Posted by:
markg
at Wed Oct 16 13:49:42 2013 [ Report Abuse ] [ Email Message ] [ Show All Posts by markg ]
I would not keep water in the cage just before and after feeding. Cage should be well-ventilated for subocs. Honestly, you can offer water 1 day out of 7 and be fine. Subocs are not like most American ratsnakes in that regard.
It is my own opinion that it is better to have a humid hide (when needed only - if your ambient humidity is already moderate, then it is not needed) than a water bowl 24/7. And I let the humid hide dry out between mistings.
Food refusal in Aug is pretty darn normal for many captive arid-zone reptiles. Then they sometimes eat again in Sep, then refuse all Winter. Not sure about wild subocs, but captive ones can do this once they are mature. Totally fine. Don't fight it.
I would start with the water bowl removal. I would also let the cool end get cool, really cool. Place some newspaper over the entire cage area so the snake can stay hidden anywhere it goes.
A fecal is best to determine if the problem is bacterial, etc. Stress can cause a bacterial imbalance resulting in regurgitation. When the good bacteria needed for digestion is outnumbered or out-competed by the bad bacteria, regurgitation is the result. The underlying cause is usually stress, and the root cause of the stress can be temperature-related, etc. And some individuals stress more than others.
If you want a ratsnake that is almost bullet-proof, get a black rat or yellow rat. With subocs, get the suboc book and start reading, because subocs can be very sensitive if things are not just right.
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