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Kitty won't eat!

K

kreme

New member
So I bought Kitty May 15th, Saturday from a Petco. First day I brought him back, I fed him a pinky and he ate it fine. I fed him 7 days later, on the 22nd, and he refused to eat. I fed him 5 days later, on the 27th, and he refused to eat. I fed him today again, and he tried to eat the pinky, but he tried to eat it from the middle, not the butt or head. Obviously, it didn't work and he spat it back out. What should I do! It's been almost 3 weeks since he hasn't eaten! My temperatures have remained at a constant 80 degrees, I keep a thermomoeter in the aspen bedding. I also have a hygrometer that is around 70% all the time. He has two hides, he has a 10 gal tank, but he's only about 7 inches long. Somebody help me! :[
 
I would feed him in a small container, like a margerine cup, with tiny air holes. At dusk. I'd heat a pink to very hot. Thaw quickly in hot water then right before you put it in the feeding container, run it under the very hottest tap water for a couple seconds. Quickly snip it in half with a fingernail scissors. Then put Kitty in, close the lid, cover him with a dish towel, and do not peek or bother him for one hour. Dark, quiet room. If he hasn't eaten in an hour, reheat the pink quickly under hot tap water, repeat. If he hasn't eaten in an hour, put the whole container in his viv overnight, with the lid on.

Is it possible he's about to shed?
 
I've been reading on these forums about the possibility of him shedding, but I don't see any of the visible signs; just the fact that he's not eating is the only indication at all.
 
80 degrees is slightly on the cool side. Can you bump the warm end up to 85 degrees on the floor? That might help.
 
So he's a color that you could tell if he was blue for much of that period, if you looked, not one of the sneaky colors where it's so hard to tell!
 
yep. and he doesn't hide all the time, when i wake up in the morning i see him on his branch usually.
 
Is there any significance to him trying to swallow the pinky from the side? When I fed him today he tried to chomp on him from the abdomen, instead of the head or the tail. After I cut the pinky in half, he didn't even approach it anymore.
 
The way a snake tells which end of the mouse is the head is by feeling the direction of the fur, and feeling for the hard skull. So a pink is just a blob to him. But it doesn't really matter; he ought to be able to swallow no matter which end he starts with, and if he bites in the middle, he should figure out how to get to one end or the other. I would leave him alone now for four or five days. It's not good to attempt to feed for days in a row; it conditions him to refuse.
 
How long can my snake go without food? He's still a little baby, around 7 inches long, and hasn't eaten in 3 weeks.
 
i put him in a cup with a half cut warm water washed pinky. still no deal. and it really smells in there now. He won't eat!!
 
Okay, so you need to not try for four days. And the pink needs to be HOT, not warm. Try not to worry too much- he can skip many meals as long as he is healthy to begin with. If he isn't, there isn't really anything you can do anyway. So just relax and try what I said, four days from now. And you need to try in the evening, when he would normally be active.
 
I tried feeding him again. Kitty stll won't eat. I put him in a cup again with a snipped in half pinky. This time I used boiling water to wash it, so I'm pretty sure it's very hot.

Some behaviors I've noticed is that he thrashes around a lot, but doesn't really get anywhere. He does not bite at all anymore, and that he's getting a really weak grip.

:[
 
Well, I hate to say it, but it doesn't sound good. Are you saying he can't crawl normally?
 
He can crawl fine, but I feel like there's just too much unnecessary movement. I think when he sees me he thrashes. A lot. Crawling's okay, but his grip on my hand is really weak.
 
when i first got my corn snake, it didn't eat for 2 1/2 weeks, of course i was worried but now i just figure she was stressed in her new home and needed to settle in. the first couple feedings didn't go so well, in tank, out of tank. by the end i ended up just dropping a pinky on top of her rock hide before i went to bed and in the morning i was happy to see it disappeared. NOT to say that was a good idea by any means, but it worked. now however, i have simply used a tupperware container with holes i cut into the top of it. i will defrost the pinkies by leaving them to sit for an hour, i ust to place pinkies(when she was smaller) into a 20 sac and place it under the tap, & still microwave them for 5 seconds at a time, 2 or 3 times, to warm it up now and then (without singeing the hair thus a bad smell). drop it in, and THEN put my snake into the container. she has had some days where she hasn't felt like eating. but a quick stab of a T'ed pinkie and she always eats now.
I'm sure Kitty biting from the side doesn't mean anything. my snake will do that a lot, then release it, and try again from another side soon after.
if kitty is still young i am sure a 10 gallon will be enough until it hits about a year old. and 2 hides should be enough for now, but keep in mind the more hides, such as foliage(silk) and other decorative things, not only make the Viv look better but act as hides and help to relieve stress on your snake. A stressed snake will have a harder time eating and adjusting to sitting out in the open.

my suggestion, if it was in fact a full regerg is to wait until she is able to eat again. and just leave her in a feed box(with air holes she cant escape from) for a few hours with her prey. possibly stab a FT pinky so some guts are visible. the smellier the food, the more your snake will want it. she should be eating in no time.
 
Yay! thanks a lot guys! the pinky disappeared from the cup when I left it in for the second hour!
 
Wow, finally!! I'd just let him relax now until you try to feed him again in five days. You want him to be as unstressed as possible!
 
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