fussy olive

[luv-my-snakey]

Hi everyone
I'm writing because I have an olive python who is driving me crazy because he will only eat quail, I have tried to feed him rats but he is totally uninterested.. I really want him on rats though because I don't think he is growing as much as he should be :-( I am annoyed because I don't really understand why the pet shop started him on quail in the first place. Please help

 

[PieBald]

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Try live or freshly killed, scenting the rat with quail, there is a number of ways. The way I got one of my jungles to rats from mice, was to get him a little bit hungry and then offered him a little rat and he took. Keeping trying and it will eat rats!

 

[No-two]

Olives can be hard to start and its not uncommon for them to start on birds (generally quail). You can try scenting with quail to begin with. Once they start they're generally pretty good. I remember one of mine used to be quiet shy as well if you moved after she had grabbed the rat you would have to give it back (this would go on for up to 15minutes before I'd give up and just leave her till next time). Once it starts on rats it will catch up on any growing its missed out on.

 

[luv-my-snakey]

Thankyou I will try putting quail scent on it. Hopefully it will work

 

[Pilchy]

another way that might work, is to give him the smallest quail you can get, then after it has swallowed it, its feeding response should of fired up a bit and may take the next food item offered, this worked on my fussy jungle and coastal, but if that method and scenting doesn't work, you can always assist feed this may be harder with a quail, usually done with mice to rats, but once he has gotten to the tail end of the quail you can stick the rats nose into the quails behind, and hold it there untill the olive has its teeth over the rats head, and he should continue eating the rat also, sometimes but not most of the time they will spit it, but you can always try again next time.


all the best, daniel

 

[Darlyn]

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Try live or freshly killed, scenting the rat with quail, there is a number of ways. The way I got one of my jungles to rats from mice, was to get him a little bit hungry and then offered him a little rat and he took. Keeping trying and it will eat rats!

She wants to switch food items, doesn't require live feeding.

 

[ronhalling]

A friend of mine got a diamond off a breeder in gosford who fed most of his yearlings on Quail and DOC's, he had the same probs when he tried to change over to rodents, he was advised by the breeder to dip the rodents head in egg yolk, apparently the yolk still gives off a fairly heavy fowl scent....anyway he tried it and low and behold his Diamond nosed up to the fuzzy rat had a sniff then smashed it, no probs after that, i don't know who the breeder was in Gosford but i could find out...................................................Ron

 

[Pauls_Pythons]

From what I have seen in my time some pythons just prefer to eat feather to fur.
Seriously, it wont be a problem, he will get all the nutrition needed from Quail and you can always get him onto chickens later if he insists on not eating fur.