Non Feeder need advice

[pipi5xtra]

Hi
My 5 month old anery female has not ate for a fortnight. She fed straight after a shed and has not ate since. How long can she go without food safely? she is healthy and is about 2 foot. Do not want to tease feed if its not necessary.

[Nanci]

What have you done since her last feed- how many times, how far apart, have you offered, in what conditions? What was your feeding routine before the refusals? She can go a while, so don't freak out, but it's time to try a few simple tricks to get her going.

Only offer food every 4-5 days, don't start offering every day.

Offer food in a feeding container, very small- think barely room enough to turn around. You don't want her to wander off and forget the food. A small paper bag with the top folded over, IN HER VIV, will also work. I would feed at dusk, or later, especially if your snake is out and active. I would cover the container, or use the bag. If the container, I wouldn't peek for at least an hour. If the mouse remains, then go several hours or overnight. I would heat the mouse to very hot, 102-104F, and cut several slits in its back. Some people have good luck with dunking (not cooking) the mouse in boiling water. If you use the paper bag, just put the mouse and snake and bag in the viv and check in the morning. I'd try two or three attempts like that before resorting to scenting methods, although one easy scenting method is washing the mouse in Ivory soap and rinsing well. Then there is chicken broth, tuna water, lizard scenting. Something people have had luck with is removing the water bowl for 24 hours and then offering a nice wet mouse. Then there's live- in my experience, I haven't had trouble getting a snake fed live back to FT.

[pipi5xtra]

Success. She fed last night, i brained her fuzzie and she was straight on it. Is there any reason a snake would prefer a brained mouse to a non brained mouse. Just curious to find out if i should brain the mouse again when she is fed in 5 days. Thanks for replying am still new to this and was beginning to worry.

[Shiari]

My biggest girl will wait longer between eating if she had a large meal, up to two weeks as well. My male, on the other hand, would gladly eat himself sick. In the last month and a half he's doubled in weight because he'd eat 2 or 3 small pinks at a sitting, every 5 days or so.