Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hey so I have a Hog-Nose Green and he or she has not eaten for weeks! Like 4 weeks!

He used to eat mouse hoppers and baby mice but seriously everytime I get him another one they end up making friends!

I have seen him eat over a dozen mice since he was given to me as a rescue

First off, welcome to the forum!

Being that we don't know anything about the hognose you have, whether it's male or female or which species, Western, Eastern, Southern, we're just taking guesses here. But considering that you said it was a "green", I'll assume it's a Western. Pictures of course are always helpful, especially of the tail since we can often confirm it's sex based on overall tail length.

Having said all of that, it's not entirely uncommon for Western hognose to go off of food for any length of time, some of the more common reasons are shedding, breeding, brumation. Males especially are prone to lengthy fasts during breeding season. I've had a wide range of ages and sexes go off of food for 2-3 months, from hatchlings to adults without any ill effects. While it is disconcerting thinking that the snakes health is at risk, if it was healthy before and it's environment hasn't changed much, there's probably not too much to worry about.

Considering that it's now fall and winter is approaching, it could be that your snake is preparing itself for brumation if it's feeling a change in the temperature and barometer. If this is the case, then you'll need to prepare it to have a cold space somewhere between 40-50 degrees for a couple of months. In this scenario, it will not eat but will require fresh water and darkness during this cycle. After this period, it should resume it's normal behavior. But only do this if you can safely keep the snake at cool temperatures as if it's too warm, their metabolism won't slow down and they could starve to death.

Having said that, while widely discussed, brumation is not at all necessary to maintaining a healthy hognose. Chances are, your snake will eventually resume it's diet when it feels like eating again. Just keep on eye on it's overall weight and have a moist mossy hide for it to stay should it be in the shedding process.

Good luck!
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Troy Rexroth
Rextiles