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Ok...Bhakti wont eat and I am a little sad....
His temp is ok...humidity is ok....
When we purchased him they did tell us he was eating live but he was only a month old so we are talking only a few feedings...
I do have him on mice on ice....he has had two fuzzies since I've had him....maybe three even...but this week he wont eat....
how long should I go before taking him to his vet?
I also dont think he has ...uh...gone #2 either (ha ha) ...my cali king went all of the time...the boa hasn't gone once...at least I haven't found any "left overs" in his cage....
Any thoughts?
His temp is ok...humidity is ok....
When we purchased him they did tell us he was eating live but he was only a month old so we are talking only a few feedings...
I do have him on mice on ice....he has had two fuzzies since I've had him....maybe three even...but this week he wont eat....
how long should I go before taking him to his vet?
I also dont think he has ...uh...gone #2 either (ha ha) ...my cali king went all of the time...the boa hasn't gone once...at least I haven't found any "left overs" in his cage....
Any thoughts?
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Virginia
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Re: My new boa wont eat....
Sat, October 7, 2006 - 8:10 AMHas he shed yet? Perhaps he's entering that time period. Try soaking him in water for an hour. Make sure you take him out every five minutes to rest in between. Water will enter the cloaca and help hydrate him. What is the humidity at exactly? If his skin looks loose or if you see cloudy eyes, he could be going into shed mode and will need higher humidity.
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Re: My new boa wont eat....
Sat, October 7, 2006 - 10:28 AMYour boa may not be liking the fact that the food has been frozen. Some boas need the stimulation of actually catching the mouse. And heat may also be a factor, frozen pinky's and mice aren't as appitizing as freshly dead (for our big snakes we sufficate the jumbo rats in ziplocks so that they don't hurt our snakes, and we just feed them right after the rat is dead so they are still warm. But don't make the rat bleed when killing it cuz snakes will learn to only respond to the blood) or live prey . Also he/she may be full sometimes snakes just don't want to eat cuz they don't need to. We have a male Hogg Island who is very particular about when he is hungry and when he is not. Also the soaking is a good idea in case the problem is shed related. Snakes can go for a month or more without doing any harm by not eating so you have a little time before you really need to worry. What you might want to do is find a local pet shop who has herp experts on staff and take your snake to see them before you pay the hefty vet bill. If you can't find a good one try lllreptile.com and e-mail your question to them, they are awesome and very knowledgable.
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Re: My new boa wont eat....
Sat, October 7, 2006 - 12:10 PMOh one more thing, snakes don't have to defecate after every meal. Many don't go to the bathroom but every 2 to three weeks. However, that said if you've had him for a month, I'm assuming he should have gone by now. Do you notice any swelling near the vent area? If so, the soaking should work. If you can tell me what the humidity is, I'll know better if that's the issue. That also might be why he stopped eating.
How to do warm the mouse? Also is the mouse the diameter of the thickest part of the snakes body? If it's too large they sometimes won't eat it. -
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Re: My new boa wont eat....
Sat, October 7, 2006 - 2:38 PMThis is all great advice you guys...I am less worried now....now that I can do something in the mean while. His humidity fluctuates a tad between 55% and 60% and temp from 77 to 85 depending on the time of day...I do cover the top of his cage partially at night to keep the heat in but still allow air in....
I love the idea of bagging the mice before the feeding...especially if his issue is due to the fact that he has had some live prey before we purchased him....they told us he was on fuzzies and he has had two fuzzies since I've owned him three weeks now....
It is interesting about his vent...my cali opens his and musk when he got all bent out of shape (such a cali king thing man...what a freak he is! ha) but I have never seen the boa open his ...alwayslooks somewhat very tightly closed but doesn't looked packed down there...no bulge to speak of...or inflamation...or anything "uncomfortable" looking....
I will go ahead and soak him in some warm water tonight...good idea....His eyes didn't seem to be smokey or in "blue" (do boa eyes get actually blue like a cali king would?) but yes...that could be it and thought the same thing.....I should make a humidity house for him then ......couldn't hurt ...I'll go do that now too...
Thanks you guys...
Wendy -
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Re: My new boa wont eat....
Sun, October 8, 2006 - 10:56 AMOkay, humidity is good, but when you do notice his shed, pump it up to about 70% to help him along. As for temperature, I've read many different temperature ranges and yours fall into those ranges. So that doesn't seem to be the problem. How often have you been handling him? He could still be adjusting. Did you provide him with hide outs? Are the fuzzies you feed him slightly bigger than his girth? He should only eat one prey item that is slightly bigger than the thickest part of his body. It should make a slight bulge after eating. Another tip that might entice him to eat is to "brain" the fuzzy. It sounds gross, but if you take a razor blade and slice open the skull and expose some gray matter, the smell will often entice a snake to eat.
