Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have a 10 year old Western Hognose female. She often fasts during the winter, but always starts eating mice again in the spring. She has quit eating in the summer this time and has lost a lot of weight. She is more lethargic now, and I cannot convince her to eat. I brought her to the vet last week, and they tube fed her and did a fecal test. The test came back negative and the vet saw nothing wrong. I cannot afford to keep taking her for tube feedings, but am nervous to force feed her. Do you have any suggestions? I don't want to watch her starve. Also, what is an average lifespan of a Western Hognose?

Thanks!

Sorry to hear about what has transpired. I know what you mean about not being able to afford the constant vet visits. 10 years seems a bit low on the average lifespan so i wouldn't worry about that quite yet. Just keep hanging in there and doing what you do.

Hi,
We have a hognose here at the museum that has a similar story. She was wild-collected in 1995 as an adult. Last year she went on off-feed for 6 months. We were able to jump start her on re-feeding by putting a tiny bit of cod liver oil(squeezed from a capsule) on the thawed mouses' nose. We delicately placed in front of her and after touching it with her tongue, she took it very quickly and has fed every since without adding the oil every time. Sometimes hognoses just need a jumpstart.
Hope this helps.