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So off feed for winter? Help

R

rosehairboy10199

New member
So i have 2 corns, one a normal and one a snow. The snow is about 30 inches and eats every friday one mouse. The normal is about 37 inches and used to eat every friday as well. But for the last month, my normal will not accept food. I have had no problems with the snow, and i didnt change anything about the temps either. Also the normal has not shed for about three months. What is wrong... is he not eating because he knows its winter? Ive tried feedings every week on the day he is supposed to eat but all he does is strike at the mouse if its alive or just sniff it and then leave if its dead. He doesnt want anything to do with it.... Here is a pic of him after his last shed.

9-6-08002.jpg


Any ideas?
 
my snake who is also just over 3 feet is not feeding as voraciously as he was in the fall. he now eats 1 jumbo adult every 2 weeks, when before i was feeding him every week. i'm not certain if this is because winter, or because he has reached a size where he does not want to eat every week. it's nothing to worry about though as long as he does eat. also my snake JUST shed a couple nights ago (not sure exactly when since i'm out of province and my little brother is taking care of him) but yes, his eating and shedding has most definitely slowed down.

also...are you sure your snake is just a normal? i'm no expert here but those look like pretty thick black borders for a normal. any other opinions?
 
well now that you mention it, i really dont know her line of heredity but i thought she was just a normal.... If you could determine for me that would be nice but i thought normals looked like that... well this snake used to eat every time and now she wont accept food at all.
 
I would tend to say that it looks like an okeetee too... or a really nicely colored normal!

Do you know the sex of the snakes?? I feed most of mine every week also and I dont brumate but some of the males have now started to refused since winter hit hard a few weeks ago. As long as they are not getting thin or something seems 'off' with them, I dont worry about it too much. Its kinda normal for males to do that hence my question about the sexes of the animals in question. But remember every snake is different because I also have lots of males still eating as well as they ever did.
 
My male goes off food every winter like clockwork. A couple of years back he took to hiding under the substrate for 24 hours a day, as soon as winter set in. I asked a few folks on here, and it seems like it's pretty normal behaviour for them to try and hide from the elements as it were.

He's doing the same this year, but has simultaneously gone into what I call "lady hunting mode" early, when I know he will refuse food for many weeks. I did throw a mouse in just in case, but as expected, he sniffs, sometimes grabs for a second, but always lets go.

Keep an eye on your normal but I'm sure he'll be fine. Also, you might not want to offer food every week (there is a low risk of "conditioning" him to refuse in the future). As long as he is still drinking and otherwise healthy, you don't need to worry too much.
 
Sorry I forgot to add a P.S. - Please be careful offering a live mouse in when you know he's off his food. I know the idea is to tempt him into eating with live prey, but it's more likely the mouse will take a bite out of him.
 
I also have a feeding Problem

I have a large 4 year old corn (got him last April) that has never refused food, that has refused food for the last 3 weeks.

I don't think my case is due to brumation as he is super active, tounge flicking searching for food climbing to the top of the cage etc, but when I offer him food he refuses.

I have tried mice, small ASF rats (F/T). Should I be worried, and should I try a live mouse?

Your advice would be appreciated.
 
Snakes are not neccisarily less active during brumation, especially if you are not inducing it (ie: lowering his temps). Also, sometimes they just don't want to eat. If he is drinking and active, I wouldn't worry, much. But if you are worried, take him to a herp vet to be sure. If you have lowered temps, your snake will not eat because they can't digest well (and if they did eat, they would probably regurge anyway)
 
Has he experienced weight loss or is his spine protruding at all? Those two conditions would cause me to worry. I have a male and female both of which have been out of brumation as well for a few weeks and are refusing...although neither are very active that I've noticed...until I see either of the above symptoms and or they continue to refuse eating, I'm not going to worry, I'm sure they'll eat in due time.
 
He is a picture of good health.

Is it normal for a corn to be in brumation and be active? I thought that snakes generally are lethargic during this time.
 
well a couple days ago i decided to turn on her heat pad again, just becausei felt like she was really cold and i didnt want to cause problems if she wasnt completely healthy and today i went to the petstore, got two mice, one for both of my corns and guess waht?! They both ate! The okeetee was the first to get fed, i dropped the mouse right by her, she realized it was food and Wham! she snatched it up like she hasent eaten in years! So i guess she was just cold... Well hopefully she sheds soon then, since its been three months since the last shed!
 
well it was alive, and i know the risks, but thats why from now on, im going to knock the rat out first before feeding.... Just because when the snake wrapped around, the mouse bit him... but it was ok since i got the mouse off right away. Thanks for all the help..
 
Sorry to hear he got bitten. I would put some Polysporin antibiotic ointment on the wound as soon as possible if I were you.
 
Bailey's Dad said:
He is a picture of good health.

Is it normal for a corn to be in brumation and be active? I thought that snakes generally are lethargic during this time.
Click to expand...
It sounds to me like yours, too, has gone into breeding season mode early this year (lady hunting mode as I call it). Please see post #6 in this thread - mine is exhibiting the same behaviour, and I've had him 9 years so I know his routine. He, too, looks like he's hunting and may even grab onto food, but will not eat it.

If you have tried everything, this could be the answer to why he isn't eating. Try not to worry too much, adult corns can and will go for long periods of time without food. If anything else looks 'off' get him to the vet, but for now try not to worry too much.
 
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