Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Welcome to kingsnake.com's message board system. Here you may share and discuss information with others about your favorite reptile and amphibian related topics such as care and feeding, caging requirements, permits and licenses, and more. Launched in 1997, the kingsnake.com message board system is one of the oldest and largest systems on the internet.

Click for 65% off Shipping with Reptiles 2 You
Click here to visit Classifieds

My baby albino corn snake still won't it's meal. (waited a week and a half)

blaino_murph Aug 23, 2003 05:26 PM

I've tried putting it in a brown paper bag with a live mouse. I've tried putting it in a Glad container with holes in it. I've tried cutting off the pinkies head and putting slit in the top of the head. I've tried just about everything. It's been 33 days since it has feed.
ANY MORE SUGGESTIONS.

Replies (5)

Traci Aug 23, 2003 07:38 PM

I'm sorry to hear that. Have you tried holding the snake in one hand and offering the mouse with the other. (as pictured and described in The Corn Snake Manual by Bill and Kathy Love) I have a couple of babies that will only eat this way right now. If I leave them in a deli cup with the f/t pinky mouse they ignore the mouse and just want OUT! I hope they don't think I'm going to feed them by hand forever though!

Good luck!
Traci

Gargoyle420 Aug 23, 2003 11:47 PM

Most snakes will take something down if you can just get it in there mouths.If you can have someone help you the first time it's easier.The easiest way is to purchase some mice,make them go sleepy,then take off there tails.Ive never used anything other than what im force feeding to gently open it's mouth.With a tail you can safely put it in almost all the way and the snake should do the rest.I also try to keep handling it for a short time so it doesnt get the silly idea to regurge it.Now im probably going to take some heat for this next one but here goes.Have you tried live hopper mice?I currently have one corn,about 13 inches and it is all she will eat.It seems the movement from the hopper triggers a heck of a feeding response from her.Do not leave a hopper mouse in overnite as it could tear your snake up.What i do is wait till it get's quite at nite,around 11pm and i gently take the lid off and gently put the hopper in with her.Then i walk softly away and sit down and watch and wait.I have only enough light in the room to see what's going on.One last option is anoles.Try the same thing at nite.I doubt an anole will do any damage to your snake.Good luck...Paul.

patricia sherman Aug 24, 2003 03:55 PM

I think that the baby has gone long enough without food, and that forcing is now in order.

Although you recommend mouse tails, I've never used them for the simple reason that they dontt provide a completely balanced meal. I've used forcing for several babies, and always done it with the smallest pinkie mice I could obtain (newborns). I use a fingernail to gently prise the jaws partially open, then insert the nose of the pinkie. From that point, it is simply a matter of gradually working the pinkie back in the throat, until it is about half-swallowed. At that point, I partially release the snakie, to see whether it will finish the swallowing of its own accord. If it makes to spit it out, then I just continue with the forcing until the entire pinkie is within the snakie's mouth. I hold gently the jaws against the pinkie's bottom (the snakie's teeth curve backwards, so this prevents spitting out), until the snakie swallows. Occasionally, it may be necessary to massage the pinkie partly down the neck, but usually not.

Once the pinkie is past the back of the throat, the snakie almost invariably continues ingesting. At this point, I immediately release the baby into its house.

With babies that continue to refuse to feed voluntarily, even after having been forced a couple of times, I continue forcing them for a few weeks to build up their size a bit. Then, I place them into brumation for at least five weeks. After emerging from their "winter" sleep, they almost always will begin to feed voluntarily. In fact, I've only ever had one that didn't do so. He's now over a year old, and still being forced. Hopefully, he'll feed on his own following his second brumation.
-----
tricia

patricia sherman Aug 24, 2003 04:00 PM

Sometimes, the pinkie being dry will make it more difficult for the baby to swallow, so once I've got the pinkie inserted, I place a drop or two of water around it, to make it slippery. This speeds up the process, and I believe makes it much easier on the snakie's throat, and less stressful simply by virtue of reducing the amount of time that the baby must be restrained.

-----
tricia

Gargoyle420 Aug 25, 2003 05:44 AM

Tails will let them gain weight and there easier for a newbie to force feed.Day old pinkies are hard to find in most area's.Cutting pinkies makes them slick as heck and harder to force down.Tails from adult mice have some protien and some bone for calcium.I had an apricot banded milksnake that i had to feed tails to for a month.He did perk up and started feeding on his own.Im just giving the kid a few options to work with.Ive been watching his post's for the last few weeks.Someone else mentioned the tail feed also.I would hate to see him shoving a good size pinky down the little guys throat and hurting it.It's just my opinion and opinions are like a$$holes everybody has one....Paul.

Site Tools