I haven't seen her drink nor go near the water

[smigon]

I have had Scarlett since the end of December. She always has clean water in a slightly rough rock-looking sculpted bowl. I have never seen her drink, she did have to pass her head over the bowl once while I was watching, she flickered but never drank.

She has lost weight since I got her, even though she eats regularly. She is 17 months old and went from 25gms to 22.5gms. She was eating a fuzzy once a week but they were out last time I got them and am feeding her large pinkies every 5 days.

I also have never seen her get in the water on her own, her first of two sheds she has had with me went bad and I soaked her and used a washcloth to help finish the shed, the second went fine on her own. I have added sphegnum moss damp, she likes it once it is dry, but not damp.

For the last 3 days she has been very active all the time, I think she wants to shed, her eyes are totally clear but I can tell the skin is getting greyish and ready to shed and it is time. She keeps rubbing her face and body on the faux-rock hide to start the process, but no go.

Is it unusual for a corn to be water-shy?

 

[bitsy]

You'll very rarely see a Corn drink - mine drink in my sight occasionally when I put them into their home vivs after feeding and their heads go near the water bowl, but I rarely see it otherwise. If yours hadn't been drinking regularly since December, she'd have been dead a long time ago. If a Corn is dehydrated (which I've sometimes seen in rescues which weren't given access to water) they go wrinkly along the length of their body and their eyes sink in. It doesn't sound like your lass has this problem.

Not wanting to be in the humid hide during the shed is a different problem. I'd guess that your humid hide isn't what she likes, if she'll use it with the sphagnum moss dry but not when it's made damp. Maybe it's too damp? The trick is to wet the moss, then squeeze it out really hard in your hands. It shouldn't be sopping wet, just damp. You don't want a pool of water on the floor of the hide. You need to create a sauna rather than a paddling pool

It also needs to be in the temp zone just away from the warm area of the floor, although if she'll use it when dry, maybe that isn't the issue.

Perhaps she just doesn't like the moss when damp, so maybe trying another type of damp substrate would be worth a go? Damp kitchen roll would help increase the humidity in the box, although you'll need to change/re-wet those pretty regularly.

You need to try a little snakey psychology and try to figure out what she doesn't like about the current humid hide. Maybe it's even worth trying a completely different type of humid hide and seeing whether she prefers that?

It definitely sounds like she's about to shed, although as she's still blue, I'd expect her to go back to her normal colours for a couple of days before she actually sheds.

 

[Guruofchem]

Was she a rescue? 25 grams at a year and a half sounds pretty small. Weight can vary based on where a snake is in the digestive/excretion cycle, but if that loss continues I'd consult a vet.

 

[KingCrimson<3]

I'd second the vet, though being shy about drinking certainly isn't something to worry about. Her weight loss on the other hand is a little concerning if she is eating regularly. Parasites tend to do that, so it might be worth a vet trip/fecal to clean any little hitch hikers out of her system and give her a leg up. Definitely make sure your temps and humidity are in the right range too, and being measured with a reliable instrument and that she has nice, secure hides to reduce her stress.

 

[smigon]

She has been SO active, day and night lately that that is why I thought she was going blue, but I decided to feed her and she went after the pinky while I was still holding her. Still the same weight, and it was 5 days since her last feeding, what is the minimum amount of time I should give her between feedings since she was skinny when I fed her tonight? This pinky was pretty small, so should I try every 3 days instead of 5? She had been going for 1 fuzzie a week, but the place where I get my mice was out of fuzzies so I got pinkies instead.

What IS the ideal temp and humidity? it is 75 in the middle of the bottom of the viv, between the warm and cool sides, and humidity is about 40%. I add water daily to keep the humidity high. I am ready to move her into a 20L tank as soon as I get the lid for it, and I will have more room with more water bowls (one for each side), more hides and more of the plants she loves to hide under. She likes to be high up, sometimes up on the ridge of the aquarium top between it and the lid.

It is a labor of love trying to get in synch, but I know we will get the hang of this!

 

[smigon]

Bitsy, the moss was perfect, I squeezed all the water out and it was just damp, not wet at all.

Guru, not a rescue, I got her from a reputable dealer here, and she dropped to 22.5 but hasn't gone any lower in over 2 months. I really think the problem is not eating enough, she is a very active lady.

Would you recommend 1.5 pinkies instead of 1 to make up for the missing fuzzie size?

 

[Nythain]

what is the minimum amount of time I should give her between feedings since she was skinny when I fed her tonight? This pinky was pretty small, so should I try every 3 days instead of 5? She had been going for 1 fuzzie a week, but the place where I get my mice was out of fuzzies so I got pinkies instead.

I really don't think you should push any sooner than 5 days. If she's under weight she'll even out. If she's still losing weight, as others have said you really need to get her to a vet to check for parasites. If she was on fuzzies but all you have is pinkies, you could *try* two pinkies per feeding, but definitely not any closer together feeding times. Many will tell you they've fed their juvies once a week or longer, not many will tell you they feed their juvies every 5 days.

