Syringe Feeding....

[JenHarmon]

Well, I'm doing something I never thought I'd have to do with any snake. I have a baby female ball (Jasmine) that is refusing to feed no matter all the tricks I've tried. She's severely underweight and going downhill. You can see her backbone. I talked to the vet yesterday and he's the best snake vet here in town. He has me syringe feeding her every 24 to 48 hours a mixture of 1 jar chicken baby food, 1 jar pedialyte, 1/4tsp. veg. oil, and 1 crushed up tums tablet (all mixed together). I gave her 3 cc this afternoon and she did perk up and act better somewhat. Gonna do it again tomorrow nite. I've had her for 18 days. Poor thing. Her eyes aren't sunken in but she has started to get a little weak and just refuses anything we give her. I could also give her a 50/50 mix of Hill's a/d for dogs/cats and pedialyte mixture if I wanted to. So, it's just one day at a time with her for now. Anyone else ever had to do this? She's so good about it. Actually seems to like it.

[mlededee]

i had to tube feed a hatchling once. my vet recommended straight hill's a/d diet mixed with a little water for proper consistency. my girl was drinking plenty of water, so not dehydrated, but she refused food from the start and nothing we tried worked.

i'd definitely only recommend tube feeding as a very last resort, and only when the animal is under the care of a qualified herp vet. it is quite stressful for the animal, but sometimes it is the only way to get nutrition into them. i'd also recommend a fecal and possibly other testing as recommended by your vet in order to rule out any underlying problems that may be causing her issues.

[JenHarmon]

He says he doesn't think she is "sick" just not settling in. He says the captive hatched animals are like this alot of times and that the ball pythons just tend to be difficult anyways. I have 3 ball pythons all together. Another female that is a baby too and then an adult male and my 2 burmese pythons. I'm doing everything he is telling me to do for her.

[jglass38]

I have 3 ball pythons all together.

Well its no surprise your snake isn't eating. 1 snake per enclosure. Bottom line, your Ball is stressed out. What size tank do you have all these snakes in? And am I correct in seeing that you have 3 Balls and a 2 Burms together!?

EDIT: Now that I read it again, you might have meant that you have 5 snakes in total, not in the same enclosure. Regardless, read my next post for some tips.

[jglass38]

Put the hatchling in a shoebox size tub with a small tight hide and a water bowl. Then put in crumpled up newspaper to fill it in a bit. Put her in a quiet, warm area. Leave her alone except during feedings.

[JenHarmon]

Sorry, I didn't mean it to sound like that. No, all my snakes are in thier own cages. My malnourished baby ball is in a 10 gal. tank with a screen top and I am keeping close watch on her temps/humidity. My other baby ball is in a 20 gal. These are temporary until we have them out of quarantine and can put them in our built cages. My male adult ball is in a 30 gal size enclosure. My burms are each in their own as well....each in an enclosure around 9 feet long. They are all housed properly. temps and humidity correct. My other female is feeding every week and is blue eyed right now to get ready to shed. The tiny baby's 10 gal. tank has 2 hides a water dish and has black construction paper wrapped around the outside of it. The vet had me do that to try to encourage her feeding. She has no feed response at all. We've tried all kinds of prey...live, p/k, f/t....no go. She won't even "notice" it. No defensive rolling up or anything. Just completely ignores it. We've tried all sorts of "tricks". Nothing. Now the vet feels we can't do anything else but do the syringe feeding which she doesn't seem to mind very much. He feels if we wait any longer for her to feed, she will die. So, that's what I'm doing is what he's told me.

[mlededee]

i'd go ahead and try the balls of paper trick in her cage regardless. if nothing else it will make her feel more secure and more likely to eat on her own once she regains some strength from the tube feeding.

[jglass38]

i'd go ahead and try the balls of paper trick in her cage regardless. if nothing else it will make her feel more secure and more likely to eat on her own once she regains some strength from the tube feeding.

[python.princess]

awww..... poor baby! good luck with her!

[crisstyle21]

I donno but did you try and leave the pinky in her hide where she is? Also try and not provide her with any daytime lights. Keep temps at normal degree, and cover tank with towel for a couple of days. I would leave the pinky in her hide for about a day an a couple of hours.

Also when she start feeding again, try and get her a new enclosure. Try a 12qt Tub heated with flexwatt. Tubs are great for Bps, they hold humidity and provide the snake with plenty of cover from the plastic blurry walls. The tub is small and the Baby will feel safe in a tight space as a 12qt. As it grows and starts feeding on small mice I suggest switching her back to the 10 gallon.

IF THIS DOESNT WORK CONTINUE ON WITH THE TUBE FEEDING, THAT'LL BE YOUR ONLY CHANCE. WHAT YOUR GOING THROUGH IS COMPLETLY NORMAL. BABIES ARE STUBBORN AND SKINNY AND WE TEND TO WORRY DUE TO THERE SIZE. I KNOW SHE'LL BE FINE. GOODLUCK