baby (july) wont take frozen thawed wont contrict live WTF

[big chris]

Help I'm worried that if I can't get my baby a july hatchling to ever adapt to frozen thawed mice it may require live food for its life which might not be long if it can't figure out not to just take its food alive and start swallowing it this has to be dangerous. It will finally take a frozen thawed immediately after a live one but not the next day or even an hour after its first feeding nor will it even give a frozen thawed mouse a 2nd look when it is time to feed try frozen thawed for a week or so nothing replace it with a live mouse instant eater. I can handle the live thing although me and especially my wife would prefer it to take to frozen thawed sooner or later what is up with the lack of constriction and eating a live mouse still wiggleing I mean I'm not talking weak constriction I'm saying "oh hey its a live mouse swallow yum"

[beautifullywild77]

Is the baby on pinkies still? Some of my corns wouldnt constrict even when still feeding live pinks, while some would. I even had a baby constrict with all their might on a f/t pink. My Piglet ate a live pink as it was squeeking from the butt end and never killed it first!. There are several ways to try to get the baby to take f/t... braining, scenting, washing even leaving the baby in a deli cup covered up overnight. You can do a search on here and there are many threads suggesting how to transfer them over! If not a f/t you can try a fresh kill, sometimes they will take that. I eventually got all my snakes on f/t except for hubbys bp.

I wish you luck with your baby! :)

[wildlifephotographer]

Some are just more picky about what and when and where they eat. I had one that hatched in the end of July this year that refused food no matter what or when or where i offered it. I tried several different things to try and get it to eat.
I finally got it to eat for the very first time today! It's a baby ghost corn and what I did was buy a baby green anole lizard, took the f/t mice and rubbed the mouse against the live anole lizard, for abouit a minute or two and then put the mouse in the container with the baby corn snake and it ate 2 f/t pinks this way. I was so happy! So you might go to your local pet store like Petsmart or PetCo and buy a baby green anole. But be careful with the lizards they are very quick and can jump. So when you go to pick it up you have to slightly squeeze it so it doesn't wiggle right out of yr grasp, then take the f/t pinkie dry it off with paper towel, then rub the pinkie against the lizard that is in yr hand and do that for a couple of minutes. Then I would try putting the mouse in with the baby snake and see what happens. Good luck and hope you can try this.

[big chris]

Thanks well I'm glad to hear it could just be a natural thing not to constrict yet I've actually got 2 of 3 that are doing this same thing but the 3rd like u said constricts the frozen thawed ones like he's trying out for the wrestling team. I've tried out every lil tip I could find from braining to live scenting with live mice and even scenting with lizards nothing worked but I figure taking a f/t right after a live is a good start I was more worried that this not constricting thing might last for ever

[wildlifephotographer]

Yeah, in that case really just be happy it is eating on it's own. The constricting part will probably end eventually as the snake gets older and figures out that it is suppose to kill before eating it's meal that is the live mice.

[big chris]

Wow it just ate today I was flipping out after 3 weeks week 5 I was trying to force feed my 2 (a snowy and a amel) but then a light switch flipped in their heads or something and they both started eating and haven't looked back since they are both great regular eaters(other than the non constricting thing) and they take 2 mice a week either one every 4 days or 2 every 7 or 8 depending on how they do on the first and if they still seem interested in another. But really congratulations on getting it to finally eat after almost 4 months what great patience you showed I had people telling me to put em out of their misery but they never seemed to be bothered by the fact that they didn't care to eat but like I said thanks for the tips and congrats on the new eater

[wildlifephotographer]

Yr welcome! And thank you! I was very happy to have it finally eat. Hope you have continued luck with yours. Now, I just have to hope mine will continue to eat for me.

[beautifullywild77]

Congrats to you both! If only they were all lil piggys!

[wildangel]

My newest baby would not touch a live pinky till hubby thumped the pinky in the head and killing it. Every time he got near it and it kicked a little he would jump back.

[big chris]

You know I think I read that 5 different times before I realized your old man wasn't thumping the corn in the head but the pinky

[wildangel]

lol......really