We have a corn snake that was born from my daughters two adult corns. At about age 1 1/2 yrs. it got out of it's tank. The date was Jan. 1 and after weeks of searching and setting traps we assumed one of our cats had gotten hold of it. Well on July 11 it shows up curled up on a doormat in our laundry room looking larger and no worse for the months it had been missing. It's settled back in it's tank and after spending the initial days trying to get out seems calmer and less strike happy. It's drinking water but refuses to eat. It's now been 11 days back in captivity and still not eating. I have tried thawed pinkies and fuzzies and even purchased a small live mouse (he was only annoyed and slightly afriaid of it). I moved the tank to a warmer area (air conditioning is on) and have a heating pad and a lamp on part of the day. I don't know what to try next? You think he would be hungry after all these months???
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Corn snake lost for six months now it won't eat
- Thread starter sandypm
- Start date
Nanci
Alien Lover
I'd let him settle in for 5-7 days now with no handling, and then try a slightly smaller mouse than what he should be eating. I'd make the mouse VERY hot, with the hottest water you can, or even that it hot and then dunk the head in boiled water. Dry it off before feeding. Feed at night, in a quiet place, and I myself would use a small feeding bin. Covered up.
He really needs to have a warm spot of 85F 24 hours a day.
He really needs to have a warm spot of 85F 24 hours a day.
If he's grown than its pretty obvious he was finding some sort of nourishment. Like Nanci said give it a little bit of time, snakes can go a long time without meals if need be. Having hunted whatever he was eating for the past 6 months he may take some time to get use to a hand feeding regime again. If he continues to refuse start going down the list of non feeder techniques, Nanci has started a great compilation thread of known techniques that people use and have results with. Here is a link: http://www.cornsnakes.com/forums/showthread.php?t=131574
Thanks for the help. He shed overnight so maybe that will signal a change to eating from non-eating. We do have a heating pad 24/7 and also a heat lamp in the day. Will keep updates posted. What amazes me is where he was for six months?? We figure he may have been in the heat ducts and then when we finally put the air conditioning on it got a tad uncomfortable in those ducts! What did he eat or drink? We do have cats so access to water is available.
He may have had a way to find access outside and was hunting outside and then coming back inside or you may have had insects or mice or something in the heat ducts or in the infrastructure that don't bother coming into the actual home. Anything alive that crossed his path during those 6 months was a probable meal I'm assuming. Yeah now that he shed it may signifiy a better attitude towards taking food.
Well two weeks back in captivity and still has not eaten. I have checked temps-85 on one side of tank (its a very large tank) and 75 on the other. He seems to stay in the middle under the water dish. He seems calmer and has shed a perfect shed. I have tried leaving a fuzzie overnight, brained and boiled a pink,tuna scented a pink, attempted the tease feeding today with no luck and also the live mouse debacle (he was afraid of it). How often should I keep attempting? I try to wait a day or two each time. I see him drinking water and he is active during the evening.
AliCat37
Michelle's Candied Corns!
Wait at least five full days between offering food. Doing it more often than that is very stressful!!
How are you measuring temps?
diamondlil
Mice! They taste so nice!
What size live did you try? A nice squirmy pink might do the trick. If you have anoles locally, he may well have been preying on them, so scenting with a lizard tail may be an idea to try
Still trying...
An update on our corn who was lost and still will not eat. He returned to us July 11 but has refused food since. He's 2 years old and I tried every feeding tip I can find online (tuna dipped, broth, brained, slitted, overnight in a box, live mouse,a live anole, dangling, tease feeding, boiling....) . I also took him to a reptile vet who said he looked very healthy, lean but not emaciated and they tried assist feeding him there 2x in the last week and they only can get him to take a couple pinkie limbs. The vet thought she might have felt something, an obstruction or just something he ate before we found him that was undigested. She suggested I comb through the bedding to see if he is excreting and I did find a tiny bit of whitish excrement with black fur in it so possibly he did find something in the house or garage in the six months he was missing. She also suggested warm baths and a UVB light which I have done. I also bought him a new larger heating pad. But no luck yet. I am supposed to take him for another attempt at assist feeding in three days if he doesn't eat on his own. He still is active and seems to flick his tongue at the food but then ignores it. I am getting super frustrated. He does drink water. Any thoughts ?
