Help My Snake Isn't Eating!

[Raina]

My 3 year old spotted python hasn't eaten since May (he ate the week before I brought him home). I understand the whole "winter fast" thing, but how long is too long? About a month ago I increased the temps in his enclosure, and offered him a rat... No luck. The following week I scented a rat with a day old chick. He took it from me after a lot of interest but dropped and ignored it. Last week I took the head off a day old chick and gave it too him. He then displayed the strangest behavior... He started rubbing his face all over his enclosure, went and had a drink, explored the headless chook, yawned, then started over. After half an hour of this behavior I left the room and returned the following morning to yet another wasted food item. I'm stuck for ideas... I'm sick of wasting food. Also, should I be concerned that he hasn't shed in the time I have had him?
Help!


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[mysnakesau]

All you can do is keep trying. It's still too early to diagnose a health problem. The snakes I've had cooling, none have started eating yet. The boys have got other things on their mind at the moment. I know it is costly, wasting food like that. Perhaps only try every two or three weeks rather than weekly. He will start, eventually. That's where it is handy having more than one snake. If one says no, I've got another who say yes please.

 

[rockanfo]

My stimmy took food on the weekend. Hadn't eaten since April. Just a point for any other low xp stimmy herpers out there wondering about theirs. Start opening the window of their room up during day, letting warm outside air in. Shes starting to become more active again.

 

[Darlyn]

My Darwin hadn't eaten for 4 months and she took a fuzzie last night. She has been more alert the last couple of days and it's great to see her with a bump (albeit a small one). Hang in there guys.

 

[mysnakesau]

Yay! Good stuff. Always good to see them start eating again, eh?

Who else's difficult feeders are now eating?

 

[CML88]

Yay! Good stuff. Always good to see them start eating again, eh?

Who else's difficult feeders are now eating?

I tried feeding tonight and he looked keen.. flicking the tounge at it and stalking behaviour, but no go. He hasint eaten since May, i spose i should leave it a bit longer?

 

[SYNeR]

My Stimson Python is still on/off his food. Sometimes he'll eat, other times he'll refuse.

I can't speak from experience with pythons not eating at all, but my Pygmy Bearded Dragon only just came out of brumation a few days ago.. He hadn't eaten for around 4 months..
I guess the weather is still far from ideal..

 

[NotoriouS]

My diamond's been off his food for 6 weeks now (he ate through most of winter). I'm throwing out rodents every week (frustrating and expensive!). He's quite active, and displaying his normal behaviour. He shows interest in the food items (gets really active, roams around tongue flicking), but when he gets to the actual rodent he just turns around and wanders off. His last meal 6 weeks ago was a medium rat and 2 adult mice. He seems healthy enough so I guess it's a waiting game. It's a good incentive for me to buy another snake to give the uneaten food to

 

[Bigtown]

Swcp

Hi I have a female SWCP 3.5yrs old up until the 6 weeks ago she would feed easliy every 2-3 weeks. She hasn't eat for 4 weeks. She has shed in that time aswell. She will strike the rat no worries then she will smell it for a couple of minutes then drop it. Then she will wait for another feed! Strange. I have changed the rats ie brought a couple of new ones. Still the same result! I have brought a DOC to try in a couple of days. She is active as normal. The temp is about 26-28 degrees in the heat end. Plus a heat rock. I'm a bit lost as to why?? She has always fed so well.

Help?

Chris

 

[Jen]

Hi I have a female SWCP 3.5yrs old up until the 6 weeks ago she would feed easliy every 2-3 weeks. She hasn't eat for 4 weeks. She has shed in that time aswell. She will strike the rat no worries then she will smell it for a couple of minutes then drop it. Then she will wait for another feed! Strange. I have changed the rats ie brought a couple of new ones. Still the same result! I have brought a DOC to try in a couple of days. She is active as normal. The temp is about 26-28 degrees in the heat end. Plus a heat rock. I'm a bit lost as to why?? She has always fed so well.

Help?

Chris

Your 'hot' end is not hot enough, bump it to 33

 

[Rhomany]

My jungle isn't eating. It's 10 months old and it ate about a month ago but I want it to be healthy. It used to be a great eater but saying that I've only fed it about 7 times since I bought it and the fifth or so was a fuzzy rat which was really big for it at the time. I think it's been put off food now because of that rat. I tried feeding it a fuzzy mouse because pinky rats were too small, but it only ate the one, which was a month ago and rejected the other two I've attempted to feed it a week and two weeks ago. I tried feeding it a fuzzy rat a few minutes ago and it's still not eating. I just smells it a bit and moves away or climbs over the rat. Doesn't seem stressed at all, it's usually happy and curious. I noticed it's eyes are a bit metallic so it's going to shed in a week or two. I just get worried because I love my python. I usually feed it once every 2 to 3 weeks. I tried lightly bumping it a few times on the head with the rat to get a response but it didn't work.

