t small rats, but not mice. He was a mouser before I got him so I'm hoping he's just having a change of taste. Thanks for your input everyone.

[Kaorte]

I'm not a newb by any means so I got my husbandry right. Recently I moved him back an forth from my g/f's house to my house. It didn't bother him at first but like maybe 2 weeks after he was moved he stopped eating. I got him in a 20 gallon long tank with uth with thermostat. Small heat lamp to bump up ambient temps, and I also taped black background around the sides so he gives him a sense of security and to kind create a "rack" vibe. He seems like he loves the set-up and loves my room. Jasper is kind of shy guy so when people are out, hes not and my room really gets no traffic so it works out nice. I have a piece of driftwood in there too that he comes out during the day sometimes and just sits on it and basks under the light. He's become social and has adapted a routine into his life so I think my setup is good. He's the only snake with a setup like this, my others are in tubs for some reason he didn't like the tub that much it was weird. He was always on the move trying to get out, so I felt bad and put him in a 20lgal long. I think he might have had a bad expierence with a rodent a while ago, or maybe while I was feeding so he gets spooked.

I'm going to get a f/t tomorrow and see. I'm going to feel soooo bad if he takes it and thats all I had to do!! Although, I have tried f.t small rats, but not mice. He was a mouser before I got him so I'm hoping he's just having a change of taste. Thanks for your input everyone.

If he is out during the day, he is stressed. Move him back to a tub.

Every time you introduce the snake to a new enclosure, it will test the boundaries of the enclosure and roam and look for a way out for up to 3 weeks. Putting him into a 20g probably didn't help. Moving him to a smaller enclosure with two tight fitting hides will probably help get him back on a good eating schedule.

If you are handling this snake, stop. Handling them will stress them out. They are not "happy" to come out nor do they "love" being handled. Being handled by a giant monster is stressful to them. Some are much more sensitive than others when it comes to stressful situations. If yours is shy like you said, handling will do more harm than good and sitting out on a piece of wood in the middle of the day means he doesn't feel safe enough to sleep in his hides.

[dsmalex97]

If he is out during the day, he is stressed. Move him back to a tub.

Every time you introduce the snake to a new enclosure, it will test the boundaries of the enclosure and roam and look for a way out for up to 3 weeks. Putting him into a 20g probably didn't help. Moving him to a smaller enclosure with two tight fitting hides will probably help get him back on a good eating schedule.

If you are handling this snake, stop. Handling them will stress them out. They are not "happy" to come out nor do they "love" being handled. Being handled by a giant monster is stressful to them. Some are much more sensitive than others when it comes to stressful situations. If yours is shy like you said, handling will do more harm than good and sitting out on a piece of wood in the middle of the day means he doesn't feel safe enough to sleep in his hides.

I don't believe the tank is the issue just because he was feeding best when in the the tank. I think I left an important detail out. I adopted him when I was living at my house, and ended up moving in with my girlfriends house. She didn't have room because of all her snakes, so I left the tank at my house. I would stop in a few times a week spot cleaning, changing water, and feeding. He was fine for the longest time and I was happy because he was in poor conditions when I got him, and I managed to put weight on him and see him blossom into what he really was supposed to look like. A few months went by(making it september octoberish)and my girlfriend(Kristyn) was able to make some room, so we converted him into a tub snake. At first it didn't seem to make a difference, but after about 2 months he started getting really antsy and he was always on the prowl, always moving and I rarely saw him calm. Still kept his appetite up though throughout all of this.

Here's where I think things went sour....

Unfortunately Kristyn was having a hard time keeping the temps where they need to be through the winter and sometimes they were exposed to some low temps that they really shouldn't have...Nothing lower then 70, which I know is way too low unless you are cooling your snakes for breeding, but thats only in short intervals. I wasn't liking how cold it was and after a while he stopped eating, and only eating sometimes so I decided to bring him back to my house. After bringing him there I also put him back in the tank being that there never seemed to be any issue with it, and is what he's used to. He continued eating normal again up until june, and then stopped. I had him out yesterday because I attempted to force feed him, because he's lost quite a bit of weight. Didn't weigh him because my scale wasn't there, but I KNOW hes skinny now. Hes back to what he was when I got him...But I did notice him wheezing. He didn't just shed so its not stuck shed. I think its RI, because when I was trying to force feed him I did notice a decent build up of saliva in his gums. I didn't notice it as much after I tried force feeding, which by the way was unsuccessful, he was squirming too much and I didn't want to hurt him. What I want to know is, is there anywhere I can order the medication for this. I don't want to pay a vet 80 dollars just to look at him if I can avoid it. Also, how long will it take him to beat this?

