Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hi Everyone,

Just a quick question, Once you assist feed do you continue to do so until they start feeding on their own (every 5 days) or just as a last resort when they lose weight again?

regards,

Kenny

Its pretty much a last resort before I start assist feeding. Once I start, with each feeding I will first OFFER food. Only after that is refused will I assist feed. Usually, they're getting smaller than normal meals, a little more frequently than those that feed on their own. So, if a normal feeding schedule is once per week, the assist fed snake will be every five days.

Steve

I ususally will assist feed them to pack a little weight on them. Theses are the snakes that would not eat at all as babies and began to loose weight and body mass. Lets say they were 85grams when born and this has slipped to 65-70 grams, I may assist feed them for awhile. It seems once they get a little bigger, they usually eat a little better and are not so timid.

Once I get a little weight on them, I slow down and do not assist feed. I will let them fast for a few weeks then offer food. I may let them go for a long time not eating, but contiunuing to offer food.

Good luck.

I assist every 5 days. Usually you can tell when the light goes off for them when they start to coil around you, when then do they that I let them go and see if they will swallow on their own, most times once they do that they will eat on their own.

Yeah...it does seem like something "clicks" at some point and they are ready. I really hate (as I am sure evryone does) to assist feed, so I let them alone as long as they are not losing weight. If you end up with a healthy large snake, eating on its own, you have done it correctly in my mind..

I have one now that is the worst I have ever dealt with. I have been force feeding since june and she fights the whole time. I have to put it all the way down or she gets it back up. She is so small that I can not leave her go to long. Her clutch mates are all around 200 grams and she is 70. OF course she was the only female in her clutch and her male is a Het for pied and mom normal. At her this rate She will not breed for 5 years. lol

Yup, I have one like that now. I have to keep her mouth closed with my fingers and then work the little rat fuzzy bump all the way down to her stomach with the other hand or she will regurg it. The worst is that I dont always raise my own feeders and I have been buying them currently. They were out of live and I figured I had to assist with this PITA anyway, so I got frozen... well the rat burst open half way down and then she regurged it all on the floor - what a mess! Sorry for the gross mental images, but you know the deal. Rat guts = Smelly nastey mess.

It always seems like its the females that are slow / non - eaters dont it?? Why is that? LOL! It will make you nuts if you let it. You have to take it as part of the challenge and roll with it...

Hi Everyone, and thank you for your responses. I assist fed two of mine 7 days ago for the first time and both seemed to take them quite easily. i tried to just offer food yesterday and they did'nt seem to sure what to do. when my clutch was born they were all about 48g, is this small for hatchlings? I am a little worried as they seem to be losing weight.

regards,

kenny

My girl I assist feeding was 46 grams. Keep doing it every 5 days, you will know when the light comes on. Zefdin That totally sucks. that is the worse mess to have to clean, I feel for ya.

a gram scale can be your best friend in this. weigh your nonfeeders every few weeks and you'll have a pretty good idea if they are losing weight and in trouble. before you assist feed, try some things to make them feel secure. try a chip substrate instead of newspaper. [thanks, oz.] small, tight hide, temps worked out, etc. i always start babies on hopper mice as opposed to rat pinks becuase they aren't perishable, so i can try again another day. put some rat chow in the cage, hoppers will shred your snake if they are hungry, turn off the lights for 2 hours. if that don't work, try 2 fuzzy mice [so they stay warm] under the hide overnight. if i assist feed, i only do it every other week, so i'm not stressing the snake. i use frozen fuzzy mice, and when the snake lifts it's head at the end, push another fuzzy into the back of the first, so it chain feeds. good luck, kd