baby corn not eating!! advice needed!!!!

PLEASE HELP ME!!! I know nothing about snakes, and i went to a reptile show this past sunday and got her. She is an avel snake and i'm worried about her. I've tried frozen pinkies and a guy gave me advice to put the frozen pinkie into warm water and let it soak for about 15 minutes, well tried that too and NOTHING! I feel like a bad owner because she looks miserable and is starving . Please reply!!

A few questions.
What do you have her housed in?
What are the temps in her house?
Do you know if she was eating before you got her?

If you give a little background it's easier to help you

ok are you feeding it in it cage? if so you might want to put her/him into a smaller place and leave the pinky there over night. Make sure the pinky is thawed and not ice cold! If you just got her Sunday she might not be used ot her new home yet. Hatchlings can go a while without food so don't worry yet. If the small place doesn't work try a brown paper bag and a pinky. If that doesn't work you can try "braining" the pinky. That is cutting a small hole in the pinky's head to get some juices flowing out that should trigger a feeding responce. You may also need to scent the pinky with an anole. Rub the thawed pinky on the anole to make it "smell" like a lizzard. Some snakes are prone to eating lizzards instead of mice. Just a few sugestions to help you out, i am sure you will have that little one eating soon enough....

Hi there. A few more questions which might help us to help you....

- Was she eating before you bought her ?

- If yes, do you know the last time she ate ?

- Do you know how many weeks old she is ?

Don't panic immediately- some hatchlings can go for weeks without feeding. I have one which hatched on 28th July and still hasn't eaten (grrrr...) but is still lively, despite me pestering it with pinkies every third day !

Cheers
Kel

As the others have said the environment you have your snake in is important. Make sure there is adequate heating and a nice atmosphere in the cage. We started out with 2 corn babies and fed them live pinkies. There was a shortage of pinkies for a while where we lived and when they got them in again our snakes were reluctant to eat. The guy at the pet store force fed them and it ended up killing one of them so DO NOT FORCE FEED! I know the babies can be a bit tempermental and sometimes hard to rear in the beginning. Buy a good book, go to this forum often and read up on snakes. You will soon learn a lot and be able to solve problems if they arise. PS Our other snake is now 8 years old and very healthy!

I think it would be a good idea if you buy a corn snake manual. It can help you learn more about your snake and how to care for it properly.
Also, when you say you put the frozen mouse in warm water did you have it in a plastic bag? Snakes dont like wet mice much. I really recommend you find out a bit more about corns because although they are easy to care for, its only easy if you know how....

Originally posted by Rachel
I think it would be a good idea if you buy a corn snake manual. It can help you learn more about your snake and how to care for it properly.

Totally agree...

Originally posted by Rachel
Also, when you say you put the frozen mouse in warm water did you have it in a plastic bag? Snakes dont like wet mice much. I really recommend you find out a bit more about corns because although they are easy to care for, its only easy if you know how....

LOL, SOME snakes don't like wet mice. Ironically, Some Do! I have gotten quite a few reluctant eaters going by using really wet mice and gently holding the mouse in front of the snakes flicking tongue. The snake then drinks in the water off the mouse, opens it's mouth and eats the snake. I happened upon this out of frustration once and have used it with success on a number of occasions...

i just got my first corn in september and it would not even notice the pinkys now he will go for the pinkey right away Bmm told me to make a cut on the pinks forhead it makes them go nut the scent of blood give it a tryand also put it in a small box no plastic or put it in a paper bag and close tighly it should work well good luck

Mare, No way! I never knew you could coax some problem feeders to eat by feeding wet mice! Mine totally hate their mice wet and I've even had to blow dry a mouse to get my female to feed!! Maybe mine are extremely picky (and pampered) snakes!!

All of my snakes (65 plus corns and 9 boas) eat their mice (or rats) wet.