Feeding Problem

[travisreiner]

I just fed my corn for the first time and it is taking him a long time to eat. How long should it take for them to eat the pinkie?:awcrap:

[Chip]

FIRST! What is the temperature of the cage?
Also, is this an '03 corn (from last year?) if so shouldn't still be on pinks... If it's an '04, it's an early bird and probably tiny. Still right after first shed, they can usually dispatch a pink in 5 minutes. The animal's size, age and temperature it is kept at will have more to do with appetite and assimilation than anything. Also, "pinkie" can mean anything from a one day old mouse to a week old. Big size difference there. Let us know and we'll be happy to help you out. Good luck.

[travisreiner]

The snake is an 04'. I have had him in his feeding tray for several hours and am getting worried. I am using a tupperware tray; Is that apropriate? The cage is kept around 75-80. He has bedding material in his cage so I dont want to leave the pinkie in there. He hasnt eaten in a week. The place that I bought him said that he was a good eater. The pinkie isnt that big. He was being fed live food, but I bought 2 frozen and will try those later. I read that if you take the water out of the cage for a few days, then dip the pinkie in water he might eat it. Thank you for whatever help you can give me.

[Chip]

I wouldn't dip the pinkie. It needs all the scent it can get (since you're switching to frozen) and water will just weaken that. I don't see the correlation with a thirsty snake being prone to eat wet prey. Still, I wouldn't worry a bit about one week. It is important that you don't offer food often to a non-feeder. They become accustomed to the smell of food and won't be as likley to have it trigger their feeding response.
The tupperware tray is fine and used world-round!
Let him settle in for several days and then try again. How long have you had him? When was he hatched? Even an early 04 is a young snake to call an established feeder, but if he's ever eaten you're statistically in the "don't sweat it" category.
Keep us updated.

[Ciryluk]

Originally posted by elrojo
Also, is this an '03 corn (from last year?) if so shouldn't still be on pinks...

I've got 2 03 Corns still on pinks... still too small to take Fuzzies!

Cheryl:cool:

[stuart]

I would switch them to fuzzies even if they r too small, my 03 is eating small mice, you do realise that the snakes can swallow things larger than its head, just give them fuzzies, they'll be fine.

[cowtownherper]

Not all 03's are equal. I have a 03 purchased in march thats about 30" and 100 grams. I also have an 03 purchased in november thats about 15" and about 20 grams. They arn't all born at the same time and they dont all grow at the same rate. I still have three 03's on pinks and they are doing great. I dont like to rush their growth. I know alot of people feed to push the growth. I'm happy letting them grow at a slower pace. My 03's are getting two pinkies each feeding, once a week. This is just my personal preference and it has worked well for me.

[Chip]

I'm not trying to set any rules in stone here, but an 03 would be at least 14 weeks old, and that's if it hatched on New Year's eve. In all liklihood, even a second clutch (or very late hatchling) would be born in or before October. By week 6 I begin to offer two pinks per feeding and step up to fuzzies around week 12 (if two pinks are being eaten by that point). Without a doubt, there are runts, and there are snakes that just don't take off like their clutchmates. But he'd said it was sold to him as a good eater, and I'd estimate 95% of 03's would take a fuzzy, whether or not their keepers think they could not withstanding. My 03's are on weanlings and small mice, but it's a line of big Okeetees. They grow really fast.

It's a moot point anyway, as he's PMed me that it's an 04. Geez, I'm just starting to pair my breeders up! :confused:

[cowtownherper]

Hey elrojo. I dont post with the intention of offendeding any one. It sounds like you have it going good. I guess I do have what you would call a runt. I have two oketees that I got from SMR on about the first of November. I'm guessing 2nd clutch. They were about the same size when I got them. Since then the male has doubled the size of the female. Tuesday was feeding night and it took an hour for her to eat one pink. She has never accepted a second. I weighed her last night and she is only 18 grams. I might add that she did regurge once about a month ago. In the three years that I've been keeping snakes, two with corns, she is the only snake I've ever had regurge. Other wise she seems healthy. I just dont think she is in any hurry to grow up. I still have two other late 03's still on two pinks. I'm gonna listen to you and move up to fuzzies next week. Keep on herping, Jim

[MegF.]

My June 03 is eating medium mice. She downs small adult mice in about a minute and looks for more. She's hungry after one day. I just moved her up in size. She's still fed only once a week. My other 03 is eating fuzzies, but she is an August hatchling.

[Chip]

I assume you know the regurge drill (ten days w/no food offered, then a smaller than normal meal, pinkie head etc.) but I think it's prudent to be very careful to feed regurgers small meals until they get their "feet" under them. Good luck with her!

[travisreiner]

It still hasnt eatin any thing and it has been nearly three weeks. We tried to force feed it but it regurged it, after eating half. What do I do?
Please, any help is appriciated.:confused:

[CornCrazy]

If this was supposed to be an established feeder, then I suggest you contact the breeder/store you bought it at. Obviously, it wasn't as established as they led you to believe.

