Alright, I'm starting to get frustrated with some of my carpets. Right before Thanksgiving I got in a trio of JCP that were all supposedly eating on live medium mice. Well one female had such a strong feeding response that she took f/t mice right off and feed on f/t mice 2 or 3 times. Now, however, all she does is strike, wrap around the mouse, and then leaves it alone, she won't eat it. I've tried two different times, both times getting her to latch on the mouse 2 or 3 times and she still hasn't eaten it. My big female, the one time I fed her live she ate two mice. Will try live again here in the next day or so. She will also latch on, wrap, and then leave the f/t alone. Lastly, the male has shown no interest in f/t or live and hasn't eaten for me since I've got him. Any suggestions on how to get these guys eating is greatly appreciated, as well as how to get them switched to f/t mice rather than live. Thanks a lot.
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Feeding Issues
Replies (2)
Off the top of my head....make sure they're housed separately to avoid any subtle dominance issues.
If you're attempting to feed more than every 2 weeks, give them a break (I've noticed if they see prey constantly, they start to see it as a threat/irritant instead of food). Just because they're not eating, doesn't mean they're not seeing it...patience is crucial! Take into account that they may be slowing down for the winter (again, just wait a bit longer).
Make sure there's perches, a hide box and good temp gradient.
Lastly, feed at night w/ minimal lighting and movement.
BTW, switch from mice to rats ASAP! Maybe even give that a shot now...you may have gotten carpets that prefer rats to mice....stranger things have happened!
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"He who would stifle debate rather than engage in it, does so at the expense of his integrity and credibility"
Mike Curtin
I agree with Mike, on switching to rats. That may be all they want. Other than that I'd just let them get hungry. You might also try giving them a week or two more without food, it won't cause any harm to them, and may make them hungry enough to eat anything you want them to. I'd just leave them alone and then try again after some time has passed, if they get hungry enough they'll eat without any fuss.
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Thank you,
Tim
0.1 wc girlfriend- Melissa (still nippy even after a year and a half of loving care)
0.1 CRB- Tempest
0.1 JCP- Serenity
1.0 Black Cat- Chester A Arthur
