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I have a juvinile albino tex-duran(half texas ratsnake half honduran milksnake)hybrid that I got from the Tinely Park, IL N.A.R.B.C. back in October. The little thing seems to have been born without a tounge, and therefore can not taste food until it's in his mouth. I have been force feeding since I got him because he doesn't pay any attention to the pinkies. After he gets a pinky down, he ussually snatches a second one out of my fingers right away. I was just wondering if anyone had any ideas on how i could get him to eat on his own.

anything would be apreciated!
Here's a pic of his sister, she's doin' great!

I had same problems with P. molurus. The snake couldn't use its tongue, and first 4 months couldn't eat. Then I took it, and start force feeding it. I couldn't see the tongue when I was opening its mouth, cos it seems that the tongue was covered with mucous membrane, and couldn't get out. After few months of force feeding, python started to use it's tongue! Maybe because of force feeding the python with grown mice, membrane break, and the tongue get out. Soon after, it started to eat by its own. Hope that it will happened with your snake too.
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Lampropeltis triangulum sinaloe
Lampropeltis getula californiae
Orthriophis taeniurus friesei
Elaphe helena
Python molurus bivittatus albino
Agkistrodon contortrix laticinctus
Cryptelytrops albolabris
Pogona vitticeps
Eublepharis macularius
Pachytriton labiatus
Poecilotheria regalis

I'm in no way judging because I find many hybrids very attractive, but it almost doesn't surprise me that it was hatched without a tongue. While anomalies like this can occur within pure-bred species the two parents of that snake and its sister are far enough apart that I would expect there to be occasional genetic incompatibilities within parts of the same gene in the two species.

That being said, I don't know what to give you in terms of advice. It seems like the only thing you can do is keep doing what you are doing and hope that one day the snake takes food voluntarily from the start. Some people claim that warmer food induces a stronger feeding response but personally I don't see how that can be expected to work on a species without a heat-sensitive organ. Many of my colubrids will take either live food or wiggling food without ever using their tongue. If you tried moving the pinkies around with a set of tongs before offering each of the pinkies it may eventually figure out that small objects wiggling around are food.

I remember somebody posted on this forum a while ago about an adult snake that lost its tongue and never ate again. Since yours does eat the second pinky on it's own, I suspect that eventually it will start taking the first as well.

My python couldn't recognize live mice too, even though he had pits off course. I though that python had no tongue, but tongue was just covered with membrane. I guess your snake has the same problem. Just be patient.
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Lampropeltis triangulum sinaloe
Lampropeltis getula californiae
Orthriophis taeniurus friesei
Elaphe helena
Heterodon nasicus
Python molurus bivittatus albino
Agkistrodon contortrix laticinctus
Cryptelytrops albolabris
Pogona vitticeps
Eublepharis macularius
Pachytriton labiatus

I agree that since the snake is taking the second pink you have a good chance that it will start eating on it's own. They do have a sense of smell through their noses, it's just not a sophisticated as their Jokobsen's Organ (the organ that collects scents from the tongue).

Also, make sure he has clean water at all times. I have seen snakes that could not use their tongues because of dehydration or the tongue sheath being glued closed with mucous because of a respiratory infection. I'm not saying that's his problem, just that it's best to keep him well hydrated just in case.
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What goes up must come down...unless it exceeds escape velocity.

I also have a pair of hybrid desert 50/50 black & white cal king X black gap alterna gray band king. The male seems to have almost no equalibrium, probably mispelled that. He seems to roam around the cage aimlessly and constantly. He often does this while upside down. If he is coiled on his belly and I flip him on his back, he doesn't correct himself. He seems to prefer to be upside down sometimes. Other than that he is very docile, takes food any, and every time without hesitation, and is groing at a steady pace. He sheds regularly without any problems. He doesn't have mites and his cage was treated for them with "provent-a-mite" just in case. Just seems strange if you ask me!
here's a pic of his sister.

One of my buddys a while back had the same problem with a young boa he had. She would never use her tounge and would never eat her mouse. What he would do was put a live mouse in a smaller container so she could not get away from it. You will have to watch the mouse so the snake does not get bit but it did work for him. Now the boa is a breeder for hime and eats like a champ.

Kyle
Kyle's Reptyles
www.freewebs.com/kyleherp/