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What would you do?

Well, short of feeding him chicken parts (Sorry, bad joke.) I'd say you know what the problem is, you're just looking for someone who has dealt with a similar critter.
I can offer only what I've done personally.
I have rubber boas, and the male of the species is very small, even as an adult.
I have had one slow grower (Slow even for a rubber boa.) that is on fuzzies after 5+ years, and he seems to be doing just fine.
I also have a stunted cal-king with a similar problem to yours. He escaped, and I found him over a year later, on a cement floor in an unattached garage at less than 20f. He has nerve damage, and while otherwise normal, he strikes very inaccurately, has poor muscle tone, and just doesn't grow. He holds his head up, but he strikes he's all over the place. He must be assist fed, but he doesn't seem to mind. Of course, to make assist feeding easier the meals are smaller and more frequent.

I think the difference between pinks and fuzzies is not only a function of how old they are, but when they are gut loaded with.
If you can feed them mice that have some solid food in their tract it seems to help immensely.
My next suggestion would be to use some zoo prepared formula like snake steak sausages, and use the small size.
It wouldn't be any cheaper than pinks, but it may offer more nutrition and digestibility.
 
So far, he's been holding down the fuzzy segments, and even seems more eager to eat and a bit perkier afterwards.

The vet told me that changing his diet in this way wouldn't do him any harm, and she wants to moniter his progress to see if his condition improves any. He has a checkup in five weeks. :)

Thank you guys so much for helping me with my little Drake. I love him more than anything in the world. :eek:

If anyone has any other suggestions, please feel free to post them here! I'd really appreciate as many opinions and comments as possible. Even criticism.

Thanks again, guys! :D
 
No worries, I remember wondering what ate whole deer or holstein calves, so it stuck in my head!

Retics, anacondas....

Retics. :D If I ever had a retic that big, I'd put him on a leash and let him go hunting in the woods. That food would get expensive!

Lol, I actually ran into a guy at a pet store once that has a green anaconda and a caiman. He had a contract with one of the local farmers that whenever there was a stillborn calf (or goat, if I recall correctly), the farmer would put it in the freezer for the guy with the snake. The snake only ate what the farmer provided (plus maybe a big bunny or two here and there).

So far, he's been holding down the fuzzy segments, and even seems more eager to eat and a bit perkier afterwards.

The vet told me that changing his diet in this way wouldn't do him any harm, and she wants to moniter his progress to see if his condition improves any. He has a checkup in five weeks. :)

Thank you guys so much for helping me with my little Drake. I love him more than anything in the world. :eek:

If anyone has any other suggestions, please feel free to post them here! I'd really appreciate as many opinions and comments as possible. Even criticism.

Thanks again, guys! :D

So glad to hear that little Drake is doing well! You should post some pictures of the little fellow, we'd love to see him!! :) I think you're doing a wonderful job with him. You are an inspiration to us all.
 
So glad to hear that little Drake is doing well! You should post some pictures of the little fellow, we'd love to see him!! :) I think you're doing a wonderful job with him. You are an inspiration to us all.

:eek: Awwh, thanks! I don't know if I'm that special though.
I've been meaning to get pics of all of my snakes, and Drake will DEFINITELY be there if I do! He's very small for an adult male, but maybe he'll grow on his new diet! :)
 
:eek: Awwh, thanks! I don't know if I'm that special though.
I've been meaning to get pics of all of my snakes, and Drake will DEFINITELY be there if I do! He's very small for an adult male, but maybe he'll grow on his new diet! :)

Sure you are. :) It takes a very special person to go to such lengths to care for a creature with special needs. I'm sure most of us around here would do it, but in the general snake owning public, I don't think many would.
 
Even if I quit with snakes, I'll never get rid of Drake. I'm afraid he'd go to someone who wouldn't know what to do.

He's chowin' down as we speak! He just GULPS at those fuzzies! I really think this was a good switch for him. :)
 
Cant realy help but had to say how awsome of you to take the time with this little guy and not giving up on him
 
:blowhead:
So, unfortunately, I'm going to have to clarify in great detail how Drake's new feeding plan was formulated.

In July of '08, long before I knew this site existed, I had Norma at the Legion with me and I was eating some cheese bings (which are deliciously deadly) and my buddy Dusty, who is a bartender there, asked me about "That little skinny snake" of mine. I had a picture on my phone, so I pulled it out and showed him. He was impressed, knowing Drake's condition when I'd first received him. He asked me how I was taking care of him, and I told him (it was the same then as it was before I switched him to halved fuzzies). He says to me "Oh, that's nice, but it could be better." And he proceeded to tell me about all of his hatchlings that got fuzzy segments instead of pinkies "To give 'em a head start" he said. I just dismissed it thinking that Drake was a special case.

I had thought about what Dusty told me, even gone so far as to devise a method of cutting the fuzzy vertically to make sure he didn't become favorable to one half over another. This was never a new suggestion to me, I had just decided that what I was doing was sufficient and hygienic in comparison.

Upon entering chat and getting into a (highly unnecessary, heated) argument with a couple of other users, I agreed to try a halved fuzzy as per their recommendations. It worked like a charm.

Low and behold, a few days later, I get angry PMs from the users involved saying: "You took all the credit for MY feeding idea!" Now, if these people were the first people in the world to consider cutting a mouse in half, more power to 'em. I just wanted to clarify that I'm not "taking credit" for anything! If getting praise was all these users cared about, I don't feel sorry about this post in the least. I feel a little betrayed because I had originally thought that they cared about the welfare of Drake over-all. I'm still not passing judgement on any of these people involved, I'm just a little disappointed.

I don't want this to turn into a big scuffle. I just want it to be known that Dusty was the first one to suggest halved fuzzies, and that WHO REALLY CARES?! All that matters is, Drake is a happy, healthy, HUNGRY boy since we made the switch! :)

One he sheds, I'll be posting pics in my album. :D
 
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