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grrrrr, Now I See Why Breeders Give Non-feeders Away!

schnebbles

schnebbles

New member
Wow! I had no idea they could be so stubborn!

As most of you know, I have 4 of them who belong to a friend and I have more time on my hands (which is a good thing with these naughties!).

I was able to force feed a small pink to 2 of them, one ate on it's own after the slap method.

One, I gave her a tail then while the tail was still kind of going down, forced a pinky down and massaged it down as she didn't seem to be swallowing it really on her own.

Then I thought I'd try that clever trick on this stubborn motley and that snake will not let me force a pink down her throat no matter what!

I've not found live mice yet. the only place I know who carries them is on the opposite end of town.

I did get a tail down her but nothing more.

I'm at my wits end with this one. How can they be that stubborn? I got some blunter tweezers to try again. I don't want to injure her.

The one who got the tail & the pinky seems to be doing ok today. She ate 2 days ago.

I wonder how long this will go on? What ever possesses them to eat on their own? The motley who is stubborn is still very strong so I'm not worried but I want her to eat and it drives me wacky. How could a less than 10oz snake be stronger & more defiant than me (and I'm not a tiny person, lol!).

I think I'll try her again tomorrow night. I just don't know how much stress all of this is causing. Her I mean. I know how much it's causing me! I had no idea how time consuming this could possibly be.

Any other tips? i've tried pretty well everything. I might try the mouse in tuna next time. I know that's been tried but it can't hurt to try again.
 
schnebbles said:
Wow! I had no idea they could be so stubborn!

As most of you know, I have 4 of them who belong to a friend and I have more time on my hands (which is a good thing with these naughties!).

I was able to force feed a small pink to 2 of them, one ate on it's own after the slap method.

One, I gave her a tail then while the tail was still kind of going down, forced a pinky down and massaged it down as she didn't seem to be swallowing it really on her own.

Then I thought I'd try that clever trick on this stubborn motley and that snake will not let me force a pink down her throat no matter what!

I've not found live mice yet. the only place I know who carries them is on the opposite end of town.

I did get a tail down her but nothing more.

I'm at my wits end with this one. How can they be that stubborn? I got some blunter tweezers to try again. I don't want to injure her.

The one who got the tail & the pinky seems to be doing ok today. She ate 2 days ago.

I wonder how long this will go on? What ever possesses them to eat on their own? The motley who is stubborn is still very strong so I'm not worried but I want her to eat and it drives me wacky. How could a less than 10oz snake be stronger & more defiant than me (and I'm not a tiny person, lol!).

I think I'll try her again tomorrow night. I just don't know how much stress all of this is causing. Her I mean. I know how much it's causing me! I had no idea how time consuming this could possibly be.

Any other tips? i've tried pretty well everything. I might try the mouse in tuna next time. I know that's been tried but it can't hurt to try again.
Click to expand...

Schnebbles my friend corn snakes are one of the most stubborn snakes you can come across loll I know what you are going through and I say give it moor time. And yes you might want to try the tuna fish again keep trying I see you are under alot of stress but don't give up. Sometimes you will get babies that will do this for a while and when you don't think they will ever eat they finely eat for ya. So hang in there it will happen just going to take time. ;)
 
The best success I have had with stubborn hatchlings was with washing pinkies, as well as scenting with anole shed. It only takes a tiny piece of shed skin.
Try washing the pinkies with dawn dish soap. If that alone doesn't work, after washing it, put a tiny piece of anole shed on the tip of the nose of the pinky. It has worked like a charm for me. It got a few of my problem eaters to start eating.
 
I don't have an anole. I wonder if the store would let me borrow one? JK! I have washed, I'll try it again tomorrow. The owner of them tried washing too. It's just amazing how stubborn they can be.

I wonder what makes them decide to eat once you force feed them long enough?
 
I tried for 4 months to get a baby to eat before he started eating on his own- so... be patient. Lots of force feeding tails and cut up pinkie parts. Lots of leaving brained pinks over night. Lots of wasted pinks unless you have a good eater you can give it to the next day. It just takes time.
 
I had to force feed my non feeder for a year, but she eats like a pig now. Out of the six I had she's the only one to survive.

Don't give up!
 
I won't give up! I'm not a giver-upper, lol! I just can't imagine how stubborn one tiny snake can be! I'm gonna try her again tonight. Hopefully the new tweezers will help, that way I won't fear poking her as I did withe pointed ones.
 
That's the spirit Schnebbles just keep trying it will be okay you have people and friends that will help you in anyway we can. ;)
 
Well, tonight I made them all eat a small pinky. It's sure not easy, they just want to spit it out before I can get it down far enough. This is the first time the one has eaten any thing more than a tail and it wasn't easy.

I'm not sure how many times to force feed before I let them in with a brained pinky overnight.

I used tuna juice tonight but they didn't care.

They take me an hour each time I feed all 4, but I am getting better at it.
 
I've been force feeding one hatchling since August. He's a very stubborn cuss and I've tried everything with him. The two times I managed to find and catch a live anole small enough for a snake his size, he ate them right away, the second time grabbing the anole as soon as I dropped it in his feeding container. I still need to try a live pinky scented with a live anole, which isn't easy to do as I need to find a live anole the same day as I have live pinkies of the correct size. The only good thing is that this snake handled being force fed quite well and his growth is equal to that of his eating siblings.
 
One thing I have done is try whatever scented, live, brained, etc. (not all at the same time!) meal overnight, and if the snake doesn't eat, then force feed/tease feed the following afternoon. That way they are hungry enough to be tempted, but they don't miss any meals.
 
These snakes don't act hungry AT ALL! They spit up the pinky if I have to reposition or something, they are very naughty! The keys eat a little better, but they won't even tease feed. Last time one did, but this time none of them would (waited 5 days).

I need an anole! I'll have to try brained, washed pinkys overnight but I know they won't eat. It takes me at least an hour to force feed 4. I really think I am more upset than they are!
 
This is why I am not a proponent of struggling with non-feeders. If they refuse food, there's probably a reason. Not all babies are meant to survive. That's why they have so many. It's natural selection.

I wish you luck.
 
oh that's so sad though. I see what you're saying but I couldn't just let them go. Which is why breeders give them up I suppose. They don't have time to force too many babies.

I got a baby from JoannaD and she ate the first night for me after not eating 3 months for Joanna. She's turning out so pretty I just adore her. I got lucky with how quickly she ate and she eats just like the others now and is gaining weight. I'm so glad to have her.
 
Kathy sometimes a trip will spring them into eating. That is often while I will offer non-feeder to customers, with them knowing all the details of being a non-feeder. Keep up the good fight. Fingers crossed for the little buggers to eat for ya.
 
So maybe you should pack up your non-feeders and carry them around with you as you go about your daily routine? :p
 
Buzzard - a couple of these might be from you. Not positive but they are Hilary's snakes. I'm giving them a few more days than usual to see if they will eat overnight. Maybe they will be hungry by then, although I don't look for any of them to eat on their own yet.

They all shipped from the breeders up here, so they all got their plane ride!
 
Cool. Is one a female normal motley. I sent one to hilly. If it is, have hope. One of her brothers just ate for the 1st time on his own without having to force feed. The other brother still is being forced fed.
 
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