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Im a new owner of a Sinaloan Milk, i've had it for 1 week almost. On the past days i've tried to feed it with frozen pinkies. I thawed the pinkes. But It refused them, so i went to the store where i bought it and they told me that it was used to get live food. So saturday im gonna go to buy some live pinkies. (They ran out of them)
Is this normal with milks? I haven't had that problem with my other snakes.

Now, the enclosure question; The temperature is 90°f and it has a 50% humidity. Im not misting it or using a heat source. The substrate is Desert Blend by ESU, is it ok with the substrate?
I hope the enclosure is a decent one, Im gonna put more stuff like branches and stuff when i get money.

Thanks!
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-Miki

1.0 Ball Python (Python Regius)
0.0.1 Brazilian Rainbow Boa (Epicrates Cenchria Cenchria)
1.0 Veiled Chameleon (Chamaleo Calyptratus)
0.0.2 Hermit Crabs
2.0 Emperor Scorpions (Pandinus Imperator)
0.0.1 Sinaloan Milksnake (Lampropeltis Triangulum Sinaloae)

which I think they are, I would ditch the desert blend and go with aspen for starters. Then is it possible to drop the temps down to 85 warm side and 75-78 cool side? I know that you said that you have no external heat source, but you might need to go with some kind of cooler. How are you measuring the temps? I suggest getting either a temp gun or using those dial looking thermometers and putting it directly on top of the substrate.

Do you have two appropriate sized hides in there? Not too big and not too small is what you need, one on the cool side and one on the hot side.

I am not sure about the mice, my Honduran was REALLY easy to switch to frozen/thawed. I just put it into his feeding container and it was gone!

Hope this helps.

phflame
pethobbyist host

I'll switch the substarte to Repti-Bark when i get money!
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-Miki

1.0 Ball Python (Python Regius)
0.0.1 Brazilian Rainbow Boa (Epicrates Cenchria Cenchria)
1.0 Veiled Chameleon (Chamaleo Calyptratus)
0.0.2 Hermit Crabs
2.0 Emperor Scorpions (Pandinus Imperator)
0.0.1 Sinaloan Milksnake (Lampropeltis Triangulum Sinaloae)

Hi Miki-

Our 14-inch Sinaloan "Pedro" took a couple of weeks to settle in, actually lost a little weight, but did eat F/T pinkies from the first week, despite having been fed live by the previous owner. After his first shed (which came off piecemeal at 60% humidity, next shed I stared misting and have had much cleaner sheds), he started eating much more agressively and now has his teeth into a pinkie before I can even set it down with the tweezers. He has piled on size-I feed twice/week, I have moved up to big pinkies/smaller fuzzies...Also I warm the mousies up in 90-100 degree water so they are body temp...

Early on I found that feeding at dusk in a darkish room and giving some privacy makes a big difference.

90 degrees temp might be more than necessary, mine is kept at the lower end of a Sinaloan's temp range (70-85 (I keep the room cool for a reef aquarium)) and he is very strong and active and in the evenings is usually visible and ready for a meal, unless he is digesting the last one.

You might try a more closed hide, like a plastic tub upside down, my snake strongly prefers to feel tightly enclosed when resting/digesting, either under a slab of slightly rounded bark or inside a ceramic log, where he has contact on all sides.

Over time Pedro has associated that he often gets fed right after being handled (my six-yr-old daughter would have him in hand constantly if I didn't put him off-limits for a day after feeding)- sits right out in the open and waits for his mousicle, so that regular feeding habit has helped.

Hope that info is helpful- Pedro is a great pet, has never offered to strike, very easy to handle and energetic, too.

I'll try to feed him on Saturday in a plastic shoe box as you stated. I do this with my ball python, but i haven't tried on my sinaloan cause its a baby. Also i'll try to feed him at night.
Thanks for all the help wombat!
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-Miki

1.0 Ball Python (Python Regius)
0.0.1 Brazilian Rainbow Boa (Epicrates Cenchria Cenchria)
1.0 Veiled Chameleon (Chamaleo Calyptratus)
0.0.2 Hermit Crabs
2.0 Emperor Scorpions (Pandinus Imperator)
0.0.1 Sinaloan Milksnake (Lampropeltis Triangulum Sinaloae)

The first few months I had my sinaloan, I had to make sure the f/t mouse was very warm when offered, AND I had to make it wiggle. Try making the mouse move with the feeding tongs, or use a stick to nudge it, simulating movement. This may trick your snake into thinking it's alive, and prompt a feeding response.

Now a days, my sinaloan is conditioned to just grab anything I put near him with the tongs.
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Miki- if you keep your Ball Python is happy, you'll likely find your Sinaloan a real breeze!

HLuterman: Nice gallery of Widdershins-

Nice perfect shed! Awesome at apply 40% humidity- does Widder like to soak in his bowl before shed? I stay at 60% normally, during shed I'll mist the tank and Pedro directly a couple of times a day and he still usually has a couple of leftover patches that need to be wetted. He doesn't soak (voluntarily) so I'm going to try a moisture box his next shed cycle (soon, I think, his belly is bluing up), I'll see if he'll use that.

I didn't say before, but I'm using "Jungle Mix" Lizard Litter, it's less chunky than repti-bark, more natural-looking than Aspen. I usually put the pinkie on top of the same log (if I get it that far) so it doesn't get stuff stuck to it...Pedro does like to burrow a bit...

good luck-

After he goes into blue I put a wet hide in his enclosure. He really likes it and has spent 2 days straight inside it. And then usually right before he's due to shed, I put him in a tupperware box with water and let him soak a few minutes (though he's proven he can shed fine without this). That perfect shed happened right after one of those baths, and he shed right in front of me (which was really neat). I'm a bit anal about his sheds since I live in the desert and worry too much about his humidity. I'm a worrysome Mom.
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Mom=Worry, doesn't it?

I'll definitely set up a wet hide!

Thanks-

Success with the wet hide, a perfect shed, much easier than misting endlessly.

Then I set the shed skin on the counter, went to get food for snake, and my cat promptly ate the skin. URRRP!

Personally, I REALLY like shredded newspaper. Its very cheap (free) and if you put it through a paper shredder it looks good.

I am using a "strip cut" paper shredder that is working very well for me. The alternative is a "confetti cut", which I have not tried.

I hate to pay for a substrate that I will be throwing away once a week or so. The sand needs a lot of work and is very expensive. You can't scoop up EVERY flake of skin and piece of feces out of the sand. I would rather throw away ALL the substrate every week or so and keep a sanitized enviroment.

I know out in the wild it is not sanitized, but these are not wild snakes.

Just my opinion.

i tried unprinted newspaper run thru a paper shredder some time ago and found it killed my mice (dust),i used it for about 2 weeks on the snakes and took them off of it when the mice started dying,they had no signs of URI.i suppose office paper would have less dust.BTW i have a slightly used zerox paper shredder for sale.

I bought two sinaloans two years ago and they were very different from each other at feeding time. One ate what ever she was given while the other would not go near anything warm blooded. After feeding anoles a time or two I found lizard maker. It is lizard scent in a bottle and after applying it to the f/t pinkies he usually ate with in miutes. after a few weeks of using the lizard maker I would offer one pinkie with the lizard scent and then as soon as he finsihed offer another with out the scnent. after a couple more weeks he would eat whatever I offered.

Hope this helps
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