New corn won't eat

[jesib818]

We got a ghost cornsnake on Saturday 9/24 from a pet store (first mistake) we have triedone to feed him thawed pinkies twice and he has refused both times (the last time was today.) He is in a 20 gallon tank with aspen substrate warm side around 84 cool about 74 with a 60% humidity. He has 3 hides one on each side and a central and also a climb branch. What can I do I don't our little buddy to starve. The pet store associate was kinda shady about when he last ate

[Shiari]

First, some questions:

How are you heating the tank?
What are you using to control the amount of heat being produced by your heat source?
What sort of thermometer are you using to measure the temperature (humidity doesn't really matter that much unless you live in the desert)?
What sort of hides are you using? How big are they in comparison to your snake? Is the rest of the tank bare except for the branch?
Where were you attempting to feed him? In the tank or in a separate container?
Were the pinkies room temp or warmer?
How were you offering the pinky?
How long did you leave your snake with access to the pinky?

[jesib818]

Uth under half the tank. With a thermometer attached. And using a Uv light at day. I have a digital and a mercury style thermometer. Attempted to move him to a feed box last time. He refused. Left the pinkie over night with him. Pinkies were a little warmer than room temp. Even made the pinkie bleed a little to entice him but nothing :( it was the smallest frozen they had. Should I offer just the head?

[Shiari]

Did you mean thermostat? UV light isn't necessary. The mercury style thermometer is useless.

One trick that has worked for a lot of us is to dunk the pinky in boiling hot water for a few seconds so that it is white and rubbery. Place it *immediately* into the feed container with your baby snake and leave it overnight, in the dark and quiet. My baby corns particularly seem to prefer their prey to be *hot*. The adults seem to be okay with just 'warm' to the touch.

[jesib818]

Yes thermostat lol sorry. I'll try the boiling water thanks so much

[hypnoctopus]

Another thing that I would add is to make sure you're feeding him in a small container. If it's too large, he'll be able to 'get away' from the pinkie and may not eat. If he's a baby, I would put him in a deli cup (with air holes) and either put that in a paper bag or under a dark towel or something similar in the evening and do not disturb him or peek in at all overnight. If you have a nice quiet place like a closet you can put him in there to be undisturbed.

[jesib818]

I was afraid moving him would stress him out more and he still wouldn't eat

[hypnoctopus]

Excessive handling can stress him out, but if you calmly and quickly put him in a little container, I don't think that will be too stressful. Just try not to 'chase' him around the tank when you try to pick him up. Just scoop him up and plop him in a container.

[hypnoctopus]

Also I would strongly recommend getting some fake vines from the dollar store and some toilet paper tubes, cut in half lengthwise, and make his enclosure nice and cluttered. It will help him feel more secure and he will be able to find exactly what temperature he wants for digesting.

[jesib818]

Good idea. He is in a very big tank. I'll get him some more things to explore tonight

[jesib818]

Apologizing now for the long post.
Our little ghost corn still hasn't eaten we have tried weekly since we got him. Just purchased a live pinkie and left over night in a small container with the snake and he made sure to get as far away from the food as possible.
Specifics:
20 gallon tank with aspen substrate
Uth with controlled thermostat
4 hides. 2 on the warm side one in the middle one on the cool next to his water 2 tissue paper rolls for extra exploring and a large branch for climbing.
Using a uv light to mimic day night cycle.
Day time Temps on the warm side typically around 84 with the cool side setting around 76.
Spoke with the guy at the store we purchased him from yesterday was assured that has eaten. It seems that all the pinkies I have been able to find are too big for him. I took several pictures of his set up and him but can't figure out how to get them here :( husband is going to force feed tonight after having him for 4 weeks with out eating :( would finding bait fish be an option since that is more what they would eat in the wild? Please help again

[smale492]

As some one who just got their baby to eat for the first time a few weeks ago I may have a few tips for you passed down from others.

1: Give the snake ample time to relax between trying to feed your little snake. The less stress the better.
2. Like others said use a small deli cup, and put in a dark place and poke some holes in the cup. (I Place it in a big box with a lid to keep it dark).

My method ( ideas given from others) that has worked for feeding for me (has just had his 3rd meal in a row a few days ago)

So first I started using the boiling method of pouring the water over the pinky and placing it in the cup with him. I would check back every 30 minutes to see if he ate. This method did not work right away for me so I decided to switch things up. There is this thing called the dawn method (which yes I know it sounds weird but for some reason it works.) What I did was pour a bit of dawn into a cup and pour some water in it. Put the pinky in an let it soak while you have a pot of boiling water going. Once the water has boiled pour it over the pinky and then place it in the cup and leave the snake be. Check maybe every 30 minutes and if its not gone after maybe 3 checks leave it for an hour or more and check again. If still not gone leave over night with not disturbance.

Using dawn some how got my little guy to start eating and now I have been able to get him to eat just using the boiling water method! Good luck and remember FORCE FEEDING IS A LAST RESORT. I too was thinking about trying to but try all you can before you think about force feeding.

[Corning]

Try a live pinky. Call around and find new borns with in a week old. Put it on a paper towel in the cage close to were he hides. I had to feed my baby 4 live pinkies now he is used to the routine I gave him thawed the last 3 times I was doing once a week for 5 weeks just started every five days. I hold him only a few minutes on the 4th day after he eats. More important for him to eat than be held right now.

[jesib818]

We tried a live pinkie last night. Put him in a small container and put that inside his regular tank nothing in there but him and the pinkie he didn't eat it. Maybe he needs to be put in a small encloser and not bothered at all for several days and try again?

[smale492]

We tried a live pinkie last night. Put him in a small container and put that inside his regular tank nothing in there but him and the pinkie he didn't eat it. Maybe he needs to be put in a small encloser and not bothered at all for several days and try again?

After a failed feeding attempt I did not bother my little guy for up to a week. Gives him a lot of time to relax and hide. I would for sure suggest the dawn method (get the normal blue kind) that I suggested above. My snake was veryyyy young ( and still is) so I know how hard it is to get a non eater to eat. DO NOT GIVE UP =D

[hypnoctopus]

Please do not resort to force feeding just yet. I know it seems like a long time since he's eaten, but he isn't starving yet. Force feeding may just make him more stressed out and even less likely to eat. And if you do it wrong you can hurt him.

Have you read through the sticky in Nanci's sub forum for feeding tricks?

[jesib818]

Could you post a link to her forum?

[kdickens]

Hi! Hang in there with your little one! Mine was hard to start also. I used the paper lunch sack trick ... put the snake in the bag with the thawed pinky and tape it shut. Put it in the viv and don't peek for 2 hours. When I checked on him ... it worked! If you go to the main page here and scroll down you'll see some members have their own 'space'! Nanci's SnickerSnakes is: http://www.cornsnakes.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=112
But you can find it easy enough!

[smale492]

Keep us posted on your status with your little guy