Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Got some retic hatchlings that will not eat. They hatched Jan 16-19th. I have tried live rat pups, hopper mice, and f/t. All are alert but maybe 1/3 have eaten. Need some tips? How long is time to start worrying?

Also tried force feeding and that did not go well.

Thanks

You might try chicks if you can find them. Most baby Retics that show no interest in rodents can't resist them. I hope this helps. Jud

ok dont panic,i take it they are plenty warm, force feeding is a last resort and you are no where near that, they should be ok for up to 2 months,ive had good luck with just putting them in a brown paper lunch bag then put a small live rat pup in the bag and fold the top, give them about 3 hours, if it has eaten it give it a try again in 3 or 4 day and just repeat this, good luck.
if you have any question e-mail me and we can talk.

thanks JIM.....

Give them time. You have nothing to worry about at this point. I'd give them another month. If they are not eating by that time you might try offering day old chicks. This usually works for me. Switching over to rats from chicks does not seem difficult to me. That is as long as you only offered them a few meals of chicks.

Jim

You might try puttting in rat Crawlers at Night, Retics are naturally Nocturnal, its always worked for me.
Craig