Reptile & Amphibian Forums

So one of my '10 Thayeri refuses to eat F/T purchased from my local reptile store. The local store purchases them from RodentPro or one of the other big suppliers.

The same snake will literally attack pinkies that I purchase live from the same place, kill, place in either the refrig or freezer and then warm up just like the others.

Any thoughts?

My other Thayeri are more than happy to eat the F/T that this snake rejects.

Try tearing the snout up real well, or slice open the head of one of the F/T you just got and smear the wet material all over the face and head of the pinky. Many times the scent of the fresh moist tissue entices a great feeding response in snakes that otherwise wouldn't show much interest at ALL in them. This works fantastically most of the time.

Also, you can place some of the ones you just got in with the bag of the ones they WILL eat. The more favorable scent will get onto the not so good ones and will likely be accepted too.

Snake's are all about being governed by scent cues!

~Doug
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"a snake in the grass is a GOOD thing"

my website -Serpentine Specialties

I have a WC Florida that would only take RodentPro mice for the longest time. I ended up saving some old RodentPro mice just to scent other mice with.

She has grown out of that and will eat my hands now.

I have some Floridana that I've been trying to switch over to rats. They won't take them, but if I give them a small mouse to get them in feed mode they will take a rat after eating the mouse. Split braining like Doug said works wonders also. Place it in a deli cup, with a pinky with it's head split open.
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King Snakes! Who can make a better mouse trap?
J Sierra

Thanks for the replies. I've tried braining them, washing them, cutting them in half, thawing them in the fridge, leaving them in a container overnight. Everything I could think of. Rejects one and attacks the other 5 minutes later. Go figure.

>>Thanks for the replies. I've tried braining them, washing them, cutting them in half, thawing them in the fridge, leaving them in a container overnight. Everything I could think of. Rejects one and attacks the other 5 minutes later. Go figure.

Did you try giving him one that he likes to get him in feed mode then give him one of the other ones? Or will he eat more than one?
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King Snakes! Who can make a better mouse trap?
J Sierra

Yeah, it's weird how certain things work sometimes, yet other thing don't seem to work at all for other individuals..LOL!

~Doug
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"a snake in the grass is a GOOD thing"

my website -Serpentine Specialties

When you warm them up try not touching them with your hands. Use tongs to pick them up. I found that the pinkies will pick up your scent. I also use a razor blade and cut down the neck and a small cut in the belly of the pinkie and use my forceps to squeeze a little juice out. Just the way I do it. Hope this helps.
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Tom S
1.1 Flame Lampropeltis getla Floridana
1.0 Hypomelanistic Lampropeltis getula Floridana
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0.1 Hypomelanistic Lampropeltis triangulum hondurensis
1.0 Anerythristic Lampropeltis triangulum hondurensis