getting bp to start eating again

[mdfreak2]

what does every1 use to get there bp to start eating again last year when i started trying to get my normal male to start eating again he would refuse a rat but would tear a gerbil up then he would start eating rats again and also does any1 else use coco bark for substrate

[Stewart_Reptiles]

Changing prey is never the solution, as least not by switching to gerbils you only gonna make him more finicky among other things.

If your husbandry is spot on the only thing to do is to monitor the animal, make sure he is well hydrated and wait it out.

I know it can be frustrating but understand that their metabolism is VERY efficient, I have animal not eating anywhere from 3 to 9 months and I am not concern about it because they are healthy.

The key is patience.

[TheWinWizard]

Indeed, mine does it as well. I keep it well hydrated and offer it once a week. It eats when it wants to.

[mdfreak2]

Well thats what i was told to do by the local critter barn he said thats what they eat in the wild and it usally gets the blood a pumping when they smell them thats how he gets his to come back to eating after breeding season so i figured he knew what he is talking about since he says he has over like 30 years of experiance. but i got him back on to rats but he hasnt ate since like october.

[Stewart_Reptiles]

Well thats what i was told to do by the local critter barn he said thats what they eat in the wild and it usally gets the blood a pumping when they smell them thats how he gets his to come back to eating after breeding season so i figured he knew what he is talking about since he says he has over like 30 years of experiance. but i got him back on to rats but he hasnt ate since like october.

Given gerbils are from Mongolia that would be a heck of a trip to get dinner

BP love gerbils however they are more aggressive than your regular rat or mouse, more expensive and very hard to switch back from once a BP imprint on them (therefore not something sustainable or advisable)

If a BP was eating a certain prey it will again but people lacking patience prefer offering another prey type even though it's not a good solution but rather something setting you up for complication in the future.

Again PATIENCE is the key.

I have NEVER had any issue getting an animal back on food they always do sooner or late maybe not as fast as YOU might want them too but they do.

[mdfreak2]

Yea he is started to make me believe he really dont know what he is talking bout. my sister got a bp from him and he told her it was a female and i took it to another store that specializes in reptiles and he probed it and it was determined it was a male cause i was going to mate them this year.

[mdfreak2]

well i gave him a live gerbil last week it didnt stand a chance as soon as i put it in the cage he grabbed it. so yesturday i put a rat in there just to see and the rat didnt last long either yay. so today i went in there to let a person see him they wanted to see him eat so i put another rat in there with him and bam after a few miss strikes he grabbed it up and ate very well like he used to. i weighed them all and my biggest was at 1400 grams yesturday b4 feeding and after feeding 2 small-medium rats she is up to 1700+ grams. all of them ate 2 rats yesturday besides my male pastel he ate 2 small mice he is about 300 grams now a few more feedings then its breeding time for him with the bigger one of my 2 females since the one is still around `1300 grams so i am going to wait a little while for her.