Feeding help- when to be worried

[Gem]

Hey all, so I've been reading a few threads on feeding issues but they didn't really answer all my questions so here goes : ) apologies for ANOTHER not eating thread haha
My two Antaresia boys are around a year and a half old (they're about a month a part in age) always good feeders, never any issues at all.

I feed them a weaner rat every 10 days and had planned to put them up to a small adult rat recently.
Last feed for both of them was February 20th so a month ago, they have refused food since.
I'm not worried yet because they still look in good condition and they aren't losing weight at all.

Since the first refusal I have been monitoring temps even more closely than usual and all has been normal, its still hot where I live so the heats been off most of the time, the snake room still gets to 35 degrees during the day and doesn't really get passed the mid twenties at night although there has been a couple of night where its been a little cooler but still not cold at all.

I have read about ants going off food but it didn't seem cool enough for that yet but I could be wrong.

They are both still active at night and appear to be looking for food but when I try to feed them, they literally have ZERO interest at all, they even back away from the food. Usually they just take the food straight from the tongs without any hesitation at all.

My questions are-
When should I start to become concerned and when should I start really trying to get them to eat (other than just offering food)
What are some things I can try to entice them to eat, are there any foods that are more appealing than rats? Defrosting in a bag hasn't worked yet but I haven't tried cutting the rats nose, is there anything else?

Any tips as appreciated as always : )

Gem

 

[Sdaji]

If adult males go off feed at this time of year I'd suggest waiting until about September/October before offering feed again.

Small adult rats are very large for 18 month old Antaresia, although some sellers will sell some very small rats as 'small adults'. I generally wouldn't feed anything larger than a 70 or maybe 80g rat to Antaresia, especially 18 month old males, which would rarely get anything larger than what I'd call a weaner (60g max).

You might find that their nocturnal exploration is now focussing on searching for girls rather than feed, and boys interested in girls will generally have zero interest in feed until the breeding season is over.

Even if you keep them warm with supplemental heat, in most cases there will be enough cues to let them know what time it is and they'll switch interest from feed to girls when the time of year is right. This is what a normal, healthy male should do each year.

 

[Gem]

If adult males go off feed at this time of year I'd suggest waiting until about September/October before offering feed again.

Small adult rats are very large for 18 month old Antaresia, although some sellers will sell some very small rats as 'small adults'. I generally wouldn't feed anything larger than a 70 or maybe 80g rat to Antaresia, especially 18 month old males, which would rarely get anything larger than what I'd call a weaner (60g max).

You might find that their nocturnal exploration is now focussing on searching for girls rather than feed, and boys interested in girls will generally have zero interest in feed until the breeding season is over.

Even if you keep them warm with supplemental heat, in most cases there will be enough cues to let them know what time it is and they'll switch interest from feed to girls when the time of year is right. This is what a normal, healthy male should do each year.

Thanks so much for the information, really helpful!

Is this something they will do every year?

Where I get rats does do a small adult which isn't that much bigger than a weaner, thanks for the tip there too : )

 

[pythoninfinite]

Sdaji is pretty much on the money. When I was a dealer in WA and was selling wild-caught Stimmies, they were, at best spasmodic feeders, especially the males. At a guess I would say that the adults would eat maybe 6-8 meals a year, and always looked in fine condition. It's absolutely normal for Ants to go off feed at this time of the year, so I wouldn't bother wasting food until late spring. Hormonal changes are the reason for this, and there's not much you can do about it. Don't worry.

Jamie

 

[Sdaji]

Yes, it's something they should do every year. They don't naturally eat all year. Healthy adult males should only be thinking about girls for about half the year and food for the other half. This is a little early for them to switch to thinking about girls but it sounds like you've been feeding them quite heavily so perhaps they figure they are already stocked up with plenty of fat for the winter so might as well try their luck finding an early receptive girl, rather than get obese now and have trouble finding girls when they are at the peak of availability. You will usually find females keen to feed a little later into the year, some will feed all year.

 

[Gem]

Sdaji is pretty much on the money. When I was a dealer in WA and was selling wild-caught Stimmies, they were, at best spasmodic feeders, especially the males. At a guess I would say that the adults would eat maybe 6-8 meals a year, and always looked in fine condition. It's absolutely normal for Ants to go off feed at this time of the year, so I wouldn't bother wasting food until late spring. Hormonal changes are the reason for this, and there's not much you can do about it. Don't worry.

Jamie

Its interesting they can do this and not lose weight
Thanks so much Jamie, really helpful : )
[doublepost=1521698804,1521698461][/doublepost]

Yes, it's something they should do every year. They don't naturally eat all year. Healthy adult males should only be thinking about girls for about half the year and food for the other half. This is a little early for them to switch to thinking about girls but it sounds like you've been feeding them quite heavily so perhaps they figure they are already stocked up with plenty of fat for the winter so might as well try their luck finding an early receptive girl, rather than get obese now and have trouble finding girls when they are at the peak of availability. You will usually find females keen to feed a little later into the year, some will feed all year.

Thank you very much for the info!
I won't stress about them now

Gem

 

[Sdaji]

I've had adult pythons go literally years without eating - males will sometimes go a couple of years while remaining perfectly healthy and breeding each season. It's not especially common, but it does happen. They will lose weight, but yes, it's very surprising how little. Unlike us they don't have to produce their own body heat (that's where most of our food goes) and they have much much lower metabolic rates (that's where most of the rest goes). Youngsters can't go as long without feed as adults and it's no healthy for them to go any longer than over one cold season. At one and a half years of age and eating meals the size they are, it sounds like they're good, healthy, adults, and very much ready for a seasonal break. You probably will find that they'll burn up a bit of energy chasing (or searching for) females, and they'll have lost a bit of weight by spring. Think of it a bit like doing exercise and losing weight. Like many animals, it is normal to have a large yearly fluctuation in weight.

 

[cris]

I've had adult pythons go literally years without eating - males will sometimes go a couple of years while remaining perfectly healthy and breeding each season. It's not especially common, but it does happen. They will lose weight, but yes, it's very surprising how little. Unlike us they don't have to produce their own body heat (that's where most of our food goes) and they have much much lower metabolic rates (that's where most of the rest goes). Youngsters can't go as long without feed as adults and it's no healthy for them to go any longer than over one cold season. At one and a half years of age and eating meals the size they are, it sounds like they're good, healthy, adults, and very much ready for a seasonal break. You probably will find that they'll burn up a bit of energy chasing (or searching for) females, and they'll have lost a bit of weight by spring. Think of it a bit like doing exercise and losing weight. Like many animals, it is normal to have a large yearly fluctuation in weight.

Do you have any pics of a what a pythons face looks like when it feels hungry?

 

[Buggster]

My Stimmie boy will go off food this time every year and not eat until September/October no problem. Was very stressful the first time as I was convinced I was doing something wrong that was making him go off food, which isn’t the case at all- this is a season thing.

And on the plus side I save a lot of money on rats

 

[Flaviemys purvisi]

Do you have any pics of a what a pythons face looks like when it feels hungry?

My bread!