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I know this is long but the help would be appreciated...

I just got my first chondro about 2 1/2 weeks ago. I heard that these gtp are somewhat hard to keep so I have done as much research as I could on the care of these snakes. The gtp that I got was about 4-5 months old. When I got it I was told that it has eaten several times and was in good health. I do alot of business with the people I got it from so I don't think I had anything to worry about on that part. Anyways, when I first got him I left him alone for about a week only misting him. They told me it was big enough to eat fuzzies so I fed him the first time about a week after I got him. I came home the next day to find that he had regergitated it. I left him alone for another 3 days...fed him another one and he had regergitated that as well the next day. I thought that perhaps the fuzzies were to big for him so I have been trying to feed him pinkies but now he won't eat. I know that they won't eat at the begining of a shed cycle but I don't think he's going on a cycle as this has been going on for about a week. I keep the temperature between 80-90 degrees. It might get up to 95 at the hottest part of the day near the warmest part of the cage. The coolest it gets would be around 95 degrees but not for very long. He is active at certain times and he will drink. I know some may go on food strikes but I'm not sure as this is the case since he has already eaten...only he regergitated it, plus he is kind of young to be doing this I would think. Any suggestions? I know that I don't have the experience with these snakes and it could be me being perinoid but it's better to be safe then sorry.

Thanks

When a snake regurg's it screws the whole digestionary tract up. Leave him alone, only misting, for at least 10 days. It takes a good 7-10 days to let his system reset itself. What type of enclosure are you keeping him in? Also, being as young as it is... i've always been told it's not a good idea to handle them at that age. Their bones are extremly thin and can be broken very easily. If he is going into a shed cycle, then yeah its very possible that he's not interested in food. I would wait the full 10 days to let the digestive system reset itself, but monitor him if he's getting ready to shed. If he is, then wait for him to shed before you attempt to feed him again... however if he shes before the 10 days are up still finish it out.

good luck.
-chris
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-Chris

The reason mainstream thought is thought of as a stream is because it's so shallow. -George Carlin

A fool doesn't learn. A smart man learns from his mistakes. A wise man learns from the mistakes of others. Which one are you?

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You could stand to drop the temps by 5 degrees. How large of an enclosure do you have the snake in? Its also my understanding that you should not feed a snake for at least a week after it regurgitates. This has something to do with the fluids in its stomach. When you first see a chondro go through its shed cycle it will probably catch you by surprise. Gtps eyes don't go blue as other snakes do. They just get a little cloudy. Do your little one a favor and purchase Greg Maxwell's book "The Complete Chondro". If you could give more details on how your keeping the snake it may be helpful. Also there are better forums than this one when it comes to chondros. Good luck, Clint

This is a topic that is continually requested, and it's sad to see that inspite of all the advise and suggestions in addition to posts such as this one, people continue to walk the same mistakes and conintually ingest the same ill advised information. First of all, you should be addressing this issue with the folks that you do "lots of business with". If you do lots of business with them, you "should" know them well enough to know if they are well versed with chondro husbandry. It's clear that they took advantage of you and sold you a import chondro (and made a profit on you).

Next, a chondro that has only eaten several times shouldn't be sold, especially to a new comer (and that takes nothing away from your husbandry skills). A chondro that has only eaten 4 or 5 times is not an establsihed feeder. For example, the ones that I will let go have eaten more than 25 times with very little effort, but on average they have eaten 40 times before I sell them. Furthermore,very few 4 month old chondros can handle a meal the size of a fuzzy mouse. That is way too large.

As for your chondro's regurgatation issues, a number of factors can be contributing to this, and I'm pretty sure that all of them are culprits to some degree--the food size, the enclosure temperatures (as has been stated) and your little more than likely is infested with internal parasites.

Personally, I'd go back to the person from whom you purchased the chondro from. If he is credable, then I am sure you will be able to work something out. If he is not, then I'd seek assistance from a knowledgable vet for the well-being of your chondro and call it a learning lesson both in terms of purchasing chondros, and in future business affairs.

I apologize in advance if this came out harsh. it just saddens me to see people get taken advantage of when these snakes are sooo cool! There are plenty of quality, healthy captive born chondros out there--spend a bit more and avoid situations such as these. Why not use such times to "enjoy" your chondro rather than sweat over it and find it belly side up in the AM?....

Rich Culver

Good advice by the way, not that i'm an expert or anything. As i've only been keeping GTPs since the fall, but i have researched the species extensively. That and i've been keeping herps since i was 12 or so, with a layoff through my mid twenties till last year, i'm 33 now. Heres my situation, i purchased a sorong type sept. 21 (dob 5/21/04) it was represented as cbb, i recieved pics from the breeder out of (long island) and checked his references. This little guy will not voluntarily take f/t, 4-5 gram fuzzies as of now. Occasionaly he gets a live one and he will take these. Now, in order to get him to eat i have to antagonize him into striking. At this point i still would not call this an established feeder, would you? I've tried all the little tricks to get him to strike on his own, with no luck. Do you have any ideas on this situation, he is currently being feed every saturday, as with all my snakes.You sound like a very responsible breeder and want your little ones problem free, so what do i do with my little worm. I've asked this question on another forum back in nov. and was told to put the food item into the enclosure and maybe he would eat on his own. I've had no sucess with this technique. I offer the prey warmed and off of hemostats. Thats it for now, i'd appreciate your input, who knows maybe you'll gain a customer. Clint

Clint,
This is only my personal take on your situation. I personally do not want my chondros to develop the feeding technique or "modified bahavior" of learning that food will be placed in their enclosure overnight. I want my chondros to learn to take food from "me". It is "me" that makes them feed. True, initially one has to trigger them to strike, but they do learn. I have several that need this little "jump start" when getting them to feed, and these animals, are those that I am not yet comfortable with releasing. If potential customers can't wait (and beleive me some have left to go elsewhere because I wouldn't let them go), then that is fine with me--as I prefer to have the best interest in the well-being of the animal (and not the future headaches that more than likely will develop). Here's what I have been doing: as the little ones begin to show growth spurts, I do slowly increase the size of their food, but this also increases the "time" between feedings due to increased metaboilic demands. So I judge this on how hungry the fellas get between feeding sessions. Still, as I stated above, I want to teach these fellas to eat from me, so feeding frequency (imo) is still important. So for those that tend to require more work, that's what I do. I offer smaller meals, but with an increased feeding or training. With these I might offer food 5-7 days.

Drop me an email if you'd like to discuss this further!

Rich Culver

95 is way too hot. If you get a young animal up to 95 degrees on a full stomach, in my experience, they will puke every time. Leave him alone for a week or so, drop your temps to around 85, and you should be fine.