An update on our corn who was lost and still will not eat. He returned to us July 11 but has refused food since. He's 2 years old and I tried every feeding tip I can find online (tuna dipped, broth, brained, slitted, overnight in a box, live mouse,a live anole, dangling, tease feeding, boiling....) . I also took him to a reptile vet who said he looked very healthy, lean but not emaciated and they tried assist feeding him there 2x in the last week and they only can get him to take a couple pinkie limbs. The vet thought she might have felt something, an obstruction or just something he ate before we found him that was undigested. She suggested I comb through the bedding to see if he is excreting and I did find a tiny bit of whitish excrement with black fur in it so possibly he did find something in the house or garage in the six months he was missing. She also suggested warm baths and a UVB light which I have done. I also bought him a new larger heating pad. But no luck yet. I am supposed to take him for another attempt at assist feeding in three days if he doesn't eat on his own. He still is active and seems to flick his tongue at the food but then ignores it. I am getting super frustrated. He does drink water. Any thoughts ?
Nanci
Alien Lover
Try a FT rat pink. I really wouldn't waste time on tricks, other than smaller, hotter mice, or smaller, live mice. He's two- he knows how and what to eat.
I'm surprised the vet couldn't force feed him. But I don't think I'd be doing that after only a month. I consider it, with an adult, after the snake has lost 20-25% of its weight.
I'm surprised the vet couldn't force feed him. But I don't think I'd be doing that after only a month. I consider it, with an adult, after the snake has lost 20-25% of its weight.
Update V2
The vet's assistant finally got him to take a pinkie and eat it. He shed and had a normal looking movement within a few days so there was probably no obstruction thankfully. But I cannot get him to eat on his own. The vet said to try a week from the assistant feeding him but he would not take the pink even left in the viv overnight. I fed him in the evening and just left it. I waved it around at first and his little tongue was going but nothing. So it's been 12 days since he ate that tiny pink so back to the vet today. Call me frustrated!
The vet's assistant finally got him to take a pinkie and eat it. He shed and had a normal looking movement within a few days so there was probably no obstruction thankfully. But I cannot get him to eat on his own. The vet said to try a week from the assistant feeding him but he would not take the pink even left in the viv overnight. I fed him in the evening and just left it. I waved it around at first and his little tongue was going but nothing. So it's been 12 days since he ate that tiny pink so back to the vet today. Call me frustrated!
diamondlil
Mice! They taste so nice!
Can you get a live peach fuzzy to try rather than more upheaval taking him to the vets?
Can't find any
I don't know of anywhere in the area that has live fuzzies. I have tried a very small live mouse and he was interested but then seemed annoyed by it (this was prior to being fed at the vet, he had been a month back in captivity at that point). Off to the vet shortly.
I don't know of anywhere in the area that has live fuzzies. I have tried a very small live mouse and he was interested but then seemed annoyed by it (this was prior to being fed at the vet, he had been a month back in captivity at that point). Off to the vet shortly.
diamondlil
Mice! They taste so nice!
I know from personal experience how scary a hunger strike is, but has he actually lost weight? Personally I'd leave him to settle and try feeding a really hot fuzzy once a week if you can't get live. Drying the thawed mouse and then heating with a hairdryer can do the trick (as in hot enough so you are actually cursing due to singed fingers and the hot mouse is trying to become airborne. Not that I'm obsessive or anything....just that it's a trick that's worked for me before)
Taking him to the vets for force-feeding seems to me that it'll unsettle him every time. If you can't find live pinks or fuzzies could you get a pair of mice and breed them?
Taking him to the vets for force-feeding seems to me that it'll unsettle him every time. If you can't find live pinks or fuzzies could you get a pair of mice and breed them?
I think it's time for a sliding locking lid when you find him again.