Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hello all, This is my first post here in a very long time but I truly need some helpful advice for my BRB ASAP.

My male BRB is about 4 yrs old now and has always been a hearty eater. As a matter of fact, in his youth he fed well on frozen/thawed rats until about 1.5 years ago when he suddenly refused to eat them and would only take live rats.

He's only left-off eating once before;refusing anything, until I found that his heat mat had malfunctioned and the temp in his cage was too warm.(he prefers low to mid 80's)

Now he's refused everything I've offered him for 2 months and I can't find out why. His habitat is fine, he appears healthy and his behavior hasn't seemed to have changed except for not eating. When I offer him a rat he acts fearful of it, choosing to remain hidden and hissing loudly at the prey when it explores close to him. I'm stumped and I'm concerned for his well-being. Has anyone here any helpful knowledge/experience at what the problem may be and how to remedy it?

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"Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the LORD GOD had made."
Genesis 3:1 KJV Holy Bible

It is common for males to go off feed during this time of year. He wants to be with a female. Two months is nothing. When one of my males reached maturity he went off feed for 6 months. No discernable weight loss. Offer him a rat every 3-4 weeks. You might want to try fresh-killed left in the cage overnight; don't do this with live.
No worries, he'll eventually eat.
Paul

Thank's Paul I really appreciate your help. I wondered if he was experiencing something like that but I wasn't sure. I know my Corn snake will do this for a couple of months during this season but my BRB never did it before.

As I said he does seem healthy so I'll just keep trying him occassionally and I'll try him on pre-killed as you mentioned. Thanks again
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"Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the LORD GOD had made."
Genesis 3:1 KJV Holy Bible