What IS the ideal temp and humidity? it is 75 in the middle of the bottom of the viv, between the warm and cool sides, and humidity is about 40%.

As long as you have a gradient of mid 70s to lower/mid 80s and a "normal" humidity (40-50% variably) you should be fine. The gradient is important, one end needs to be high temp, other end low temp, and diffusion will take care of the rest. As long as you have hides it feels secure in on BOTH ends (if not more in the middle with some decent plant coverage too, but not required), then the snake will know where it needs to be to properly thermo-regulate itself.

I add water daily to keep the humidity high. I am ready to move her into a 20L tank as soon as I get the lid for it, and I will have more room with more water bowls (one for each side), more hides and more of the plants she loves to hide under. She likes to be high up, sometimes up on the ridge of the aquarium top between it and the lid.

Sounds like you've got it pretty much covered here. Daily water changing is important, which you've got covered (more important for cleanliness than humidity), plenty of hides, (every other)daily misting if in a low humidity environment, nice size, plants for cover. Just make sure you keep those temps right and everything should be groovy.

 

[bitsy]

What IS the ideal temp and humidity? it is 75 in the middle of the bottom of the viv, between the warm and cool sides, and humidity is about 40%.

You need the warm end floor surface to be in the mid-80s, as measured at floor level with a digital or infra-red thermometer (not a plastic dial or cardboard strip type). The areas away from the heated part are less important.

 

[ladymagpie]

Bitsy, the moss was perfect, I squeezed all the water out and it was just damp, not wet at all.

Guru, not a rescue, I got her from a reputable dealer here, and she dropped to 22.5 but hasn't gone any lower in over 2 months. I really think the problem is not eating enough, she is a very active lady.

Would you recommend 1.5 pinkies instead of 1 to make up for the missing fuzzie size?

Have you considered that the weighing scales might be the problem? Once Cleo's weight seemed quite different to the last one, but I weighed her again the next day and it wasn't actually a problem.

 

[smigon]

Have you considered that the weighing scales might be the problem? Once Cleo's weight seemed quite different to the last one, but I weighed her again the next day and it wasn't actually a problem.

I have adjusted it, it definitely is working fine.

 

[smigon]

She has lost weight since I got her, even though she eats regularly. She is 17 months old and went from 25gms to 22.5gms. She was eating a fuzzy once a week but they were out last time I got them and am feeding her large pinkies every 5 days.

***********SUCCESS!!!!!!!!!!************
It turned out that on the box "9 pinkies" does NOT mean the same size as the first one you pull out! The rest are pretty small.

I forgot to weigh her Saturday night when I fed her, but tonight she was 23.5g, and I fed her two pinkies (they were on the small side) and she scarfed them up within minutes. Hooray for my girl! She is active and seems like a happy one, I hope I am doing right by her. :crazy02:

 

[smigon]

She had two pinkies 5 days ago then 2 more again today. Her weight isn't up but she is definitely longer and still very active at night.

I have a 20L that I needed a lid for, I ordered one on Amazon for $15 with free shipping! I ordered it Monday morning and it was here today, Tuesday afternoon. They are great. I will move her into it in a few days after she digests.

 

[nfafan]

Mine drinks after ever feeding - you'd think I gave here pretzals and peanuts!

I started mine on a pinky a week for a couple months, then 2 pinkies a week for about 2 months, then 3 pinkies/week for a couple months, then down to one fuzzy.
And I think the last fuzzy I fed her was a hopper as it was huge - I'm hoping she doesn't have issues with it.

That said, I am thinking of going to one fuzzy - carefully examined for size - and one pinkie every week as I don't think she is ready for a true hopper-sized mouse to get past her skinny head.

 

[CaseyH]

I have 3 corns and they are all different. I never see Jasper drink but he is very healthy and I've had him since last June, so I'm not concerned. Bella likes to drink, but not from her water dish. After I mist, she drinks off the leaves of her fake plants. I see her drink several times a week and it is very cute. Then sometimes she yawns . Keira is still new, so I'm not sure if she'll drink in front of me, but she hasn't yet.

Casey

 

[Nythain]

Plissken will very openly drink after most handlings. Otherwise he's shy with his activity. It is so cute to look over and see his little head over the water dish lapping up some liquid refreshment.

 

[ladymagpie]

I've had cleo since October last year and I've never seen her drink. She lives in our bedroom and when I've come into the room I have seen her by her waterbowl with her head raised above it, but never seen her drink. She's too scared of me still lol

 

[smigon]

Plissken will very openly drink after most handlings. Otherwise he's shy with his activity. It is so cute to look over and see his little head over the water dish lapping up some liquid refreshment.

I work nights and get home about 3am, Scarlett is usually active and I have found that almost like clockwork she drinks at 4am, and Nythain, you are so right, she IS cute lapping up her water! It looks like she is using a straw, you can see her mouth move ever so slightly.

Thanks to all for the advice and replies, I am lucky to have caught her in the act!