Failure to thrive?

[Amanda E]

Anyone ever have a hatchling that seemed like it was just not growing and maybe even loosing weight, despite feeding it the same or even more than your other hatchlings?

I have one hatchling bloodred, that just so happens to be the "pick of the litter" that just doesn't seem to be growing. It still looks like it did when it came out of the egg while it's siblings are twice the size.

I hate to do it, but I'm thinking of euthanizing it, since it doesn't seem to be doing well. It's getting along "okay" but does seem to be a bit weaker than it used to... not totally sure.

Is it possible it would still make it, or would it probably be best to kill it and end any suffering it may be having?

Anyone have any advice?

 

[Serpwidgets]

Anyone ever have a hatchling that seemed like it was just not growing and maybe even loosing weight, despite feeding it the same or even more than your other hatchlings?

I have one hatchling bloodred, that just so happens to be the "pick of the litter" that just doesn't seem to be growing. It still looks like it did when it came out of the egg while it's siblings are twice the size.

I hate to do it, but I'm thinking of euthanizing it, since it doesn't seem to be doing well. It's getting along "okay" but does seem to be a bit weaker than it used to... not totally sure.

Is it possible it would still make it, or would it probably be best to kill it and end any suffering it may be having?

Anyone have any advice?

Welcome back. :wavey:

Yeah, I've seen hatchlings like this. We had one that was almost 3 years old, and was still under 40 grams.

I think putting a "pick of the litter" label on it doesn't help either, they always seem to react badly to that.

For me, if it's starting off that way, it's not something I would want to use to continue my bloodlines, even if it does survive and eventually grow up enough to breed.

 

[RyanR]

im sure a nice healthy king snake would love him as a new friend. :sidestep:

 

[Joejr14]

Anyone ever have a hatchling that seemed like it was just not growing and maybe even loosing weight, despite feeding it the same or even more than your other hatchlings?

I have one hatchling bloodred, that just so happens to be the "pick of the litter" that just doesn't seem to be growing. It still looks like it did when it came out of the egg while it's siblings are twice the size.

I hate to do it, but I'm thinking of euthanizing it, since it doesn't seem to be doing well. It's getting along "okay" but does seem to be a bit weaker than it used to... not totally sure.

Is it possible it would still make it, or would it probably be best to kill it and end any suffering it may be having?

Anyone have any advice?

I had a similar problem with a lavender male I had. He went into the freezer. A big part of breeding is being responsible and trying to keep certain traits out of the gene pool. If you keep that snake alive, you're going to cause yourself such frustration when it just doesn't do well. Some snakes just don't make it for one reason or another.

Do you have a scale? I'd keep it around for another month and keep track of weights. If it's losing weight, I'd can it.

Though, that brings another question. How often are you feeding it?

 

[PureNightAir]

Why not sell it to a pet store? Why kill it?

 

[cornsnakekid92]

WELCOM BACK, i barly remember you! :cheers:

YOu would not what to sell it to a pet shop because if is is sold then it might be breed in the future, with would keep bad genes in the gene pool. if for a while it still dosent grow, to the freezer it must go.

 

[Serpwidgets]

Why not sell it to a pet store? Why kill it?

Wow, that's messed up.

So...

You go to the pet shop and get yourself a corn.

Two months later it dies after not thriving the whole time.

Then you found out that the breeder knew it was not doing well so they just sold it to a pet store.

You'd think that was all fine and good, and the breeder had made the right decision? :shrugs:

 

[PureNightAir]

Wow, that's messed up.

So...

You go to the pet shop and get yourself a corn.

Two months later it dies after not thriving the whole time.

Then you found out that the breeder knew it was not doing well so they just sold it to a pet store.

You'd think that was all fine and good, and the breeder had made the right decision? :shrugs:

i am not stupid, i can see the reasoning behind, but your not trying to see what i am saying. There are people that would take the snake on, just as there are people who take on runts of dog litters(which can out live the rest of them). Not necessarily a shop, but someone who just wanted a pet like, most that get snakes do. On Saturday i am going to a shop to get a corn snake, and i will be getting the entire history of it, just like i did when i got my dog. And if i have to make a choice between one thats eating fine and not growing and one that wont eat, i know what one i will be choosing.

i understand your trying to keep the genes clear, but there are other ways of doing it. So don't call me messed up when you don't understand the point I'm trying to make.

