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Two Weeks of Not Eating

kcaven

kcaven

LOCA for corn snakes !!!
I know two weeks does not seem to be very long for snakes to not eat but I am getting a little worried (ok a lot) because the last time he ate was Monday of Memorial Day Weekend. I wouldnt be that concerned because I know snakes can sometimes not eat when they are in blue and mine has been for the past almost week (I think). He has a very "dull filmy" look to his scales. He has a faint "opaly" coloring to his head. That means hes in blue, right? His eyes look clear, not cloudy at all. But the lady I bought him from said he has never refused a meal. What am I doing wrong? He ate so easily his first feeding for me.

Today: I put him in his feeding tank, tried dangling it gently for about 5 minutes and he seems afraid of it. He keeps going the other way. So I laid it on the bottom of the tank and covered his tank with jackets for privacy. Ive had him in his tank for the past 45 minutes with it and it is still there. How long should I leave him in there with it?

Do you all handle your snakes before they are fed? Should I not handle him right before he is fed?

How long should I wait to feed him again? I dont want to wait a whole week again should I? Maybe 3 days?
 
I know it's stressful for you. But I'm sure you're more worried than he is.
I recently went through something similar with my sank. She used to ALWAYS and I MEAN ALWAYS take it from me on the tongs.
Now she's changed just like other animals, she's decided she wants it differently. Now I have to place it down in the feeding container with her and cover her up. And leave her for at least an hour.
If you start getting desperate just as long as you're waiting between scheduled feedings (Ie if he eats every 7 days only try every 7 days)and not trying too often, try leaving him in his container overnight.
As long as everything is stable with his environment and he's not losing weight you're fine, just breath :)
 
So how long should I leave him in his feeding tank? Overnight?
Wont the mouse get cold/smelly/rotten? Will he be ok with no heat source?
 
Does the feeding tank fit into his tank?
But yeah he will be ok overnight, the only problem is if he doesn't eat it you definately have to trash it, no refreezing that.
 
His feeding tank doesn't fit into his viv. His viv is a 20L and his feeding tank is a 10 gal.

But thats ok, HE ATE IT! I just left him in there (uncovered) with the mouse after I rewarmed it. I was on the computer and I turned around maybe 10 minutes after my last post and it was gone! Nothing left but a lump in his body! I am SOOOOOOO relieved. (Can you hear exhale?l lol)

I also wet it when I was rewarming it. I wonder if that made the difference?
 
Sorry for the double post... but I forgot to tell you..what a beautiful baby you have! He is beautiful! Congratulations!
 
Thanks :D

Glad he ate told you not to stress. Just make sure its nice and hot still right when you leave him with it and just go back to your business, a lot of snakes don't like being watched.
 
Yeah I guess I figured becaue the lady who sold him to me told me she did the dangle/wiggle feeding technique that that is what I had to do. He took it that way the first time right away. My kids get very excited to see him eat...I make them watch very quietly and sitting very still "like a statue" (lol)...I guess its just still too much for him.

Im just so relieved..now I can relax for the evening :)
 
Also something else to consider if you have any trouble in the future. Try a smaller feeding container. Too much room is distracting.
 
Not Eating b/c He's in Blue for 3 Weeks!!??

I came back to this post because this past Sunday...again....MoJo did not eat... even after I left the hopper in his tank for an hour and a half. I didnt read about the smaller feeding tank size until just now. I will have to try that next Sunday. He seems to go to the other side of the tank as the mouse. If I put it in front of him he goes to the other side of the tank (10 gal). I dont know...but it seems to me that he has been "in blue" for weeks now. Is that possible? He has 50 % humidity in his tank and lots of wood to rub on for shedding. His color just keeps getting duller and duller. Does it normally take this long? Maybe this is why he's having feeding problems? Ive had him for a month and for the past three weeks he has been getting gradually bluer with each week but no shed.
 
Older snakes tend to take longer, and my 3.5ft snake that takes weeks to actually shed is the only snake I have that refuses then.
Again I wouldn't be too worried.
 
Corny is right, older snakes can take much longer to shed.
Tiaga can take upto 2 weeks from the time she turns blue till she sheds, we've had her 3 yrs now and she was a subadult when we got her. Although she will feed even in the middle of a shed, I don't think she has ever refused a meal with us(we're just lucky I guess)
Good luck with Mojo and keep us updated on her progress.
 
But MoJo is only 10 months old?? Is that old enough to go between sheds that long?
 
Are his eyes still blue or have they gone clear again? If his eyes have gone clear he should shed within a couple of days. It takes my 10 month old about eight days from going blue to shedding. I have a couple of snakes that won't eat when in the blue, but once they have shed they eat. Sorry i can't be more help.
 
Thank you pipi5xtra! Yes he was in blue and now has cleared. This is his second day of being clear. So I guess that means he will shed any day now.

Oh and BTW today was feeding day again and HE ATE- YAY! Im so confused-lol. He is ready to shed any day now and he still ate. Yet he didnt eat last week right before he went into blue?? I can at least say snakes definately keep you on your toes!

Do you think maybe he prefers to eat every 10-14 days?
Is that ok for a 10 month old snake?
 
Don't sweat it if he sometimes goes on hunger strikes. I've got an adult male that hasn't eaten for 3 months. They often go "off schdedule" for different reasons...sheds and love-seeking are two of the main ones that I've experienced.
Nick
 
tradernick said:
Don't sweat it if he sometimes goes on hunger strikes. I've got an adult male that hasn't eaten for 3 months. They often go "off schdedule" for different reasons...sheds and love-seeking are two of the main ones that I've experienced.
Nick
Click to expand...

I wouldnt worry as much about an adult but MoJo is only 10 months old. How often should a 10 month old snake eat? every 7 days, 10, 14??

And the part that stresses me out the most is that the girl who sold him to me said that he has NEVER refused a meal. So why is he choosing me to stress out ??LOL
 
i feed my 10/11 month old corn small hoppers every 6-7 days(he's about 60g). when i was feeding fuzzies i fed every 5-6 days. i just follow what the munson plan says :)
 
Oh..Im not really sure what the Munson Plan is. I dont have a kitchen scale yet either so Im not sure how much he weighs. But the lady who sold him to me said he has ALWAYS eaten once every 7 days and never refused a meal. He has been on hoppers ever since I got him. I did give him a smaller sized hopper (it may have been a fuzzy?)yesterday because I knew he was about to shed anyday now and he refused to eat last week. It just seems to be a pattern lately since I got him over a month ago he has eaten every other week. Thats why I thought maybe I should try feeding every 10 days? Ill hav eto take a look at what the Munson Plan is..I think I need a scale, right? A normal kitchen scale?
 
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