Signs of hunger, stress?

[tttaylorrr]

The snake has not eaten since I got him, and I have upgraded the prey item for him, from pinky to a fuzzy, the breeder has been notified of the snake not eating and she recommended that I maintain a 7-day period between his meals despite him not having taken any food. I just lowered my thermostat from 33C to 32C, so his hot spot should now be a bit cooler, and he has not been handled today at all, and I'm willing to forego handling altogether if it will help him start eating. As I said, though, handling him in general has been very minimal since I got him, and he has /not/ displayed any symptoms of stress until recently, it only just started a couple of days ago.

i agree with sticking to a 7-day schedule.

the behavior you're seeing is probably the snake realizing he's hungry, but since your husbandry might not be meeting his needs, and trying to go elsewhere. your husbandry is fine, but if the snake isn't eating, something's gotta give.

I'm unable to get the exact measurements of his enclosure at the moment and cannot remember them from the top of my head, but the breeder (who maintains her own snakes in a rack system) told me his enclosure is adequate for a baby, especially with the modifications I've made to the tank (covering the back and the sides, adding clutter). I would have gotten him size S hides but I was unable to get them from anywhere, including pet stores and online, they were all sold out, which is why I had to settle for the medium size hides he has in his enclosure right now, they seem to be working for him however since he is utilizing both of them, and I added the paper towels to make the hides appear more cramped and enclosed for his safety/security.

on paper the enclosure might be suitable, but in reality it's not since the snake isn't eating. monitor your husbandry LIKE A HAWK for the next week or so to ensure it's EXACTLY where you say it is. if the snake still won't eat, we're going to have to try something else: moving him to a tub, smaller hides. not every baby snake can thrive in a "big" enclosure right away, and that's okay! you've done everything right so far but ur lil beep just isn't having it. there's a reason Deborah's write-up on this topic is a stickied tread and is constantly referenced in these situations: it WORKS. your situation is not new and is almost without a doubt husbandry-related. over the next week or so you should start gathering the supplies needed for "The Deb Treatment" as i like to call it. we gotta get that baby eating!

His behavior when presented with prey item is generally zero interest, he has not shown any "real" feeding behavior toward a prey item at any of the times I have offered him f/t, including when I have imitated live prey by gently wiggling the rat pinky, at best he comes closer, flicks his tongue, then retreats, after which there is no continued interest in the prey item. My snake also suffers from a slight wobble, which is why I've been trying to avoid imitating live too much, because I was told by his breeder it could increase his chances of missing a strike due to his wobble.

this sounds very typical for a snake that has improper husbandry (not the wobble of course). reference my advice above and we'll get him on the right track.