 

[ecreipeoj]

Anyone ever have a hatchling that seemed like it was just not growing and maybe even loosing weight, despite feeding it the same or even more than your other hatchlings?

As everybody has already said, some Corns have something wrong with them when they are born. Just think about all of the human diseases that we treat, but if left untreated, we would not thrive either. We are not going to test your Corn Snake to see if it has diabetes or something like that.

I have seen something else similar and have had success treating them. It is possible for a hatchling to pick up something such as a bacteria infection or flageolet over load. I have messed with hatchings for months and then for some reason it dawned on me to treat them with Flagel. The next thing I knew they were flying out of the cage to eat and caught up to their siblings in a short time. Another possibility is the lack of good bacteria in their stomach. One of the first things I do with a hatching that is having the same trouble as yours, is to give it some Benbac or something similar to put some good bacteria in their stomachs. This has worked for me on many occasions, so I would try a few things before I put it down, but in the end, if it continues down the same path, putting it down would be the best thing to do.

It is a similar situation to a hatching Corn that just wont eat. You wonder what the hell is wrong with them. You have offered them everything possible on a silver platter and they still insist on starving themselves to death. I use to pinky pump them, but now a days, if they don’t take something fairly soon, I don’t have time to mess with them and they get put down. I would much rather be raising a Lavender Corn that eats, than pinky pumping a Hypo Striped Lav.

 

[Serpwidgets]

i am not stupid, i can see the reasoning behind, but your not trying to see what i am saying.

The reasoning behind it would only be valid if pet shops kept individual records. Many of them don't even keep hatchlings individually housed, let alone keep any kind of records.

On Saturday i am going to a shop to get a corn snake, and i will be getting the entire history of it, just like i did when i got my dog.

From which pet shop? It must be an unusual one to keep individual records.

i understand your trying to keep the genes clear, but there are other ways of doing it.

Not without neutering the snake, which isn't done.

So don't call me messed up when you don't understand the point I'm trying to make.

I understand the point you were trying to make, now that you've actually explained it instead of expecting your readers to be psychic. I still disagree with it.

As far as your overly defensive reaction, if you can't distinguish between people disagreeing with your ideas and people calling you stupid, then you're not going to have much fun conversing with adults. :wavey:

 

[larryg]

What are you feeding and how much? I see no reason to kill an animal simply because it isn't growing as fast as its siblings. You can always give it to someone who will agree not to breed it and keep it as a pet. But for now I think as the breeder you are responsible to at least try to keep it alive, and you said it is eating. There is no guarantee that the "problem" is even genetic. It could also be a reason not to breed either of the parents or any of the progeny they have produced, if you want to take a really 'hard line' approach to breeding - if the problem is genetic (as you have assumed.)

 

[PureNightAir]

Quote:
On Saturday i am going to a shop to get a corn snake, and i will be getting the entire history of it, just like i did when i got my dog.

From which pet shop? It must be an unusual one to keep individual records.

May be unusual, but they do. They also take on problem corns.

Quote:
i understand your trying to keep the genes clear, but there are other ways of doing it.

Not without neutering the snake, which isn't done.

i know you, as i said you can find people who just want a pet. So read what i said before rather than just what you can argue against.

Quote:
So don't call me messed up when you don't understand the point I'm trying to make.

I understand the point you were trying to make, now that you've actually explained it instead of expecting your readers to be psychic. I still disagree with it.

As far as your overly defensive reaction, if you can't distinguish between people disagreeing with your ideas and people calling you stupid, then you're not going to have much fun conversing with adults.

Sorry, just assumed most would have come up against views like this before and would understand what i was getting at. Also my keyboard is broken which makes typing difficult, so again i hoped that someone would pick up on my point to save me some time.

Now if you don't want someone to take offense don't call them messed up.
You may not have meant to imply that I'm stupid, but thats generally what it sounded like. People who disagree with me generally say that and explain, not say I'm messed up. Also i wouldn't expect an ADULT to say that.

