Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have a perplexing problem with a long-term Florida king -- he has stopped eating. As an FYI, this snake is a hybrid -- north Florida Blotched king X south Florida "Brooks" phase.

This problem started about a month and a half ago -- this king, which I've had since he was a hatchling (from Brandon Osbourne -- 2002 Daytona reptile expo), has been a very good feeder overall; although he has occasionally just not eaten the (thawed) mice I put in with him (he sometimes will/would push them around during one of these "non-feeding" episodes, as well). Other than wasting mice, this never was a problem because he would always eat normally the next time I tried.

However, this time, he simply won't eat and, even stranger, has on two occasions started to swallow a mouse and then just given up and spit it out (while it is still in his mouth -- not after it's been in his throat/stomach).

Since this king has a very small head relative to his body size, I have tried smaller mice (even though he previously has eaten the extra-large mice just fine) as well as putting live mice in with him. Re: the live mice, the first time I did it, he went after it VERY aggressively and did catch/kill/swallow; however, the very next mouse I put in, he also went after very aggressively but only killed it.

Since then, when I put live mice in with him, he will show a lot of interest (going over after them) and did strike a few times (after that first time when he ate one), but now does not even try to strike at them. Oddly enough, when I open the cage while the mouse is in there, he will still rush over to me just like he always has when he is very hungry.

Also, when I put freshly-killed mice in with him, he will go over to them but seems like he can't see or smell them (???). It’s very odd -- he will pass right over a freshly-killed mouse and not acknowledge it at all (and, once more, if he sees my movement, he will rush right over towards me ???).

I did take him to the local herp-specialist Vet and all he could recommend was some baytril injections for a possible/unknown infection -- has anyone here seen this behavior in a king and/or can anyone refer me to a good (internet or direct) resource to help trouble-shoot this problem? I also posted this in the kingsnake forum here but would like to know of any other good web sites, as well.

Fortunately, this snake has a lot of "weight to give" since he is very heavy-bodied but this problem really concerns me as it just doesn't make sense.

Any input, assistance, referrals, etc., would be most appreciated -- Thanks...

Tim
Sarasota, Florida
mobile (941) 915-3115

A couple more important bits of info.:

His mouth looks very good/healthy -- no signs of mouth-rot or any other issues in there.

And I did put a light in his cage to raise the temperature a few degrees (even though he has always done very well in the typical 77 - 80 degree environment) and to give him a very warm basking spot, if desired (he is in a very large Vision cage so there is lots of room for him to move around). I just tried feeding him again last night after a couple of days in the warmer temps and had the same results.

Sometimes, too much action outside the cage from people or pets can cause some snakes to not eat normally. If this isn't the situation, maybe providing more cage "furniture" can provide more privacy for the snake to feed.

If this doesn't help, you may want to consider taking the snake to a vet for a check-up.

My impression is that of a snake that is painfull. Hungry, but cannot, or won't eat. I'm uncertain as to why an expert exotics vet would only recommend a baytril series. Were any diagnostics offered? Was cost an issue? If neither, then I would definately look up another vet, explain the problem, and start again at step one.

Ian