BHP Hatchy Not Feeding

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I was wondering if anyone knew the danger zone for a bhp not to be feeding, How long can they go before force feeding?
Is starting them on lizards a recipe for a lifelong bad feeder or impossible to get back over to mice?

Cheers
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[sxereturn]

If it's been 2 months, I'd start them on lizards, and then start trying mice that are scented with lizards, and finally straight mice.

They're worth too much to try and get onto pinkies first time.

 

[womas4me]

We have a hatchling BHP which is not eating yet. We are weighing it and watching it's weight and so far it's been 8 weeks and it hasn't lost any weight or condition. We are perservering but only if the animal loses weight or condition would we look at other things. Have been told to scent head of mouse with duck juice (wives tale) but apparently this works very well for fussy eaters! Each to their own though.

 

[Adam]

I have Diamonds and stimpsons that were troublesome feeder as hatchies. The Diamond is now 3 years old and nearly 6 foot long she now eats rats,mice and chickens, I did worm her for a while once she stopped eating lizards and the stimpson eventually went onto rat pinkies and is a pain to feed still but she is growing slowly but surely. I know they are different but I hope it helps.

 

[basketcase]

.

i know lizards is the wrong way to go in most species, but is it diff with BHP's ???

since they eat reptiles in the wild are they less likely to get worms as a result of being fed lizards as a hatchling ???

cheers, jono

 

[iluvsmyreptiles]

ad,
The best thing to do is cut a rats tail off a rat (dead obviously) and rub a skink on it, so it gets the scent of the skink. Then try feeding the tail to the bhp hatchling. Usually works a treat.
And doing it this way doesn't make it any harder to get onto rats later on as they have had the taste of rats by taking the tail.
Hope this works for you...has always worked for me with bhp's.
Cheers.

 

[BROWNS]

I know some people who don't even attempt to try feeding bhp's till 8-10 weeks and if they don't eat it's no drama as long as the bhp doesn't lose condition. Some others don't attempt to feed for up to 3 months.You're well within the comfort zone still. Just keep trying every week and don't get too worried if it still doesn't eat for a while as it would've absorbed plenty of the egg yoke.

Have you tried live fuzzy rats or some that have just started to get hair on them?A pair of bhp's i got last year ate first go on just fuzzed up live rats.

Have heard of them going for up to 6 months without feeding without a problem.Once they start eating they will soon catch up.

In POTW it recommends to not attempt to feed till 10 weeks out of the egg as there is a much higher success rate at that time with no apparent deleterious effects to the hatchling.

 

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Thanks very much for the advice everyone, my mind is eased greatly. I knew they had a bit of time though wasnt exactly sure how long.
Cheers
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[Farkurnell]

The guy who I got my BHP from as a hatchling a few years ago routinely has to force feed his hatchlings to get them to readily take mice and/or rats. The way he did it looked very easy and wasn't at all stressful for the snake. He inserts a credit card flat into the snakes mouth and slides the food item into the mouth before pushing it down the throat using a probe to push it gently down the throat. He has a 100% success rate using this method and it avoids having to use skinks or scenting or any other procedure. My BHP was started that way and once it got the taste for rats it has never looked back and has never refused a feed.
Before any howls of protest from anyone, this bloke is a reputable breeder well known to many in Sydney.


Greg.

 

[Shamus]

Can I borrow his credit card?

 

[Guest]

how did your bhp lose its eye

 

[Farkurnell]

Ah Brendan, typical of you to bring that up. For your info mate, he never lost an eye, what he did do was lose the sight in one eye. If you're gonna have a go at me at least get the facts right. Having said that, he has come on in leaps and bounds. He's a big healthy snake as can be verified by lots of people here including Jan who has seen him on a couple of occasions. They are beautiful animals with or without full sight.

 

[Slateman]

One of mine snake lost his vision on one eye. I still think he is beauty, and I enjoy him.
By the way, why you asking this question Brendan?

 

[ad]

Hi Everyone,
Just an update, the little guy is now feeding well.
I used a gecko tail together with a pinky on tweezers (the tail was still twitching intially which got his tongue flicking). He did not eat with me there but ate both the tail and pinky soon after.
Yesterday (2 days after the tail + pinky) he ate a pinky solo and later in the night ate a weaner rat.
He is now digesting happily with a very happy owner. I bought him at bargain basement price because he wasnt feeding, now to find out the sex!!

 

[bigguy]

ad, glad to hear you got the little BHP eating. Most people do not realise BHP's absorb so much yolk at hatching that they dont even get hungry for the first 2 to 3 months. They normally will not even look at food till the yolk is all used up.

With problem feeders its always best to try a scented food item before you try force feeding. The trick is to find the correct scent.

All the Childrens group love the scent of Garden Skinks
Diamonds love Coppertail Skinks
Olives love Finches
And as you found out, BHP's and Womas can not resist Geckoes
Carpets love the scent of Ducks Brains

 

[Already_Gone]

mmmm... tasty...

 

[NoOne]

I prefer to assist feed BHP hatchlings, it's very easy and doesn't stress them, alot less hassle than catching lizards, i use the credit card method work very well.

 

[BROWNS]

Force or assist feeding will always be stressful to a degree, especially compared to having them feed voluntarily.Assist or force feeding should be left as a last resort.There's no big rush to get bhp hatchies feeding in comparison to most of our other pythons....

 

[NoOne]

Obviously there is some stress but it ain't much cause once the rat pup gets down in their mouth a bit they do the rest themselves.
I just like to get mine going, by the time people are scenting rodents trying to get them feeding mine are ripping rats out of your hand. I can't see a problem with it, thats just how i do it.

 

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mine are ripping rats out of your hand.

Once they are feeding, nothing holds them back.
They seem the most voracious of all the pythons.
The only animal Ive had close was a spencers monitor - an eating machine - just like bhps, nothing would stand in the way of the food.