 

[Serpwidgets]

Now if you don't want someone to take offense don't call them messed up.

Take offense if you want to, but I don't kowtow to that tactic. :sobstory:

I said, "that is messed up." I did not say, "you are messed up." If you cannot see the difference between those two things, or feel the need to be married to your opinions, it's not my problem.

You may not have meant to imply that I'm stupid, but thats generally what it sounded like. People who disagree with me generally say that and explain, not say I'm messed up. Also i wouldn't expect an ADULT to say that.

I did disagree, and I did explain. Again, take offense if you want to, but I don't kowtow to that tactic. :sobstory:

Your initial post did not say, "give it to someone who will take care of it and make sure it goes to a home where someone knows it might have problems, and where it is not bred." Instead you said, "sell it to a pet store."

Pet shops rarely fit the above qualification. It is much more likely that they would just sell it to some unknowing buyer who gets screwed with a crummy snake that won't thrive. That is messed up.

 

[Thunder38]

Interesting thread... I think a lot of whether or not a person would decide to put a snake down would depend on what they are doing with the snake.

For example, I am new to snakes and have one cornsnake which I just bought 2 1/2 weeks ago. If he starts to have problems I am going to try hard to keep him alive, as he is a pet to me. Unless I could tell that he was in serious pain I wouldn't even think about putting him down, even if he never grew. But I have no plans to become a snake breeder or to sell him.

However, I can see from the experienced owner/breeder perspective things would be different. Why waste money and space feeding and housing a snake that wouldn't be involved in future breeding projects? Obviously, breeders can't spend their limited resources on housing all sorts of sickly/weak corns. Although it's sad, I can understand the breeders need to put them down, rather than sell them and risk ruining his/her reputation or spend continual money keeping a snake alive that isn't thriving.

Just my 2 cents.

Thunder38

 

[Kat]

Pet shops rarely fit the above qualification. It is much more likely that they would just sell it to some unknowing buyer who gets screwed with a crummy snake that won't thrive.

Agreed. Very few pet stores actually care enough to make sure the buyer is well-informed about generic cornsnake care, let alone care enough to warn the buyer that a corn might not be the fittest specimin.

There is a large difference between selling a problem snake to an informed and responsible pet owner and dumping the problem snake at a pet shop for someone else to discover.

-Kat

 

[larryg]

Interesting thread... I think a lot of whether or not a person would decide to put a snake down would depend on what they are doing with the snake.

For example, I am new to snakes and have one cornsnake which I just bought 2 1/2 weeks ago. If he starts to have problems I am going to try hard to keep him alive, as he is a pet to me. Unless I could tell that he was in serious pain I wouldn't even think about putting him down, even if he never grew. But I have no plans to become a snake breeder or to sell him.

However, I can see from the experienced owner/breeder perspective things would be different. Why waste money and space feeding and housing a snake that wouldn't be involved in future breeding projects? Obviously, breeders can't spend their limited resources on housing all sorts of sickly/weak corns. Although it's sad, I can understand the breeders need to put them down, rather than sell them and risk ruining his/her reputation or spend continual money keeping a snake alive that isn't thriving.

Just my 2 cents.

Thunder38

Some people would think more highly of a breeder's reputation if the breeder wanted to learn about his bloodlines (and the possible problems in his lines and solutions to those problems), instead of killing anything 'bad' and pretending it never happened. It's one baby snake. It can eat for several months for a few dollars. If the breeder has too many snakes and can't afford to properly care for them, then that's not going to help the breeder's reputation, either.

 

[kansasgirl]

Fortunately, snakes are a little easier to keep from breeding than most dogs, in my experience. The lack of two forelimbs with 4-5 claws each seems to slow them down in attempts to escape and chase in-heat females. I think it would be acceptable to place this snake in a non-breeding home, but I am of the opinion that it would be best to find such a home yourself, perhaps with the assistance of word of mouth. There's still a risk you take that it might eventually be bred, but that's life.

Also - a snake that does this poorly off the bat for genetic reasons might not be so likely to become capable of breeding.

I think it would be very wise to consider the parasitic/protozoal/bacterial possibilities before euthanasia, too.

Good luck with your decision!