As for the food size issue...most of my '03s are eating hoppers to weanling mice. I also have some that are on peach fuzzies. The ones on peach fuzzies, however, were ALL non-feeders that I rehabilitated. They are MUCH smaller than the others. I will say that the majority of the rehabbed ones are actually on two peach fuzzies now. I will be trying them on regular fuzzies soon.

[Chip]

I can not stress this enough! The likelihood of a regurge after such a stressful feeding is almost 100%. Give the snake ten days before the next feeding. Then offer a pinkie head. Not head & shoulders, just head. If he eats that, wait a week and offer the front half of a pinkie, stay on small items until the digestive juices catch up to him. Odds are no longer in your favor after a regurged force feed. If you can trade him in, I suggest doing so. Best wishes.
Chip

[aggiemarta]

I am the one who tried to force-feed travisreiners corn snake, after getting advice from my ecology professor, who did her graduate work in snakes and had to do it quite a bit. She said it was fine, just not to do it often. So now I wonder if I have ruined his snake? I dont understand why the snake wont eat, its as if it is punishing itself! I got the pinkie halfway down its throat and it just spit it back out, without ever biting down. I dont think the store will take it back or offer a refund/exchange, so what can we do to help the snake live? I would hate for him to lose the snake, because it was a small investment, especially for a college student!
Any information would be greatly appreciated, and you can reply to either travisreiner or me. Thanks!

[CornCrazy]

I don't think you jeopardized the snake too much since the snake never actually swallowed the mouse and started digesting it. You never actually got the mouse down him. Force-feeding is very stressful to a snake, however, and can cause him to continue to not feed. I would refrain from attempting it again.

I do suggest that the store or breeder be contacted. They need to replace this snake. They should be the ones worrying with trying to get him to feed.

What types of meals have you guys actually tried offering? Live, F/T, or what? There are many things which can be tried. If you'll list what you've tried, we can go from there.

[aggiemarta]

We have tried:

Live pinkie
Frozen pinkie, warmed up in hand
Frozen pinkie, warmed up in mug of hot water (this we have tried several times)

Thats about it, becuase we dont know of anything else to do!
Help!

[CornCrazy]

This is going to sound gross, but try braining a warm F/T pink. Simply take a tooth pick and poke a hole in the pink's brain, smear the brain matter around on the head of the pinky. If this doesn't work, then I'll offer another suggestion. I would give the snake a couple of days to get over the stress of the attempted force feeding, however.

[Chip]

That helps. I've force-fed lots of snakes myself, but the success rate for hatchlings is really small, unless you luck into that occasional one that begins to swallow on it's own after the pink head is in it's mouth. Good luck.
Chip

[travisreiner]

It's been a month and he still hasnt eatin. I am gonna call the pet store and make them take him back. I want a new snake. he is pretty but if he wont eat I dont want him. Thank you for all of you help. Hopefully I will get one that eats
travis

[CornCrazy]

I hope they will give you another one! Please let us know!

[travisreiner]

I had a long and hard fight with the pet store and they insist that the snake was healthy when it was purchased. I bought every theing that I needed to keep this snake alive from them, from their 'reptile specialist'. Now they are telling me that my tank isnt large enough, so they want me to come purchase a larger tank. None the less, they will not take the snake back. There is a very reputable store in Austin, and they will get my business. I guess that we will have to try and keep this snake alive. I am going to report this store to the BBB of College Station. Is there any way I can put a post warning people not to buy from this store? I am very fed up with those people. :angry01: : :madeuce: :flames:

[dara]

Paper bag. I went through all the same things in the beginning, and I realized the problem: my snake likes to eat in the dark, all by his lonesome. Just think about how your snake acts in the tank- if he doesn't see you, he roams around like it's nothing but as soon as you put your head next to the glass, it's all he can concentrate on.

So first, leave him alone, totally alone, for a few days. No handling, no peeking, no nothing. Then put him in a paper bag, like a regular lunch sack, with the pink. Fold over the top of the bag with a paper clip, put the bag back in your viv, and then turn the lights out and leave. Don't watch him. Don't peek in the bag to see if he's eating or eaten or not eating, just leave him alone for a good 20 minutes (it's not gonna hurt him if he eats it right away and then hangs out in the bag for awhile, that's why you put it back in the viv- the temps are good).

Please remember that it's *never* a good idea to leave a snake alone with live prey, so while this pink isn't gonna do any damange, this won't work once he moves up. I used the bag for about 6 weeks, and then moved up to a tupperware that he would go into, lid on, lights out.

I don't guarantee that it will work, but the paper bag in the dark and all alone worked when nothing- braining, f/t, live, heads, tails, scenting, etc. worked. It's not the food he didn't like, it was the situation.

Hope that helped, let us know how it turned out!

dara

[travisreiner]

Thanks. We have tried putting him in his feeding thing then wrapping a towel around it, leaving him in it all night. That was the pet stores last suggestion. But, we didnt put it back in the viv. I'll try that. How easy is it to get a snake to start eating frozen instead of live. Live is just really hard for me to get where I live.

[CornCrazy]

Your main concern is to get it eating. If I was you, I would not be concerned with getting it to switch over to F/T, yet.

Have you tried anoles or anole scented pinks?