I purchased a baby Biak x Sorong GTP at this year's Daytona Expo at the end of August. I am not new to snakes, but I would be lying if I said I wasn't new to Arboreal Snakes (my first was an Northern ETB from earlier this year, and she is thriving). My little python was an awesome, charismatic little guy, and I almost cried when we opened his bin on Sunday night to find him dead (October 5th).

The gentleman who sold him to me said he was established, and had eaten a few times, but not many. He was beautiful, mentally bright, and active. We brought him home from Daytona, and later in the week with a lot of convincing he ate a live pinky mouse, the 29th of August.

Since than he never ate. I have a zillion tricks up my sleeve of getting newborns to eat -- I've gotten countless newborn ball pythons to eat and my ETB was the hardest of all, but no dice with this little guy.

I feel awful because yes I was concerned, but I didn't realize it was life or death. He seemed fine the night before (since we were regularly checking on him); he was not acting lethargic or weak, and had not lost any gram weight. Now I feel like I should have done more, tracked down impossible-to-find ASF pinkies, something, anything.

I don't blame the breeder on this, but I do feel fooled because maybe I should have known better that he wasn't an established animal -- I wouldn't have known what to look for, my experience is in thicker-bodied Boids... Or maybe he WAS an established animal, and the 5 weeks were just to long for him to go without food?

I'm sorry.. I'm just so upset because I have never lost an animal to starvation before, and its been a hard week because a couple days before that I found out one of my Burms has a heart disease and is basically destined to die. Completely off-topic, I know, sorry.

Experienced Chondro Keepers out there, what would you recommend to a new GTP keeper on how to convince a hatchling to eat? Or should he have not died so quickly without a meal and could there have been something underlying? (I feel like he died exceptionally quick, but than again I am biased/partial to the situation, and feel like I was smacked in the face with it all).

Any imput on anything would be appreciated


I should probably add...
He was living in here...


Humidity always up at the higher end of the spectrum, usually around 80%. Back heat with a temp gradient of about 79 degrees to 92 degrees.


This is him a few days before he died >>>

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Cheers!
• Chelsea Lynn Gardiner
(and Frank M. Wood)

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