 

[saximus]

Some snakes just don't like to eat during shed. You've got absolutely nothing to worry about. How are your temps? As long as they are good you should be fine. Just wait for it to shed and try again

 

[Rhomany]

Temps are perfect. I usually leave the heat on 33-36 on the warm end which is where I sit the hide box and about 19-22 on the other side. My snake prefers sleeping around the temperature gage compared to hide anyway. It's more like he's been weird for ages lately and it's starting to scare me a bit because I love him so much.

Probablly been off feeding since the start of August, it started happening after I fed him the big rat so I thought it might be psychological. Maybe he is afraid to eat now? I don't think it has anything to do with the weather because I got him in June when it was really cold and he was a happy little eater.

 

[Raina]

Update from my September post:
Ken shed 2 weeks ago. I offered him a rat a week post shed and again he refused. He has spent the last 2 days sitting in his water dish, but he is definitely free from mites. His temps are between 24-32. Any ideas?


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[Scott1969]

The 'sticky' worked!!! I am a new owner (5ft male Bredli named 'Chewy') and I WAS getting worried about his lack of appetite so I referred to the forum, found this thread and got my answer rather than re inventing the wheel with a repeated question!!!!! Yay Stickies!!!

 

[saximus]

That's great news Scott! This is exactly why I wanted to make it.

 

[abnrmal91]

Really glad Scott. Snakes are normally easy to get eating the biggest thing is patience. Trust me snakes are much more patient then their keepers.

 

[SperO]

I got two juvinile blackheaded pythons for my birthday start of October. One of them is just not eating and doesn't even seem interested. they were in a glass cage originally but after a month of the snake not eating I switched them into a timber cage my stimson was in as I read they like more secretive areas.

Humidity/temperature is not an issue this is the middle of the wet season Darwin, its not just hot its ******ing hot!

I thought maybe it had something to do with the other python being to aggressive as I was feeding them both at the same time in the cage and didn't even notice that one of them wasn't eating until a month later and caught the bigger one eating both the mice! So I removed the bigger one and put him into the original cage (just note they were the same size when I got them but the big one is now triple in size!) and my poor stimmy had to get curled up in small portable cage for a few days. Still nothing.

Last Saturday I picked up the one that wasn't eating for the first time in a month (left him alone to calm him down) and he didn't flinch or anything. He felt so skinny! He was like this dead weight in my hands and I got really scared so I took him out to my dad's farm to try some freshly killed mice of different sizes. On the car ride I guess he woke up he was pretty active which calmed my nerves a little.

After the freshly killed mice failed we ended up force feeding him two fuzzies which he swallowed the slowest I have ever seen a snake swallow. Maybe he forgot how to eat? He was eating baby rats before I got him. I know 2 months isn't a long time but I don't think that its because he isn't hungry he is really skinny. He seems to like the bigger snake still they are male/female unrelated and stay entwined a lot but should I keep them seperated on a more permanent basis do you think?

Also the bigger snake eats so weird, a lot of the time she starts from tail first and doesn't even constrict her pray. Maybe thats how BHPs eat (the lack of constriction not the tail first) I dont know but if its not will this cause problems later on? I guess I can't really teach a snake how to constrict can I....

 

[bowdnboy]

Spero... I'd keep them seperated. Or u may find yourself with one really fat BHP instead of two one day.

Try not feeding wild mice if u can help it. may have any disease. Might not effect the snake, but it may you if u cop a bite., or may have eaten some kind of poisen that hadnt had time to work yet.

You said he was eating baby rats before u got him, and because U said theyre unrelated, I'll assume his previous owner had him housed by himself. Some snakes u can do this too no worries, but I wouldnt be keeping BHP's together, only at breeding times.

My BHP's dont really constrict either. THey just open their mouth and grab it, sometimes quite slowly. Completely differnt to my Jungle which is the complete opposite...lol

Give him some more time by himself, with plenty of hides, then try again. Maybe try braining one. Also, reach out to someone in your local area who is an experianced herper. They may be able to pop around and give you some advice and check you setup out, and see exactly what sort of condition this one is in.

Good luck

 

[SperO]

yea I figured I was going to have to seperate them it just means investing in another cage!

the mice are all grown on my dads farm in cages and normally we freeze them first but i wanted to try freshly killed ones just in case

also its interesting to hear its not just me with a weird eating python