Children's python not eating

[n3xia]

I've noticed a lump in his belly now... it's about 1-1.5cm in diameter, soft to touch and he doesn't see uncomfortable, but I still want to take him to the vet. I'll have to wait until Saturday though as I am flying to Melbourne tonight :/ Does anyone know what lumps can mean? I tried googling but with little luck. Would an intestinal infection take this long to show up? Can a vet still do a fecal smear if he hasn't eaten or defecated in this long?

 

[Australis]

A pinkie rat is usually smaller than an adult mouse, and they've got more nutrients than mice. That's one reason why people recommend rats over mice.

Do you (or anyone) have any information relating to mice having less nutrients against rats?

For me its just the convenience of feeding one or two larger feed items of rat against
feeding several mice to the same value.
Cant see any drama in feeding Antaresia on mice exclusively considering their
relatively small adult size.

Unless ive missed something here?

 

[notechistiger]

python_newbie: A lump of any kind in a snake that has not eaten for as long as yours is not good. My bet would have to be either some kind of parasite, or cancer. So yes, a vet trip is definitely valid. And I don't know about the fecal smear, you'll you have to talk to vet about that.

Australis: I was told that was so by the guy I used to buy my reptiles and products from. I'm not in contact with him anymore, but he was a trusted source. I wrote down what his explanation was- it certainly sounded logical. I'll see if I can dig it up for you. However, I would still recommend rats over mice for Antaresia. At 50cm long, a childrens should have no problem getting down a fuzzy rat, and as you say, it's much more convenient then feeding three or four mice to achieve the same result.

 

[n3xia]

I took my snake to a specialist reptile vet yesterday, who said the lump was just a non-harmful body worm (most likely from being fed gecko tails or the like as a hatchling). He pricked the snake's skin and removed it, but said it was purely for cosmetic reasons and if the worm had remained there, the snake would have pooed it out with no problems. He also said the worm wouldn't have affected his appetite and that I should try feeding him a gecko tail (they're non-native and live around my house) or scenting a mouse with frog urine to get him feeding again. He said that even though the geckos aren't captive and could carry diseases, at this point in time it's more important that he starts feeding, and since the geckos are urban ones they aren't likely to have any weird diseases anyway.

The vet also said I shouldn't need to buy a heat globe/mat/cord/whatever now because the wet season is nearly here. He said my snake should be fine in the colder months without a heat globe too because he's native to here and that I'd only need to use a heat globe in the dry season if I wanted him to eat, not necessarily because he needed to eat.

 

[pythons73]

The vet told you 2 try frog urine,thats the first that ive heard,how will you do that.

 

[n3xia]

Well, I'll find a frog in my yard and pick it up (which apparently causes it to pee), then rub the scent on the mouse.

 

[Wench]

i thought snakes need heat regardless of season?? even when cooling they still need somewhere warm dont they??

 

[rodentrancher]

Maybe we've done the wrong thing with our MD pythons then? We turned the heat off for the cooling season. Will turn back on at the end of September. Cheers Cheryl

 

[Wench]

i was just asking a question.

guess it depends if ya snake hibernates or not then??
buggers me.
i was told that even in winter ya snake still needs a basking spot/somewhere warm - but maybe thats coz my snake isn't hibernating and needs heat to digest etc.

 

[notechistiger]

This is very wrong. In the wild, a snake would bask in the sun for a few hours, then go hide in the shade- continually moving between warm and cool places to keep its body at the optimum temperature. In an enclosure inside the house (where it is always cool), a snake doesn't have this opportunity. By not providing heat, you're almost guaranteeing the snake will get sick with a possible fatal condition, such as an RI.

Now that the worm has been removed, try and see if your snake will take a mouse. If the vet gave you a wrong piece of advice, there's no guarantee that the other was also wrong.

 

[Colin]

I never keep pythons under at least 18 months of age in an 'enclosure type setup' I keep them in appropriately sized plastic tubs, that sit about half on a heat mat controlled by a thermostat. there is a thermometer in each (or every second tub) to double check temps. Substarte is a sheet of newspaper (changed when needed), a water dish at the cold end (changed at least once a week) a 'plant water dish' (turned unside down with side hole cut for entrance or a plastic lunchbox etc for a hide. very easy to clean and disinfect. They feel more secure in a smaller enclosure, have better access to the heat and grow like weeds in these setups.

I've heard there was some study on nutritional values of rats Vs mice but (imo) it depends on what the rodents have been fed on. Mice fed a superior diet will have better food value than rats fed inadequate diets. And for sizes of both, up to an adult mouse size, I think the nutritional difference would be small if any. When your talking about large rats that may or may not have excess fat etc then there might be a significant differeance in comparrison. The bottom line is to feed appropriately sized quality food items (rats or mice) it doesn't really matter that much in my opinion and people make more of an issue with this subject than its worth.

As far as not having any heat as per vet advice, well depends on the temperatures where your living I suppose, but I"d still have a hot end of something like 30 degrees and a cooler end about 26 degrees giving the snake a choice and thermal gradient. Unless your going to cool a snake for breeding purposes theres no need to cool them, especially a smaller animal thats still growing.

Antaresia species are notorious for just 'going off their feed' for no apparent reason and can be weeks or months before they resume feeding.

Just relax, keep trying to offer food every week until it starts to feed again, and keep an eye on the temperature in the enclosure.

 

[n3xia]

This is very wrong. In the wild, a snake would bask in the sun for a few hours, then go hide in the shade- continually moving between warm and cool places to keep its body at the optimum temperature. In an enclosure inside the house (where it is always cool), a snake doesn't have this opportunity. By not providing heat, you're almost guaranteeing the snake will get sick with a possible fatal condition, such as an RI.

Now that the worm has been removed, try and see if your snake will take a mouse. If the vet gave you a wrong piece of advice, there's no guarantee that the other was also wrong.

Children's pythons are nocturnal, right? Wouldn't that mean that they'd be basking during the day less frequently than other snakes? I do take him out in the sun from time to time and it does get considerably hotter during the day, even in the cooler months as I live in the tropics.

I'll probably get one of those clip on purple night heat globes anyway for the next dry season.

 

[Snakebuster]

It might be because the snake is just about to shed its skin. Don't worry. It will eat sooner or later.

 

[n3xia]

He has shed twice, and is now ready for a third shedding since he stopped eating.

That has to be a good sign, right? It means he's still growing and stuff?

 

[n3xia]

Updating with some good news this time: my python ate tonight (a fuzzy defrosted mouse) for the first time since early May. At first he didn't seem interested and slithered behind his fake rock wall, so i pulled the wall away and put the mouse right in front of his nose, and viola.

I had moved his enclosure outside, closer to the sunlight (instead of buying a heat globe - I mean we've had 40C, 90% humidity days lately), so I don't know if it was that or the natural weather changes that did the trick. Either way, he didn't seem to have trouble eating and I'm relieved that he finally did I think I'll try an adult defrosted mouse in a week's time.

Thanks for all of the advice everyone! I'll be referring back to here if he stops eating again.