[dsmalex97]

I actually found this link:

http://www.rcreptiles.com/blog/index...l-python-respi

I also found Tylan online. I would like to try and treat him myself. Can anyone just tell me how to perform the injection?

[GoBoilers]

Antibiotics can only be obtained from a licensed veterinarian. And in order for a vet to prescribe antibiotics, there must be an existing doctor/patient relationship...ie. the vet has to examine your snake or has examined your snake in the past. It is against the law for a vet to prescribe medication without ever having seen your snake (in other words, an exam is not simply "money in the vet's pocket," there are legal reasons).

p.s. I suspect the main reason your snake was on the prowl after a few months in the tub was because of his proximity to your gfs snakes (females?) and the arrrival of breeding season!

[dsmalex97]

Antibiotics can only be obtained from a licensed veterinarian. And in order for a vet to prescribe antibiotics, there must be an existing doctor/patient relationship...ie. the vet has to examine your snake or has examined your snake in the past. It is against the law for a vet to prescribe medication without ever having seen your snake (in other words, an exam is not simply "money in the vet's pocket," there are legal reasons).

p.s. I suspect the main reason your snake was on the prowl after a few months in the tub was because of his proximity to your gfs snakes (females?) and the arrrival of breeding season!

He couldn't see them, could he smell them? Also, I found Tylan online sooo...? lol

**EDIT forgot link: http://www.amazon.com/Durvet-Inc-D-T...4981560&sr=8-3

[cinderbird]

I don't believe the tank is the issue just because he was feeding best when in the the tank. I think I left an important detail out. I adopted him when I was living at my house, and ended up moving in with my girlfriends house. She didn't have room because of all her snakes, so I left the tank at my house. I would stop in a few times a week spot cleaning, changing water, and feeding. He was fine for the longest time and I was happy because he was in poor conditions when I got him, and I managed to put weight on him and see him blossom into what he really was supposed to look like. A few months went by(making it september octoberish)and my girlfriend(Kristyn) was able to make some room, so we converted him into a tub snake. At first it didn't seem to make a difference, but after about 2 months he started getting really antsy and he was always on the prowl, always moving and I rarely saw him calm. Still kept his appetite up though throughout all of this.

Here's where I think things went sour....

Unfortunately Kristyn was having a hard time keeping the temps where they need to be through the winter and sometimes they were exposed to some low temps that they really shouldn't have...Nothing lower then 70, which I know is way too low unless you are cooling your snakes for breeding, but thats only in short intervals. I wasn't liking how cold it was and after a while he stopped eating, and only eating sometimes so I decided to bring him back to my house. After bringing him there I also put him back in the tank being that there never seemed to be any issue with it, and is what he's used to. He continued eating normal again up until june, and then stopped. I had him out yesterday because I attempted to force feed him, because he's lost quite a bit of weight. Didn't weigh him because my scale wasn't there, but I KNOW hes skinny now. Hes back to what he was when I got him...But I did notice him wheezing. He didn't just shed so its not stuck shed. I think its RI, because when I was trying to force feed him I did notice a decent build up of saliva in his gums. I didn't notice it as much after I tried force feeding, which by the way was unsuccessful, he was squirming too much and I didn't want to hurt him. What I want to know is, is there anywhere I can order the medication for this. I don't want to pay a vet 80 dollars just to look at him if I can avoid it. Also, how long will it take him to beat this?

You need to take him to the vet if you suspect an RI. Just giving any antibiotic (and getting it offline? Those drugs could be expired or mislabeled or factory rejects, etc) may not fix the problem.

The vet needs to do a culture to figure out which bacteria is causing the problem THEN prescribe the appropriate antibiotic that the bacteria is most susceptible too. The vet should also show you how to dose the animal; the right amount of medication, over (x) amount of days and how to give the injections or tube the snake of the meds are to administered orally.