5-month fast, no sign of ending

Hi all,

My 13 year old male corn has always gone on a springtime fast, usually going off feed in March and resuming feeding in June. Like clockwork. He's in GA with me, near his native habitat, so humidity and temps should be fine. Ambient temps range from upper 70s to upper 80s across the cage, throughout the day and night. He has never had live prey - I got him at 6 months, and he's been eating frozen thawed ever since. Small rats mostly.

The current fast is lasting longer and he's noticeably skinnier. He drinks a lot of water, which is good. Activity level had been high till June but has tapered lately, which I thought meant he was going out of mating mode and into feeding mode, but not the case.

I am looking for opinions and ideas. Live prey? Scent the F/T with chicken broth or tuna? Or just keep offering weekly? I'm just worried about the duration of the fast and the visible weight loss.

Vet force-feeding is also an option, though not my favorite.

Thanks,
Brian

Nanci has a great thread in her personal forum about feeding tricks for picky eaters. He may just be on a longer hunger strike this year. I had success with one of mine that went on a hunger strike by just offering smaller meals, brained, and in a dark room overnight.

Are corn snakes legal to own in Georgia?

Thanks. No, they aren't legal here, but I don't care. I need to respect a law before I obey it.

I have always used a separate feeding tank but now I'm thinking of offering a smaller prey item in his normal cage. The braining sounds disgusting so I am leaning toward scenting...

I've had success with food strikes trying to feed a small prey item right after they shed. In my experience it's worked pretty well. Try the other ideas first but if his next shed comes around and he still isn't eating, try offering a hopper right after he sheds, the same day if possible. Put him in a feeding container in a dark room. I've even used a hair dryer to warm up a mouse for them and that has worked well.

brianz said:

Thanks. No, they aren't legal here, but I don't care. I need to respect a law before I obey it.

I have always used a separate feeding tank but now I'm thinking of offering a smaller prey item in his normal cage. The braining sounds disgusting so I am leaning toward scenting...

Click to expand...

The braining isn't as bad as you think! I actually just use a toothpick. My one snake that went on a fast did not want to be disturbed, so I sometimes had success with leaving a hot thawed mouse in his tank overnight. I just made sure to put it on something so the aspen wouldn't get stuck all over it.

So just a toothpick in the head? That's do-able. I am thawing a small sub-adult mice (that I normally give to other smaller snakes) and will baste with chicken broth and poke a hole in his brain... will update in an hour or so...

Good luck!

Good news - he ate a small one dunked in broth. I poked a hole in its head with a toothpick. Took it quickly. Declined a second, but at least this is a start. Thanks for the suggestions.

YAY!

It's always a huge relief when they eat SOMETHING.