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I waited what felt like a long time before I posted the 'my snake isn't eating' post. But, my snake isn't eating. She hasn't eaten in a month, which is highly unusual for her.

Now, last week she started to look very cloudy. She's clear now so I suspect she'll shed by the weekend. And I'm hopeful that she'll eat after that shed. But she hasn't been in the shedding process for a month, obviously, so I know that's not why she initially didn't feel like eating.

But she looks pretty good otherwise. Temps are where they've always been, humidity's good. When I pick her up she's mellow but she's always been mellow.

I've read a lot about how males will go through spans this time of year when they won't eat, but do females sometimes do that?

I'm not going to really worry until I see if she eats after this upcoming shed. Meanwhile, any encouragement would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks.
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1.1 Florida Kingsnake
1.0 Kisatchie Cornsnake

she may have ovulated.
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ÌÏËÙÍ ËÁÂE!

table #184 DAYTONA EXPO

That's interesting. How would I know?

And if she hasn't eaten in a while, would she have trouble shedding? I mean she's probably losing weight instead of growing.

Is that a stupid question?
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1.1 Florida Kingsnake
1.0 Kisatchie Cornsnake

No it has nothing to do with shedding. I had some snake (males) went off eat as long as 2 months and still sheds just fine.

Belle shed a perfect shed overnight, I'll try and feed her today and see what happens...
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1.1 Florida Kingsnake
1.0 Kisatchie Cornsnake

I put a small mouse in her tank and left it there. She still doesn't seem hungry but I think she looks healthy and fine. She's more active today after her shed and looks good weight-wise. I just took these.

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1.1 Florida Kingsnake
1.0 Kisatchie Cornsnake

are you sure that Belle is a Belle and not a Bob? Any chance that the sexes on your pair of kings got mixed up at some point?
If your other king is eating fine, maybe BelleBob knows something no one else does, hahaha. Maybe put them together for as little bit and see what happens.
Maybe you might also try a different food item, like a f/t fuzzy rat or f/t day old chick for a little bit of excitement.

btw, nice looking snake.

daveb

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in the light, you will find the road...

I never really questioned her gender, she was the first snake I've ever had and the guy I bought her from sexed her. Others have said she seems to have that shorter tail of a female, but I don't know if that's reliable.

My other king is about half her size so I'm not comfortable putting them together.

I don't know. She's awfully pretty to be a boy!!
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1.1 Florida Kingsnake
1.0 Kisatchie Cornsnake

I don't know if it holds any water whatsoever, but in my experience, male brooksi were often more colorful/ lighter colors than females. with so many morphs/ hets out there, that statement may no longer be true...

daveb
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in the light, you will find the road...

That's certainly true in the bird world.

I can't probe her myself, if she continues to not eat I guess I'll take her to a vet and have them probe her while they're looking her over.
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1.1 Florida Kingsnake
1.0 Kisatchie Cornsnake

I have had a few of my snakes go off feed. But if they are acting fine, I don't really worry for about until over a month. Unless they are losing weight. Have you tried heating the mouse up alittle? I did that with my eastern and it worked.

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Ball Python
Jungle Carpet Python
Eastern King
Mexican Black King
Sonoran Gopher
Aberrent Cal King
Anduran Milk
Hypo Brooks
Amel Motley Corn
White Sided Bull
Striped Pacific Gopher
Axanthic Brooksi
Goini King

I love the smell of aspen shavings in the morning...lol

"To serve man..it's...it's a cookbook!"

I always warm up the mice in a baggie in warm water before they try them. But she doesn't even seem curious about the smell of them.

I checked my little spreadsheet I keep, the last time she ate was 7/6 (Sunday is feeding day) and she ate one jumbo mouse and refused a second one. She's been getting two per feeding.

So, I don't know. She really does seem normal other than that. But if she doesn't eat this weekend I might take her in next week.
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1.1 Florida Kingsnake
1.0 Kisatchie Cornsnake

I can't probe her myself, if she continues to not eat I guess I'll take her to a vet and have them probe her while they're looking her over.

Post a couple pictures of the underside of the tail from the vent down.

I would never reccomend that someone trust a vet to probe a kingsnake. They don't have that much experience unless the vet happens to have a large collection at home themselves. There are a few out there like that and are priceless to have nearby. But when it comes to reptiles, most go into their office and pick up a book on "how to" do things .
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ÌÏËÙÍ ËÁÂE!

table #184 DAYTONA EXPO

You know - Rana draytonii use to be Rana aurora draytonii because they look extremely similar to Rana aurora (what use to be Rana aurora aurora) it turns out that Rana aurora is closer to Rana cascadae than it is to Rana draytonii.

FUNKYRES

Ain't THAT the absolute truth!!!

Most(but not all) vets wouldn't know which end is which!...just as most of the general public wouldn't.

If I was Eddie, I would ask if the vet has probed any snakes before, and even nicely ask "how many" before I even wasted my time.

I would imagine that some vets have even gotten online and watched a "probing" video like on Kathy Love's site to help figure out how it is actually done..LOL!

~Doug

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"Better to be silent and thought a fool, than to open mouth and remove any doubt!"

I'll post some pictures.

Maybe a reptile show would be the best place to find someone you could trust?
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1.1 Florida Kingsnake
1.0 Kisatchie Cornsnake

Can you tell anything from this?

