Reptile & Amphibian Forums

How many of you have done this?

Any recommendations?

I hate that these snakes can be stubborn eaters as babies. They are total pigs as adults. Well, those that live to adulthood anyways.

Should I resort to offering tiny toads before I begin force-feeding?

The closest live pinkies are 200miles away. I've tried thawed pinkies but she doesn't want it. And, I also tried tuna-scented thawed pinkies. No deal.

What gives? She will start to lose weight soon, and she already looks empty.

Thanks.

Is it too late to buy some pregnant mice... or create some

Smiles,
Alinda

Force feeding should be the last resort, but it is not in this case since you haven't even tried a live pinky yet. There are also MANY other tricks to use. On top of that, you should be using a scale to determine body mass loss, not by the last time it ate. Hognoses can go for a long time without food before loosing any significant weight.

Force feeding in hognoses is especially problimatic becuase their gums tend to bleed when the mouth is forced open. Some do more than others. Perhaps it is due to their autohemmoraging capabilities. But this certainly can lead to stomatitis in an already stressed snake.
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...the oldest task in human history: to live on a piece of land without spoiling it."
Aldo Leopold (1938)

"Sometimes I think the surest sign that intelligent life exists elsewhere in the universe is that none of it has tried to contact us."
Calvin and Hobbes (Scientific Progress Goes 'Boink', 1991)

Force feeding is a very dangerous practice. If you are not fully trained you can actually kill the snake. It is only used as a last resort for the most stubborn of feeders and then only by trained professionals. You can try scenting with a toad slurry. My friend's snake didn't eat for over a month and he scented by slitting the toad from the sternum down and rolling a fuzzy around in the slurry. He ate two fuzzies that night and then has eaten a scented fuzzy at least once a week since then. There are several other tricks you can try before force feeding. Just read up on it and try everything. I recently have aquired a wc hatchling and he is eating unscented pinkies already.