2 baby balls not eating

[cowbully]

we've had ziggy my male pastel for a few months now and has been a monster eater...i finally made the decision to change him over to baby rats and ate it after a few tries...now the week after, he didnt eat the next meal after 4 days of trying. i took the rat back and got a mouse.. i got a adult mouse and now he will not eat it..this the 2nd day now.. any ideas what is going on. did i mess up by switching???


we also have a female spider ball from garrick demeyer that has no appetite..we got her may 31 and hasnt eaten since june 3rd and when she did eat we couldnt be in the room and all the day lights off... and she has bitten me once but that has nothing to do with anything...she is very shy
**we were told that he fed her frozen and live**

i know they can go for weeks without eating but its tough thinking that my babies are hungry and maybe something is wrong

please ease our minds

on top of it all.. my female phyllomedusa sauvagii (monkey leaf frog) bit my male monkey frog and he isnt doing well...

[chet1028]

I am new to BP's (actually don't have one yet) but my understanding from the numerous other threads about feeding problems is that you should not be trying to feed them on consecutive days. If they don't eat, wait until the next scheduled feeding date (usually 5-7 days for a baby BP) and then try to feed them. I believe that the idea behind this is that trying to feed them daily will stress them and make them less likely to eat.

Hope this helps and good luck with your babies.

[Seth702]

Im also somewhat new to BP's, ive only had mine for 3 weeks. He refused food for the first 2 1/2 just ate a few days ago. The issue i needed to let him settle in and my husbandry was a bit off. Thats usually the first thing i see experienced owners ask, Temps, humidity, hides (1 or 2). Theres usually a check list to eliminate each item before concern. Maybe someone with more expierence can finish this post off. Good luck and hope they feed for you soon 8 ).

[WingedWolfPsion]

Correct, allow a MINIMUM of 4 days between feeding attempts, or they are virtually guaranteed to refuse.

[cowbully]

i feed every thursday...every 7 day feedings..could it be the rat fills them up more than the mice do..they are roughly the same size. mice were 40 grams and the baby rats are 50 grams.. is that a big difference...

that occured to me today about the weight difference...he has been in same cage for 2 months now no issues.. hides, water dish, temps hot and cool side, humidity... nothing has changed..

thank you for all replies, any other ideas.. please

[sprockett]

Make surehusbandry is spot on.I learned this the hard way...and provide better hides if needed..those half logs like in your pic don't offer enough dark seclusion(in my experiences)...they feel too exposed....and black out sides and back if tank if there in all glass equarium

[sprockett]

Bp can be weird sometimes....where everything works perfect then all the sudden they stop feeding...yours are babies still so something caused them to stop food....and guessing its probably stress related.....don't hold or touch them at all until they both start to feed consistent...its hard but needed for the health of the snake...I would wait 10 days and then try to feed again...if they refuse wait another 10 days...theyhave eaten so their in no danger of starvation...also if your using f/t try going to live to trigger a feed response..hope this helps..

[cowbully]

UPDATE!!!! .. Ziggy our male pastel has finally eaten!! he did eat a 40gram Mouse..

Izabella our spider ball has not yet we are gone try again tomorrow.

Thank you everyone with the replies so far... Please keep them great ideas coming...

So far everything has been the same except for Ziggy, we have moved him into a 20gal. long..Hide has changed water bowl changed. I guess his whole environment has changed. tepms and humidity are perfect..

Izabella she has been the same as day 1.. her secure hide as she can see out but we cant see in and her water which she loves is always full..temps and humidity are also great..

we dont hold either one as much since their eating spell. but once they are both back on schedule, we cant wait to hold them lil buggers

So since Ziggy ate...should i feed him at weaner Rat or just stick with the adult mice?

Izabella were gone stick with mice till she is on a secure eating schedule

And the hide in the picture was only used for 2 weeks then moved him into a bigger more secure hid...Pic is outdated

[Phoenix6913]

I've had her since June 3rd. I waited a week before trying to feed her the f/t they fed her at petco. I admit I have gotten anxious and tried about every 3 days. Btw. I am a first time snake owner. I saw a couple post about smaller hide-aways, so I'm gonna try that. Plus I have put black on 3 sides of the tank.... Any and all help is welcomed!!!! Thank you!

[Royal Chick]

Patience, babies are more fickle than PMs'ing teenage girls. They're fine one minute and the next nothing is going right. They can be content with how their life is and then they hate everything and want a drastic change.

Let them throw their "tantrum" for a week or so and then try again.

And relax, everyone gets nervous when a baby throws a hunger strike for no obvious reason, just take a step back and if your husbandry is right then resign with the fact that they're just being difficult. It's been three weeks and if she is still doing okay with her weight then don't sweat it too much.

I hope this helps you some. Best of luck