Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Has any one assist fed a Western Hognose before? More to the point, a hatchling? They are so small with tiny heads I don't see how I could get the mouth open! I'm not about to do this, but with having a couple of non feeders and having tried alot of tricks, I'm running out of things to try and they are look skinny now!

Never had much luck that way..they tend to injure there mouths as well since there rear fangs are fixed.
Let the hatchlings go a day or so without water then soak them in Vit D milk..this will help maintain weight. But don't let them soak for more than an hour or so. You don't want the milk to go bad and make sure you wash them off well afterwards. Do this a couple times a week.

What tricks have you tried??
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Justin Mitcham
ExtremeHogs.com

I've tried:

Normal Pinkies
Tuna Scented
Tuna Coated
Brained
Pinkies cut in half
Cod Liver Scented
Leaving them with a pinkie in a SMALL tub for a few hours

I have no pet toads and native toads/frogs are pretty rare so I wont be able to find any of those, not to mention it's illegal to collect them. If it's REALLY likely to work I could ask in a pet shop if they would let me scent a pinkie of one of their toads?

Give lancefish scented pinkies a go -)

the water from a can of salmon works very well at least for me..dip a pinky in it and rub it on there nose..see what happens.
I have found that if you freeze the juice and thaw it several times it works a lot better. Seems the smellier the tastier.
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Justin Mitcham
ExtremeHogs.com

Thanks Justin. I forgot to try that the last time you suggested it. I'll get a tin tomorrow.

Kieran

I have assit fed without an issue. Use extra small day old pinks. Once you get the head in the mouth, gently push the pink to the back of the throat, and wait. 9 times out of 10 they will finish on their own. I have found that most will eat on their own after the first assist. Mind you, this should be a very last resort. It is much easier to do with western neos, than tricolors.

Also, anole scent has worked pretty well in the past for me, but I try to avoid live prey scenting.
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Jenea
Guardian Reptiles

"When your memories are bigger than your dreams, you're headed for the grave" Author unknown

How did you manage to get the mouth open? There are other things I'm going to try, but I want to be prepared.

Kieran

On the rare occasion that I have had to resort to assist feeding, I pried open the mouth with the round end of a paper clip. Then I have used a "ham" off of a fuzzy mouse, rather than tring to force a pinkie down. Usually , they will eat after doing this a time or two.
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Greg Jackson

kaydee you tryig these scenting techniques with live pinkies? i've had some trouble with getting a few baby hogs to eat pinkies before, then i tried strips of cut up fresh salmon and feed off tongs, i dip it in water so its nice and juicey and just gently rub around there face let them get a taste of the juice and dangle it around a little to give it some action and they usually have snached it up pretty quickly. i know you want them to eat pinkies but getting them to anything is a start once there comfortable eating later you can use the salmon to sent the pinkies with , since they'll already have a taste for it. also you can try dipping a pinkie in egg yoke it also can work good.

Lets just say that being a girl, long fingernails help
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Jenea
Guardian Reptiles

"When your memories are bigger than your dreams, you're headed for the grave" Author unknown

How do you keep them? What temps and what size enclosure?