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1.1 Florida Kingsnake
1.0 Kisatchie Cornsnake

wrong angle

Take a few pics straight on and from the opposite angle from the one you posted. We can't tell anything from the belly of the snake. It is the vent and down we need to see.

Take about three pics from different angles and distance.
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ÌÏËÙÍ ËÁÂE!

table #184 DAYTONA EXPO

You know - Rana draytonii use to be Rana aurora draytonii because they look extremely similar to Rana aurora (what use to be Rana aurora aurora) it turns out that Rana aurora is closer to Rana cascadae than it is to Rana draytonii.

FUNKYRES

I know a lot of these are very similar, I just posted them all since I don't know what you'd be looking at/for.

I'm going to leave her alone for the night, but if there are different angles that would be more helpful let me know and I'll get some tomorrow...

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1.1 Florida Kingsnake
1.0 Kisatchie Cornsnake

Though it'd be much easier to tell in person.

Aghrehhh AAAAaah! No the underneath of the tail. From the VENT to the tip. Not the top and sides.

But even from those angles it looks to be a female. So you are good.
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ÌÏËÙÍ ËÁÂE!

table #184 DAYTONA EXPO

You know - Rana draytonii use to be Rana aurora draytonii because they look extremely similar to Rana aurora (what use to be Rana aurora aurora) it turns out that Rana aurora is closer to Rana cascadae than it is to Rana draytonii.

FUNKYRES

I thought that's what I did the first time! Oh well, my bad.
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1.1 Florida Kingsnake
1.0 Kisatchie Cornsnake

LOL!!,........take an entire "portfolio" of angle shots,....ya know,....just like a "super-model" photo shoot!.LOL!

Just funnin' a little!........it looks to be a female all day long!

~Doug
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"Better to be silent and thought a fool, than to open mouth and remove any doubt!"

I know. He said from the other angle and also that a belly shot isn't what he wanted, so I thought the other angle was from the top!

Regardless, how much longer without eating should I wait before I get really worried?? I can try some different food I guess, I don't want to order a bunch of stuff I'm not going to use though, the shipping's so expensive on that stuff.
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1.1 Florida Kingsnake
1.0 Kisatchie Cornsnake

The hemipenus rests in the belly of the tail(below the vent). The first pics showed the area above the vent looking down so you could not see that area.

I guess I would have to draw a diagram to show you what I meant.

Still the side shots look female.

I will take pics later of males and females to show you what I mean.
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ÌÏËÙÍ ËÁÂE!

table #184 DAYTONA EXPO

You know - Rana draytonii use to be Rana aurora draytonii because they look extremely similar to Rana aurora (what use to be Rana aurora aurora) it turns out that Rana aurora is closer to Rana cascadae than it is to Rana draytonii.

FUNKYRES

I see what you mean. The other angle being, on the underside, rather than looking from the body down to the vent, the angle from the tip of the tail toward the vent on the underside. I'll try that tomorrow, I've irritated her (and this forum) enough today.

Thanks.
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1.1 Florida Kingsnake
1.0 Kisatchie Cornsnake

Hi Eddie from the top it looks female,though the underside has wide"post cloacal width" just a thought and i sex animals almost as much as blue rosy ,but most of the time i call it before i bring it to the window i use and pop/and then probe.though some young uns want to scent or evert intestines (Lack of Another)but take her/him and hold her main body under your arm and one thumb on the area just above the cloaca and start a ROLL from approx 1" from cloaca southsome force and if they popMALE or quite often you dont pop and see tiny red spots indicating Female...Have a happy ........Chris

Use good lighting ,i think you can roll it out.........C

this is good for yearlings and babies ...Probe for sure!!

Get Eddie going on trying to "pop" a subadult!..LOL!

As mentioned before,...let him get it done by someone with experience doing it,...we wouldn't want Eddie to crush the snake's "package"!!..LOL!

~Doug
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"Better to be silent and thought a fool, than to open mouth and remove any doubt!"

Thats true ,his well fed animals are 3 footers at one year

Don't worry, I'll never do something to or with my snakes I'm not comfortable with. I am an Err On The Side Of Caution type pet owner.

I just hope she eats this weekend and makes me feel silly for worrying about her.
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1.1 Florida Kingsnake
1.0 Kisatchie Cornsnake

That's always a good idea Eddie,.......many a snake has been permanently hurt from enexperienced people crushing and poking around without knowing what they're doing.

~Doug
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"Better to be silent and thought a fool, than to open mouth and remove any doubt!"

Yup - when I bought my blizzard cal king and wanted a male, I cringed when he popped the two he had - fortunately, he (Randy Wright) looked like he knew what he was doing - he popped them like the best of the best, much better than most vendors, who sometimes look downright scary when popping their stock.

I prefer to probe myself. I have popped before, but too often, what pops female probes male, so I obviously have one technique mastered and don't have the other mastered.
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Arrrggg!
It's like Shalom, but for pirates.
- iCarly

Yes,....and on the same token, I've seen people use too thin a probe on hatchlings(almost a needle)and run the female through(impaled) and thought they were male..LOL!,.....sad, but very true!

~Doug
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"Better to be silent and thought a fool, than to open mouth and remove any doubt!"