Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have two Juvenile Copperheads, one Northern and one Southern, and I've tried every trick in the book to get them to eat ...

Dead pinkies
Scented dead pinkies (chicken broth)
Live pinkies
Scented live pinkies (chicken broth)
Rotting pinkies (by accident )
Changed light cycle
Changed temps
Small individual cages
Large community cage
Complete isolation
Cages in traffic area

No interest at all. Because the smaller Northern is starting to get skinny I even tried force-feeding. However, she is so small I wasn't comfortable going further, she was thrashing around alot and I was concerned my grip would break something.

I've raised neonate Canebrakes, and I've never had a rattler I couldn't get to eat SOMETHING ... but I'm out of tricks, and they are getting skinny. Any ideas?

Minh

I had to start my neonate copperhead out on squirrel tree frogs. I got her to eat 2 tree frogs then I switched her to lizards. She ate a couple of lizards. Then I would keep a live pinky with a lizard in a small rubbermaid for a few hours and put both the lizard and pinkie in with the snake. She ate both. Next week I kept the lizard and pinkie together again, but only gave her the pinkie. She ate it. I have not had any problems since then.

I had a feeling I was gonna have to try frogs, tadpoles, or worms of some kind. Any ideas how much baby tree frogs cost?

This could get expensive ...

Minh

Let me know..

Joe

save your money on the tree frogs and just buy one. By rubbing the fro on your pinkies you should transfer enough smell that your snake will eat it. That way you can use the same frog over and over, should only take a few times before your snake will eat the pinkies without scenting them first

The guy at my local petshop gave me a bottle Mouse Maker mouse scent to try, just to see how it worked. I got a little bit on my hand. That night I was bit by three snakes, a cat and a dog. Hmmm. Must be good stuff......

Anyway, I hear they also make Lizard Maker and Frog Maker scents. Might be worth a try.

Good luck

with 2 that I kept from a litter of northerns. I tried everything you did. After 3 months, they still hadn't taken their first meal. Last resort, I force fed them both twice each. After that, they took pinkies with absolutely no problems. Either off tongs or just left in the cage. A few times they even grabbed them out of the air before they hit the ground in front of them. It's like you have to teach them what they're supposed to eat. Then they just pick it up from there. It was nerve racking but a good learning experience. As far as the force feeding itself, you just gotta be really careful. For your sake and theirs.

If you will take the pinkies and dip them in Chicken blood and then feed them live it may work.
This is a 100% foolproof plan on Cobras Maybe it will work on Copperheads as well.
Its worth a try
Najakaouthia