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i bought this southern copperhead at hamburg on june 13th he ate the first week a live small rat ever sence he wont eat he just gets defencive its been bout a month sence hes eaten i would guess hes 2 foot or just under ive tryed live small rat live mouse frozen small rat and frozen mouse he jsut will not eat like i said its been a month he dosnt seem to be losing weight but its kinda worrying me any tips? i'm new to hots him being my first i wouldidint know much bout how copperheads "work" his day temps are 84-88 and night 70-76 no lcue what the humidity is but hes on cypress mulch (as of yesturday hoping that it would help humidity) but it seems to be working fine i havint seen him drink but as the guy refered to him as a "spit fire" (wut a first hot huh?) hes not good at getting hooked he stays on but thrashes around the cage as soon as the hook touches him he flips out any advice would be helpful thnx -josh

Is this your first copperhead.
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Archie Bottoms

i said in the message this is my first venomous period

He could be in shed cycle, if he isn't losing weight and its only been a month, give him some more time. Give him some privacy for a couple of days and try a live mouse. Coppers don't require a high humidity so a good fir bark substrate should be sufficient. Is this a wild caught or captive bred snake? Parasites could be an issue

Good Luck

i was told he is captive born and yeah hes on cypress mulch like i had mentioned before and the guy who sold em to me (i called him) he said 60% humidity is what i'm aiming for ....whats a shed cycle? isnt it just the period when hes preparing to shed? why would that take a month?

put him in a large paper bag with a mouse and staple it closed then place it in his cage overnight

ok i'll try it but that still dont answer my question isnt a shed cycle just when there getting ready to shed? why could that take up to a month?

The cycle of shedding, no it will not take a month but my rattlesnakes eyes will glaze over and the whole thing could take a week and a half, at which time they usually don't care to eat....

exactly what i thought didnt think it was a shed cycle if the paper bag thing dont work any other suggestions? and anything other than a paper bag i can use? i dont think i have any

Dip the mouse in chicken soup, it worked for me

ahhh your the person that did it with gaboon that wasint eating....i tryed a piece of raw chicken a few mins ago no interest

Yeah, now he's eating but he isn't crapping, now I have to worry about the other end lol

Rattlesnakes are so much easier to keep, I have never had any problems at all with my rattlers, and they're always so happy to see me......

lol yeah i also bought 2 western massasauga rattlesnakes and a false water cobra for my first hots rattlesnakes never give me a problem and never hesitate to eat but i still need to figure this copperhead thing out

don't staple a snake and mouse together in a bag what do you think the mouse will do when it gets hungry? Try appropriate sized mice or rats, live or frozen thawed, check your set up, temps, hide spots etc. Its most likely a husbandry issue.
Never leave a live rodent and snake together unattended, venomous species or otherwise.

Copperheads are my thing and that is what you should do .They stress easy so give it a chance to settle.By the way only one snake can be a first.Read some books get some knowledge dont worry about a snake so much eating until it is settled in awhile.Give it a good place to hide make the snake feel secure.Leave it alone and it will thrive as all of mine do.
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Archie Bottoms

how long do u suggest me leving it alone before trying to feed again (if by leaving alone u ment dont even feed it) he is supossed to eat on sundays hes only eaten once and its been a month sence hes eaten

At least another week, and a shed cycle can last a month from when they start to cloud ,then cloud, then clear,then shed and some snakes will not eat at all from the very start of the cycle.Copperheads are very good snakes and live a long time if it has not eaten or clouded or shed in that time then you can worry.You are new to copperheads do not worry .If you can post a picture so we can see the snake.We may know more.
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Archie Bottoms

ok heres some pics there not very good its late and the heat lamp screws up the lighting and the snake itself was hiding and i feel i'm to tired to pull him out for a better pic srry

setup--- http://i710.photobucket.com/albums/ww107/joshmanblue/PICT0003.jpg

snake itself--- http://i710.photobucket.com/albums/ww107/joshmanblue/PICT0011.jpg

Turn the heat lamp off! That could be why it's not eating. And don't try the soup thing, coppers don't eat chicken, raw or otherwise in the wild.
Also, they will eat on any day that ends with a "y". Sunday included.

whats wrong with the heat lamp?

Well, all sorts of things can be wrong with a heat lamp.
The number one thing that comes to mind is, Copperheads don't live under heat lamps.

Unless the room you house the snake in is around 50 degree's, your ambient temperature should be fine for your copperhead, and any other snake you are housing. My bet is, since you stated you temps are btw 84-88 degrees, is just plain too hot! You will not find a copperhead in the daytime basking outside at 84-88 degrees all day, so why would you keep him like that during the day?

Seems to me, and I'm sure others will support me on this, you need to do your homework BEFORE acquiring your "first" venomous snake. I mean, c'mon, you didn't even know what a shed-cycle was.

My advice, turn off the heat source, give the snake a tight hide-box,large water bowl (for humidity), leave it alone, and after a week or so, offer it food again. If it doesn't eat, AFTER you have tried this, then my money is on it's in a shed-cycle,and shed cycles can last up to 2 weeks. And after it sheds, try feeding again.

Copperheads are very hardy and can stand a lot of abuse and lack of daily attention.
Good luck and keep us informed.

Randal Berry

its 85-88 directly under the heat lamp during the day if the heat lamp off the AC in my room keeping all the temps correct without getting to hot will make his tank drop to the low 60s...so turning the lamp off isnt really an option and i was told by the breeder who sold him to me (i called him aksing some questions on why he may not be eating) he said the temps during the day are correct i told him its ussaly 70-77 at night he said that was fine also i dont know what the humiditys at but i msit the tnak once a day with cypress mulch as a bedding and plastic over the top of the cool side

Did the breeder you called, breed this snake?

Randal Berry

no he had sold this out of his private collection but had bred copperheads in the past

I would take Randals advice when I have a serious question thats who I ask.Good luck.
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Archie Bottoms

I agree w/ Randal on this one... The temps are a little high in the basking spot... those temps short term would be fine, but all the time are high from my experience with copperheads. Best bet is to just leave the snake alone, leave it covered, and in a low traffic area for a while and offer food again once it has time to settle.

he still didnt eat after leaving him alone for 5 days and still he seems more scared of it then anything he rattles his tial then flees into his hide

I have read and also have seen with my copperheads that too high of temp can discourage feeding. Try a little cooler. Maybe 78-80 in day and 65-68 at nite. These guys don't like too much heat usually. Also, give it at least a week between feeding attempts. Trying over and over to offer it food seems to make them become uninterested. Is the snake skinny looking?

Justin

i posted links with pics on a reply so u can see the snake and its setup

i'm going to try feeding the copperhead tommarow...weather he eats or not i'll keep all of ya posted

np
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Archie Bottoms