Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hey guys, I have had snakes for the past 13 years(mostly rats, corns, and kings) but I got my first bullsnake about a year ago. I have a male that is a little over 5 feet long. There are 2 hides(one on each end) and water in the middle. I use an undertank heater on one end. I do not use heat lights. The temps have always been the same ever since i've had him. He seems to prefer the cool side but I have read that this is normal for the PITS. I give all my snakes store bought spring water. He eats F/T medium rats. I feed him once a week but he refuses a meal every now and then. Sometimes he'll grab the rat and act like he's going to eat it but when I go back to check on him he has swallowed it down past the head and has spit it out(Note:he spits it out before I go into the room so I don't scare him to make him let it go). Everything has been normal up until this week. He will not stop roaming his cage. He has been doing this for the past 4-5 days and his nose is starting to get irritated but not raw yet. I don't use screen tops. I am familiar with the nose irritation because I own 7 large black rat snakes. Anyway, I don't think it has to do with breeding because he didn't do this last year. He hasn't eaten in about 3 weeks. There have never been any signs of illness or parasites(internal or external).

My questions are:
1.What makes him refuse a meal besides shedding?
2.Why does he spit out his meal after he has began to swallow it?
3.What is making him cruise his cage non stop?

Maybe this is normal bull behavior but i'm not sure. Thanks for any help.

Sounds like he is coming into maturity .. Could be a male wanting to breed ... Even though your temps have been regualr and stable they can sense seasonal changes outside and they biologically know when its time to roam in search of that special someone

Is he a normal Bull ? perhaps you could find a mate ? or just let him do his thing ... to keep his nose from rubbing raw maybe alter his environment a bit .. add some climbs, maybe a burrowable substrate .. bulls spend a lot of time in burrows in the wild..

Good Luck !
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Safari Tom
See'em Touch'em Save'em
www.SafariTom.com

He is on aspen so he gets to burrow. He is not a normal, he is an albino. Thanks for the advice.

Maybe he is too hot?
You mentioned that he prefers the cool side. Turn off the undertank heater for a few days and see how he acts.
You know by chance what the temps are in his cage?

Billy
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Genesis 1:1

He prefers the cool side most of the time but he does lay on the heat too. He spends about 70% of his time on the cool and about 30% on the warm. The cool side is about 72-75 and the warm is in the low 80s but of course the bottom of the cage over the heat is fairly warm to the touch.

The temps do seem about right then.
Here are my thoughts to your questions:

1.What makes him refuse a meal besides shedding?

He actually just may not be hungry. My biggest pits that eat small to medium rats get fed every 10-14 days. Once a week may be too much sometimes, for him.

2.Why does he spit out his meal after he has began to swallow it?

Could be that he thinks he is " killing " it, thinks he may be hungry, but then changes his mind? I wish I knew!

3.What is making him cruise his cage non stop?

He could be wanting to breed. My albino Sonoran gopher does that each and every year around this time.
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Genesis 1:1

Thanks for all the answers. I've never kept a PIT before so I really didn't know what to expect. I thought they might act like any King, Rat, or Corn but this isn't the case at all. Thanks again.

pits aren't much different from most other n/american colubrids w/ the exception that they are more fossorial, esp. the pines. that is, they hide below where it's cooler & don't care for constant warmth at all!!! if you keep him at natural room temps & cycle him normally, he'll be much, much happier.....especially if he's intoduced to a g/friend! sounds like that's on his mind big time.......