Baby king same weight since we got her

[ashleymarie]

I have posted about my california king Sadie before about how she had regurged a few times. We got her on the 4th of July, 2015 and she weighed 10g that day... she currently weighs 11g. She has gone from as high as 15g to as low as 10g since I got her. She has not been a good eater. Her temps are at 85 on the hot side and 75 on the cool side, she has aspen as substrate, 2 hides, paper towel tubes, and water. I feel like I am messing her up somehow. When I handle her, she seems lively, not lethargic... but at this point, Ive had her for 6 months as of today and she still weighs about the same as when I got her. I have been offering food every 5 days, sometimes she takes it, sometimes she doesnt.... i am at a loss here. She is so tiny and I want her to thrive. If anyone has any tips or suggestions, I'd be thankful to read them.

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[rlditmars]

What are you feeding her? Are they mouse pinks? Hairless? I ask because we have a little Hoggy that would refuse them even though they were presented warm and everything was alright. Then I started thawing them with some rat pups that I was using for some of our hatchling BPs. It provided a better/different scent. She slammed those. If you have other prey items with fur you may want to give it a try. Best of luck.

[Albert Clark]

Well, congrats on the beautiful King. First I would start with the heating and maybe raise that warm side to 88.0f and the cool side to 78.0f. Are you using a thermostat to control the heating? What size enclosure is she in? What are you feeding her? Any visible signs of illness? Besides the regurges? Any diarrhea , difficult or noisy respirations?

[elbee]

I agree that you might think about raising the temps to just below 90 on the warm side. Most kings have a really good appetite. It is good that you are keeping an eye on her weight and it's good that you've come for advice. You might think about grabbing a fecal sample less than 24 hrs old and taking it to a vet to get a float done. It is possible that she could have parasites. Keep us updated.

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by the way, she's a cutie!

[ashleymarie]

What are you feeding her? Are they mouse pinks? Hairless? I ask because we have a little Hoggy that would refuse them even though they were presented warm and everything was alright. Then I started thawing them with some rat pups that I was using for some of our hatchling BPs. It provided a better/different scent. She slammed those. If you have other prey items with fur you may want to give it a try. Best of luck.

Yes i feed her f/t hairless mouse pinks. I have been defrosting all of my prey items for all my snakes in the same bag, so the rats for my bigger snakes are in there with the pink. :/ i have heard of braining or scenting with canned tuna juices but havent tried that just yet.

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[elbee]

You could try leaving her in a deli cup with the mouse in her cage and leaving her alone for a while. Sometimes the close quarters and dark and quiet will nudge them to eat.

[ashleymarie]

Well, congrats on the beautiful King. First I would start with the heating and maybe raise that warm side to 88.0f and the cool side to 78.0f. Are you using a thermostat to control the heating? What size enclosure is she in? What are you feeding her? Any visible signs of illness? Besides the regurges? Any diarrhea , difficult or noisy respirations?

I do use a thermostat to regulate her uth. Shes in a 10gal tank for the time being, since shes so tiny. She eats f/t hairless mouse pinkies. And she hasnt had any symptoms of anything noticeable to me. Her feces and urates appear normal, and she doesnt show signs of RI. :/

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[ashleymarie]

I agree that you might think about raising the temps to just below 90 on the warm side. Most kings have a really good appetite. It is good that you are keeping an eye on her weight and it's good that you've come for advice. You might think about grabbing a fecal sample less than 24 hrs old and taking it to a vet to get a float done. It is possible that she could have parasites. Keep us updated.

- - - Updated - - -

by the way, she's a cutie!

That is awesome, I didn't even think about parasites. Ill be sure to stick her on paper towels so I can easily grab a fecal sample. Thank you!!

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[DennisM]

how long are you leaving the meal in the cage? I've had quite a few baby kings/milks that took a few hours to get around to it.

are you watching? babies of this size are shy and may not chose to come out if they sense your presence.

Have you tried different times of day? Kingsnakes are crepuscular, try feeding at dawn or dusk.

[ashleymarie]

how long are you leaving the meal in the cage? I've had quite a few baby kings/milks that took a few hours to get around to it.

are you watching? babies of this size are shy and may not chose to come out if they sense your presence.

Have you tried different times of day? Kingsnakes are crepuscular, try feeding at dawn or dusk.

I leave the meal for about 12 hours before giving up. I never stick around after leaving her food haha she has a bit of an attitude when I am around with her food.Thats what she does if I walk back into the room while she is alone with her mouse lol. My little king cobra! And I will definitely try to feed her around dusk the next time around. I forget that her cycles are different than mine.

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