Also, is the tank temperature constant at night? Meaning, that you don't turn off any heat sources or anything? His temperature in the tank shouldn't drop at night at all.
One last thing, all snakes will get cloudy eyes and skin right before shedding, so you will notice that of your snake. Theres a fluid that builds up between the old skin and new skin. This fluid helps lubricate and separate the old skin. When the eyes clear, he'll most likely shed within a day or two. -
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Re: My new boa wont eat....
Sun, October 8, 2006 - 6:36 PMI took your guys advice and went ahead and gave him a soak...not sure he enjoyed it! ha ha He feels comfortable when I tend to support his head so I head it as I tried to get him to stay in the water vs. crawling up my arm.....it was so cute.... It is funny because his skin is feeling that strange sticky like a rubber tire thing going on that they get before they shed but his eyes are not blue yet....maybe I am imagining the texture...geesh! know what I mean? LOL
I will definately brain the "meal" if he turns his nose up to it again...I will try tomorrow....or should I go ahead and wait a full week (his normal feeding days are on Wednedays) so that it will be two weeks total since he has eaten?
We keep his under the aquarium heater on the entire night...and I even cover some of the top to try and trap more heat in.....my husand and I thought about moving him upstairs to get more heat...maybe he doesn't like the basement and doesn't get any direct "real" sun (not that it is important that he has real sun as I have read) and might give him a little more heat...but less humidity....our basement has less heat (its not freezing though) but more humidity......
I'll keep you guys posted...as I will be 1) super happy if he eats or 2) super concerned if he rejects a fuzzy for the 3rd time...and yes...the size is good for him....the fuzzy is slightly larger than his widest part.....not too much....just that tad more that creates the "lump" ....
Little fart better eat....he is making mommy woried! LOL -
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Re: My new boa wont eat....
Mon, October 9, 2006 - 10:01 AMI'd wait til Wednesday to feed him. How are you heating the mouse? Let us know if he doesn't or does eat. If he doesn't you might want to take him to the vet.
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Re: My new boa wont eat....
Mon, October 9, 2006 - 1:00 PMI usually put the mouse in realy warm water...not boiling hot so that the snake doesn't get burned also but enough to help defrost the mouse and warm it up a bit....If that doesn't work then I'll cut the head as you suggested....I tryed to poke at it last week with a chop stick but it didn't work....I think I need to be a little more aggresive about it! ha.....I'll wait until Wed and we'll see...... -
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Re: My new boa wont eat....
Mon, October 9, 2006 - 1:51 PMdo you put it in a plastic bag or do you put it directly into the water? If you put it directly into the water, try putting it into a ziploc bag instead. -
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Re: My new boa wont eat....
Mon, October 9, 2006 - 5:31 PMgood one!!!! I was wondering if he didn't like the "drowned" texture of the fur! That is a super idea! Thanks Maya...your the best! woohoo -
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Re: My new boa wont eat....
Tue, October 10, 2006 - 7:01 PMYou guys! He totaly ate tonight...I mean I've never seen him attack a mouse like that before (granted I've only had him 4 weeks) and he finally wrapped around his prey and worked it like he meant it! LOL.....
As one of you said, or maybe I read it somewhere else, that he might also have just taken longer to settle in, and with the switch from live to frozen, he just wasn't feeling it....until he felt the pains of HUNGER! ha ha
Ok...I'm a very happy snake mommy now...Thanks you guys....
(PS...I also warmed it up in the bag as you suggested so the mouse wasn't overly saturated) -
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Re: My new boa wont eat....
Wed, October 11, 2006 - 12:07 PMYAY! I figured he'd come around eventually. Red-tails aren't really known for hunger strikes like the ball pythons are. I'm glad he ate and that you aren't worrying over him anymore! Give your snake a little hug for me! -
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Re: My new boa wont eat....
Wed, October 11, 2006 - 12:25 PMSure will...thanks Maya! -
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Re: My new boa wont eat....
Tue, October 17, 2006 - 3:38 PMI'm happy he ate!!! It's alsways much better to hear good news in this department then bad!! Keep us updated on his future progress!!! -
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Re: My new boa wont eat....
Tue, October 17, 2006 - 7:29 PMsure will : ) he ate again this week...so far so good...I am hoping he is going to go into blue here pretty soon...he is looking a little purple'ish underneath...they eyes should go any day I am thinking....he's 1st shed will be exciting....but as far as eating he is not only back to normal but better than when I first had him...he is really going for it now...vs. playing with his food for 20 minutes! LOL
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