how do i get our new snake to eat

[ormis]

We just bought a new baby corn snake at a pet shop. We dont have a lot of experience but we are trying. In the shop they told us that we had to force feed him because he is so small but now i understand that it´s bull****. Even small snakes can eat for themselves, can´t they? They showed us how to open the snakes mouth and how to stuff in the pinkie. Tjis doesn´t feel good at all so now we have tried som other ways. Please give us some advice how we can get the snake to eat whithout forcing it.

[Neumann]

As you already know, force feeding is a last resort to save an animals life and is very stressful on the animal. I think the best thing to do is leave it alone for an entire week and then offer the smallest pinkie you can get your hands on. Maybe even just a pinkie head depending on the size of your snake. If you feed a whole pinkie you can split it's head exposing some brain. This will increase the smell and your snakes feeding response. You can further increase the likelihood that your snake will eat voluntarily if you place the snake and the pinkie in a very small container such as a paper lunch sack or a deli cup. You then place the container on the warm end of the snake's viv and leave it overnight. There's an extremerly good chance the pinkie will be gone by morning. Good luck.

[Jicin]

Your absolutely correct. What a bunch of assholes.

But sounds to me you might have a problem eater on your hands. I assume the pet shop keeper used that method with all his snakes. Otherwise why advice you? Or he/she was a problem eater from the start and he just thought to sell it with the label 'that's normal'.

I'd say simply give him a week to adjust. Don't even handle him for at least 3 days. After that week, try feeding him his first pinky and see if he takes it. There many topics on this forum on how long he should be given to eat on his own and methods to 'encourage' him to eat without force feeding. That really should be used as a last resort.

Do you have a corn snake manual? Many people here recomment cathy loves corn snake book. I intent to snatch a copy myself. At least be sure to forget everything that pet seller told you. He doesn't know anything. Can't you repost this guy or at least show him the 'error of his ways'. Things like this make me so angry.

I hope your new snake will be doing oke now. Post us updates oke :)

[Jicin]

My snakes won't eat f/t when i just lay it in the feeding basket with them. I need to encourage them with a little poking and annoying and then dangle the pinkie right in front of their face. The first time only my finger got bitten a few times and the pinkie was finally refused but today i got it correct. Takes a little practice but now they snatch it right from my hand.

No way i'm going to do that when there bigger though :D

[shezomru]

I recently got a baby corn, she's only 11 inches long, and I tried to feed her a head on the fourth day and it didnt work, so around a week after I got her I fed her the head and shoulders of a pinky mouse. She ate it right in front of us! My experience with Kali (my snake) is that if she doesn't immediately show interest in the food item she wont eat it. I suggest feeding it a head or something around the size of the snake's head for the first time, and moving up to a bigger size later.

Did your snake come in a deli cup? What I do is put the food item (slightly warmer than room temp.) in the container that you recieved the snake in and putting the snake in the warm side of the viv. It seems to be the least stressful for the snake.

Jicin might be right too (i just want to say that pet store people know nothing about corn snakes, DONT LISTEN TO THEM! A person at my pet store told me to feed my baby worms!). You could have a problem feeder on your hands. If it doesnt take a mouse for the first few times (and you've brained it and given it a head), you could get Lizard Maker, or rub an anole on a frozen thawed pinky, hatchlings seem to like anoles more than mice.

Also, try doing a search at google.com for "corn snake care sheet" or "problem feeders" and see what comes up. And buy the Corn Snake Manual if you can, I have it and it's great.

This is just my experience, I am by no means an expert. Hope you can get your baby to eat! :)

[MegF.]

Ormis: I don't think you have a difficult feeder, but I would definitely give the poor thing a week at least to settle in before attempting to feed as Neumann and Shezomru suggested. It's probably so stressed out that it won't want anything. Don't fret too much. They can go quite a while without food, even when they're young, and yours hasn't had the best start in life it sounds like. Man! When will petshop places learn proper husbandry??? I'm lucky in that my local petshop is pretty knowledgable.

[Cindy]

Ormis,
I am in exactly the same situation as you regarding a baby corn, little Zeb is so tiny s/he could coil up on a cent coin. It's is drinking fine - I have only had her 3 days so just leaving it alone but boy.... I am scared that I should have taken an older one. I haven't tried feeding yet but even a day old pinky head seems huge... We will just have to be patient and try our best. But I think I know what your going through and I little reassurance goes a long way.
:shrugs:

[Krenna]

Boy that is pretty scary in my opinion, to purchase a snake and be told you have to force feed it. If their reasoning is because its too small to eat, wow I would have never purchased the snake from the word go, because in a way they are telling you its not eating, and you just bought yourself a problem.

I would take the advice of what folks have posted about problem feeders, and there is allot of post on this board that have great ideas with people in your situation who have helped allot of new owners with their new corn.

Right now just make sure you have the proper set up for viv, and leave the little guy alone for a few days to get settled in, keep us posted on his progress.

Good luck to ya

[Cindy]

I chickened out and took the tiny snake back to the shop and swapped him for a much bigger one. at least 4 times the length but from the same clutch. The pet shop owner said he couldn't have been more relieved to see it returned as it was sold to me in error by an over enthusiastic member of staff and had yet to eat. I hope the little guy makes it, but my new baby has already eaten a pinkey out of my hand and seems much more robust. I will not handle him now for a few day then post some photo's. Hope all goes OK for you Ormis. :crazy02:

[ormis]

Hello everyone...thank you for all the advice i feel much more secure now. Yesterday we gave our snake a pinkie and left him alone in a very calm and dark spot with some paper as someone suggested. We went back an hour later and the pinkie was gone!! I WAS SO RELIEVED... This pinkie was also smaller than the ones we`ve tryed before...I read sore that the pinkie shouldn´t be any bigger then the thickest part of the snake....is that correkt? Any way i am very thankfull to all of you for taking your time to help me. I called the petshop today and told them a few things in probably not the politest way. I told them how you all responded to force feeding...I thought you would all fell good hearing that