starting to get scared!help i'm new >.<

[snakenewb]

Hello-
I'm sorry if many simular questions have been asked but heres my situation
I have a albino corn snake thats about 4 to 5 months old I belive. when I first got the snake it had no problem eating for the first few weeks. I fed it thawed pinky mice which it devouerd in no time. For the past month however, the snake has refused eat. It shed its skin about two weeks ago but is still refusing to eat. He is still pretty livley but im starting to get freaked out beause I was told to feed the snake once a week. The way I have been feeding the snake is by putting him in a little seperate tank so he doesnt eat any of the bedding of his cage by mistake if some of it got stuck to the pinky. Also, I haven't found any poo in his cage- is it possible that he is having some complications with that which is leading to him not wanting to eat? I heard somewhere that to help their digestion to soak them in warm water for ten minutes.
any help would be very much appreciated thank you all for your time
-Anton

[Pretty1234me]

Heya...I just WENT THROUGH THE SAME THING!!! The feedback I got (and worked) was to place your snake in a small container (with air holes) along with the pinky and then place that container in the viv overnight and allow your snake some privacy. The small container will help your snake focus on its meal. He/she's probably hungry but may want some privacy. When I fed Bella last night, I placed her in a container along with her pinky. Then I placed that container in a shoebox (to provide darkness and privacy) and left her alone for a little over 20 minutes. I came back and she had eaten. I hope that this will help and that your snake eats soon. A month is quite a bit of time.

I'm not too familiar with bathing corns ..but some of them get stressed and some like it. I would suggest trying to feed your snake once more before attempting a bath. Maybe someone else could address that question as I have little experience with that.

Best of luck to you!

[Pretty1234me]

oh yeah.... i posted two threads in this forum regarding my snake not eating (she's unhappy again) and then what i found that worked for me (a big thank you)....take a look at those posts and the feedback that I got..there's alot of info mentioned in there that can help you.

[Rich in KY]

I cannot add anymore. Great advice.

[Checkerbelly]

I wouldn't soak the snake in warm water.

What's warm to you could be hot to the snake. See my signature. Measure the temp of "warm" water and you might find that its in the 90s. Put a little snake in that and it's body temperature will change in seconds. I don't see how that is a good thing.

First and foremost I'd make sure the snake has the right environment. A hide on the cool end of the cage and a hide on the warm end of the cage. Water dish, aspen, newspaper, or paper towel (not pine) bedding. A warm spot where the snake can get up to 85 degrees F....

Transferring it to the feeding container might be scaring it too much. Does the feeding container smell like other snakes? Maybe try feeding it in it's own cage just once to see what happens. That's what I did with my cali king. She's about the same age and stopped eating for even longer. I fed her in the cage and she ate. Unfortunately now she's very snappy in the cage because she thinks everything is food.

Good luck!

[snakenewb]

thanks for the replys- i tried putting the snake in the small container in its own cage over night before but still no luck- i feel like my cage is set up well it stays at about 80 and the snake has water and a hide- does anyone know of any vets in the santamonica los angeles area that would be good for snakes?
thanks for everyones help
-A

[Nanci]

If it's a baby, you may not find any poo. You do have the snake heated, right? And when you thaw the mice, are you getting them nice and hot, like 101-103F? You could also try, with a nice hot mouse, poking a hole in its head with a toothpick, and stirring (braining) or cutting a couple tiny slits in the mouse's back. You could try dropping the pink in boiling water and then removing it immediately and offering it that hot. A trip to the vet certainly wouldn't hurt, but may only tell you you have an apparently healthy snake, which is not a bad thing to know. Then you're not wasting time trying to feed a sick snake.

Nanci

[Pretty1234me]

aww :(. Have you tried braining the pinky? Or dipping it in tuna water? or chicken broth? The first time I fed my snake I had to cut the pinky in 3 pieces. My snake wouldn't eat it otherwise. You could possibly try that (again in a small container placing it somewhere he/she could have some privacy). Like Nanci said, a vet couldn't hurt. also, give your snake some time between feeding attempts. I've heard (not experienced) that they can become so frusterated by feeding attempts that they wont eat. Give him/her 2 or 3 days between attempts. Good luck.

[beaniebopps]

You COULD try a bath, and yes 'your hand is not a thermometer' is very true. But a thermometer is a thermometer, if you have one. In which case you could bathe at around 80F for a few minutes, with the water deep enough to cover most of the body but make it easy for the snake to keep its head above water.

Only try this once you have searched for poo and are pretty sure your snake hasn't been, in which case it could be a bit constipated and a bath could get things moving again.

Hope this helps :)

[snakenewb]

Finally after five weeks we had sucsess with feeding him! we brained the mouse and made some cuts down his back then left him in the cage with the snake on a dish- a few hours wheni came back the snake had eaten! what a relief

[MerlinsPop]

congratulations! It is a big relief, I know.

[wax32]

Woo hoo! :dancer: