First post, and it's a Feeding Question

[sukebanangie]

Hi, everyone! Angie here. In July, my wife and I adopted a ball python (his name is Sir Hiss), and had his home all ready for him. Temp and Humidity is good (we have the correct products, actually found them here), he has a hide on each side, and a water bowl that he can drink and soak in. Now that I shared that, here is the problem: he won't eat on his own. I spoke with a breeder nearby who said that a. he is so small, he was most likely sold earlier than he should have been and b. because of how thin he is (outside of general body shape, you can see his body caving in) that if he didn't eat by week 3, to assist feed him a pinkie or fuzzy. By week 3, he didn't eat on his own, so we did. He did keep that down, but the food was small.

By week 4, he had no weight gain, and was acting weak (couldn't hold his head up, wasn't moving much and normally he's a pretty active little guy, and finally, could barely form a grip), so my wife and I did assist feed him a larger food (this was supposed to be a fuzzy, but was quite large.) Again, he kept that down, but hasn't pooped. I did read that they don't after every meal, but thought I should mention. So now, it's week 5. If he doesn't eat on his own, should we assist feed again? After the last feed, he had gained a little weight, and his skin wasn't drooping so much - until now (one week later).

We know that assisted feeding is stressful on him, but everyone we've spoke with in person has said that with how thin he is, and when he was getting weak, that he needed food. We do everything we can to make the experience easy, and after 48 hours, he doesn't seem stressed (or angry).

TL;DR: should we assist feed him the 3rd week in a row, if he's thin (caving in, and thin all around) / young / and has drooping skin? He doesn't seem to be in shed, no flaking, no blue eyes, no pink underbelly. When we show him food, he doesn't seem to realize it's... Well, food. We've tried dangling, dancing, leaving the food in his home. We've tried blow drying the fuzzy, we have tried braining the fuzzy, we have tried the chicken broth fuzzy. So, any help would be appreciated, for that main question or if you have any other advice! Thank you.

[kgrah1]

It's not uncommon for a snake to not see a different prey item as food, but if you're feeding him the same prey as the breeder did, this shouldn't be the issue. You might also consider he's off-feed due to stress, or that there might be an underlying stomach issue.

I'm by no means an expert here, but if he's too weak to eat, you should assist. If he's strong enough to eat and just insists on not doing so, he'll put up a good fight when you try to assist. That's how most animals react. On the other hand, if you've had him for several weeks and he's still having trouble eating, it may be time to consult the vet, not just the breeder friend.

If you feel assisting is the thing to do, give your snake plenty of alone time afterwards. This allows him to recover from the stress, and digest the meal, so he can get stronger. Thin snakes take a while to fatten up, so just make sure he's able to eat. Sooner or later he'll recognize the food for what it is and start striking on his own.

[200xth]

Hi, everyone! Angie here. In July, my wife and I adopted a ball python (his name is Sir Hiss), and had his home all ready for him. Temp and Humidity is good (we have the correct products, actually found them here), he has a hide on each side, and a water bowl that he can drink and soak in. Now that I shared that, here is the problem: he won't eat on his own. I spoke with a breeder nearby who said that a. he is so small, he was most likely sold earlier than he should have been and b. because of how thin he is (outside of general body shape, you can see his body caving in) that if he didn't eat by week 3, to assist feed him a pinkie or fuzzy. By week 3, he didn't eat on his own, so we did. He did keep that down, but the food was small.

By week 4, he had no weight gain, and was acting weak (couldn't hold his head up, wasn't moving much and normally he's a pretty active little guy, and finally, could barely form a grip), so my wife and I did assist feed him a larger food (this was supposed to be a fuzzy, but was quite large.) Again, he kept that down, but hasn't pooped. I did read that they don't after every meal, but thought I should mention. So now, it's week 5. If he doesn't eat on his own, should we assist feed again? After the last feed, he had gained a little weight, and his skin wasn't drooping so much - until now (one week later).

We know that assisted feeding is stressful on him, but everyone we've spoke with in person has said that with how thin he is, and when he was getting weak, that he needed food. We do everything we can to make the experience easy, and after 48 hours, he doesn't seem stressed (or angry).

TL;DR: should we assist feed him the 3rd week in a row, if he's thin (caving in, and thin all around) / young / and has drooping skin? He doesn't seem to be in shed, no flaking, no blue eyes, no pink underbelly. When we show him food, he doesn't seem to realize it's... Well, food. We've tried dangling, dancing, leaving the food in his home. We've tried blow drying the fuzzy, we have tried braining the fuzzy, we have tried the chicken broth fuzzy. So, any help would be appreciated, for that main question or if you have any other advice! Thank you.

How old is he? What does he weigh? Had he been eating for the breeder at all? Are you offering FT or live?

[sukebanangie]

Hello, and thank you for replying! My computer crashed with the upgrade, so I've been gone for a while. So, an update: Sir Hiss still hasn't ate on his own, however, after his last assisted feeding, he DID poop and he has started a shed. The shed, sadly, has been a bad one, probably because of his food issues. His eyes are back to being their normal color, so the caps did come off. Right now, we have him soaking in luke warm water. We're following this post: http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...hed-No-problem

200xth

• How old is he? What does he weigh? Had he been eating for the breeder at all? Are you offering FT or live?
  
  No idea on his age, like I said, from what we're assuming, he was sold way before he should have been.
  Unsure about the weight, we haven't weighed him since the last feeding due to 48 hrs after feeding non-handling time plus 24 hrs beginning of shed non-handling time
  No idea if he ate for the breeder. I know the employee who was taking care of him said he wouldn't eat for her.
  We're offering FT.
  
  We're also following pretty much everything listed here. http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...ius)-Caresheet It's a great source of information, and what we've been following since we adopted him.
  
  Anyway, like I said, right now, he's finishing his shed and we have him soaking. He isn't acting weak, but is still very skinny and his skin is very loose. He resembles a deflated tire. If he doesn't eat once this shed is completely done, what should our next step be? Do we continue assisted feeding? He'll constrict his prey, but doesn't seem to know what to do afterwards.
  

[sukebanangie]

The shed is over! He does seem quite pleased, much more relaxed - which is saying something, because he is so so mellow to begin with!

[frostysBP]

OK if all you have tried is f/t there is one problem..two how big of a cage and give us exact temps and humidity. 99% of food refusal is husbandry related and I would have never assist fed without trying live all your doing is stressing it out worse with every assist..it needs live


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[200xth]

Right now, we have him soaking in luke warm water.
...
No idea on his age, like I said, from what we're assuming, he was sold way before he should have been.
...
We're offering FT.

It sounds like you have a small hatchling.

My opinion, you're bothering this snake too much. Between assist feeding and soaking him, he's stressed. He's a baby who won't eat. He's probably scared, and probably stressed enormously.

I would quit messing with him. Make sure he has enough places to feel secure (nice, snug hides). Make sure temp and humidity are correct.

Once you are sure the environment is correct, close up the enclosure and leave him alone. No soaks, no assist feedings, nothing. If the enclosure is open on multiple sides, use cardboard or newspaper or something to cover up the windows so he's in a dark area.

In 7 days, offer him a live mouse hopper. You need to get your snake some food, and almost every ball python in the world will eat live mouse hoppers.

If he doesn't eat, close up, leave him alone for another 7 days. Try again then.

But I would definitely stop the assist feedings, stop the soakings, and offer him live food for now.