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Feeding New borns
- Thread starter wildangel
- Start date
bitsy
Owned by Corns since 1991
Try the Feeding FAQ: http://www.cornsnakes.com/forums/showthread.php?t=28342
About half way down there's a section called "FAQ - Babies won't eat" written by Kathy Love. It's well worth running through all of those tricks for your hatchlings.
Many clutches produce variable feeders in my experience - I've rarely hatched a clutch which were 100% feeders to begin with.
About half way down there's a section called "FAQ - Babies won't eat" written by Kathy Love. It's well worth running through all of those tricks for your hatchlings.
Many clutches produce variable feeders in my experience - I've rarely hatched a clutch which were 100% feeders to begin with.
Nanci
Alien Lover
The first thing I would try is boiled. Boil water, remove from heat, drop pinks in, they will cook and turn white and rubbery. Feed immediately in a covered deli cup. You may or may not want to cut a tiny slit in the pinks' heads. You may or may not want to pick up the pinks with a tweezers without touching them- keeping human scent off of them. I don't know how critical that is.
Those two things should get all or most of them. If not, I would try, tiny live pink- just buy one and offer it to each in succession. They take a _long_ time to die... :-(
I think the fourth and fifth things I'd try would be chicken fat or chicken broth or raw chicken juice scenting, or Dawn dish soap scenting.
You have of course tried brained already? And spread the brains down the back of the pinks??
Second thing- using Ivory original scent dishsoap- thaw pinks under very hot tap water, drain. fill a small measuring cup with enough dish soap to cover. place pinks in dish soap and swirl around. Rinse, in that cup, under hottest tap water, but do not rinse completely; leave a little soap residue. Feed in a covered deli cup.
Those two things should get all or most of them. If not, I would try, tiny live pink- just buy one and offer it to each in succession. They take a _long_ time to die... :-(
I think the fourth and fifth things I'd try would be chicken fat or chicken broth or raw chicken juice scenting, or Dawn dish soap scenting.
You have of course tried brained already? And spread the brains down the back of the pinks??
Second thing- using Ivory original scent dishsoap- thaw pinks under very hot tap water, drain. fill a small measuring cup with enough dish soap to cover. place pinks in dish soap and swirl around. Rinse, in that cup, under hottest tap water, but do not rinse completely; leave a little soap residue. Feed in a covered deli cup.
wildangel
wildangel
The first thing I would try is boiled. Boil water, remove from heat, drop pinks in, they will cook and turn white and rubbery. Feed immediately in a covered deli cup.
I always thought cooking them was a no no. Ok How long do you leave them in that hot water and don't you need to let them cool a little when you pull them out?
I always thought cooking them was a no no. Ok How long do you leave them in that hot water and don't you need to let them cool a little when you pull them out?
Nanci
Alien Lover
They cook almost instantly. By the time you carry them to where you're feeding the snake and get ready, they will be cooked. 2 minutes? You don't actually have to cook them in boiling water- just pour the boiling water over them in a cup. I don't know if it _matters_ if they cool off a little, but when I do it, on the first try, I feed right out of the boiling water. By the time you put it in the deli, get the baby, get the baby into the deli, the pink has cooled significantly.
wildangel
wildangel
well that worked Nanci....I was boiling some chicken for dinner so I poured some of the boiling broth over a pinky, put it in the deli cup and he went into attack mode....3 more to work on now. The pinky had been in the deli cup for an hour or so and he hadn't touched it. You mentioned boiling water and chicken broth and i got the idea.
beautifullywild77
Go Penguins!!!
Boiled trick worked for all my babies I hatched this year. I weaned them off before I sold them. 
toxiclight
Artz and Snakez
Nanci's bag o' tricks helped get my four non-feeders eating (the longest holdout was 30-ish days before she was eating on her own)
Boiling worked for all but one...that one still insists that her mouse be beheaded (she was the longest holdout, and we finally thought to try just a head hoping she'd eat. She did, and the bf said to put the body in and see if she'd take it too. She has only accepted one without beheading so far...but hey, at least she's eating)
Boiling worked for all but one...that one still insists that her mouse be beheaded (she was the longest holdout, and we finally thought to try just a head hoping she'd eat. She did, and the bf said to put the body in and see if she'd take it too. She has only accepted one without beheading so far...but hey, at least she's eating)
Nanci
Alien Lover
If you are really afraid you are going to lose the one, force feed it a mouse tail. Use about a 1.5-2" segment of adult mouse tail, fat end first. slide the tail in the side of the baby's mouth. Slip it down about half way and pause to see if he will just swallow. Sit motionless until he either swallows or tries to gag it out. If he won't start swallowing, slide it about 3.4 of the way down. He will eventually swallow it.
When I feed tails, I offer the food item first and give the baby 1-2 hours to feed. If not, he gets a tail. Try again in 3-5 days.
Another thing you could try is slap feeding. Look down in Susan's private forum. There is a link to a video. You do NOT have to use a live pink. I would NOT use a live pink. If you restrain the baby so about an inch of his neck is free, and touch/jab him in the neck, with the pink aimed so when he strikes at it, it will end up in his mouth, you can get him to eat. It takes a LOT of patience. Once he strikes, freeze and do not move a muscle until the pink is all the way down. They can and will spit it out even when it is completely gone, if frightened. If he strikes, and then spits it out, keep trying until he either eats or won't strike any more. IF the baby will strike, and 95% of them will, you can get him to tease feed.
When I feed tails, I offer the food item first and give the baby 1-2 hours to feed. If not, he gets a tail. Try again in 3-5 days.
Another thing you could try is slap feeding. Look down in Susan's private forum. There is a link to a video. You do NOT have to use a live pink. I would NOT use a live pink. If you restrain the baby so about an inch of his neck is free, and touch/jab him in the neck, with the pink aimed so when he strikes at it, it will end up in his mouth, you can get him to eat. It takes a LOT of patience. Once he strikes, freeze and do not move a muscle until the pink is all the way down. They can and will spit it out even when it is completely gone, if frightened. If he strikes, and then spits it out, keep trying until he either eats or won't strike any more. IF the baby will strike, and 95% of them will, you can get him to tease feed.