Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I picked up my wee one on Monday from what turned out to be a slightly shady yet rather well known pet store and need some advice. She/he had been there for nearly two weeks with no food. They couldn't even give me any inventory information on her which should have told me that there was something sketchy going on. Anyway, when I picked her up, they had said that she hadn't fed but that they were going to attempt to feed her that day. I wanted to see the info that came in with her but they couldn't find the information?? I called back on the day that the reptile guy was gonna be in and he informed me that he couldn't *find* the info either. Yeah, I demanded he call the breeder and GET me some info pronto. He did and said that she was approximately six weeks old and that the breeder had been successfully feeding her hour old LIVE pinkies before they shipped her to the store. That was it. No other info could be offered to me. Here is my dillema.

I offered her a thawed pinkie, slightly warmed, pithed in her feedbox to no avail. I then gacked a couple live pinkies from the local pet shop, stuck them in a feed box with her overnight but to no avail. How long can she go without eating? What should I do to get her to eat? Am I being an overly worried mom and should I just give her time to adjust? My concern is that she hasn't eaten in at LEAST two weeks, probably longer and I don't want her getting sick. I haven't come across any info online that says how you must force feed them or how long they could/should go without a meal.

I'd sooooo appreciate *any* help at all as me and my family absolutely adore this beautiful little new addition.

scroll down this forum or search for feeding topics. There are several things that people have tried. Tuna, braining, scenting..... see if the pet store will put you in contact with the breeder. My guess is they wont, but it may be worth a shot. I hate most pet stores. If its only 6 weeks old thats an odd time of year for it to be born. Leave the snake alone for a few days, no looking, touching, handling, smelling, or anything. Then try and give here live new born mouse in a deli container overnight. I hope she eats for you. good luck

EP
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Occupants not paying rent:
7 balls
2.1.10 corns(candy cane, creamsicle, ghost, 6 normal, 4 anery )
1 pueblan milk
1 everglades rat
1 cal. king
1 gray band king
1 w. hognose
1 bearded dragon
1 fish
1 mouse
3.3 cats

If the wee one is truly in dire straits, then (and here come the flames) I would give her some feeder fish. Ruby Reds worked great with mine, and then I quickly switched to pinks scented with them. My hog is now two years old and eats tuna scented hoppers, and has not been a problem feeder since those early days.
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0.1 Western Hognose
1.0 Bearded Dragon
0.1 Common Corn

What flames? Many people have reported on this forum they have used feeder fish to get their hogs going. As long as it doesn't become a staple...

BTW: They are also called Rosey Reds, in case you go and look for them.
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"I know the human being and fish can coexist peacefully."
Governor George W. Bush, Jr.

"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)

Good point about Rosy Reds, I have seen both (Ruby and Rosy) locally. I have been beat up in the past for pushing feeder fish, so I'm a bit defensive. My Hog has fed perfect for a long time, but if she went off feed I would get some feeder fish to get her back on. She would not eat Gold Fish, but loved Rosey's. I always got a kick out of seeing the fish flop around and her chase em' down.

She is also the most responsive and pet like snake I have ever owned. A major change in her behavior came when I got a real Herp cage, instead of a fish tank with a screen top.... I will post more of my theorys on that later.
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0.1 Western Hognose
1.0 Bearded Dragon
0.1 Common Corn

Yes, You are overly worried. Ectotherms don't have the caloric demands of birds and mammals, and 2 weeks shouldn't be a problem even for a hatchling. Give it at least a week, and try a live pinky to start off with.
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"I know the human being and fish can coexist peacefully."
Governor George W. Bush, Jr.

"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)

OK. I'll give her a week to settle in then I'm going to grab her a pinkie and juice it up with tuna juice. I know I'm rather worried, (mom of five with a long history of *adopting* stray people/kids/cats), but like I said, I'd rather worry before she gets sick than not worry enough and have things escalate to the point of no return.

I also wanted to thank all you guys for helping me out. I love her so much, the thought of her not eating freaked me out more than I'd like to admit. I feel a lot more at ease now and I have you guys to thank. Thanks for alleviating most of my unfounded fears. *L* I'm sure I'll be visiting this forum a lot as I'm admittedly a beginner and will be needing all the help I can get. Thanks again....

Sometimes this forum will move slow, but I promise it would be worth it to visit here often. In fact, you could do us all a favor and contribute to the forum, especially other newbie questions!
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"I know the human being and fish can coexist peacefully."
Governor George W. Bush, Jr.

"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)

*L* Yep, you can be sure I'll be visiting regularly. I bought Ayida, (my baby), some rosey reds, some tiny crickets and a couple of frozen ultra newborn pinkies. I am going to try her again on something this evening. I thawed out the pinkie in warm water, dipped it in tuna juice and put it and her in a small dark box, (thought the darkness might go further with her shy self as opposed to the clear feed box I've tried feeding her in last week), and I'm going to leave her in there overnight and see if she doesn't mow that. If not, I'm gonna stick one of the rosey reds in her water dish and see if she doesn't eat that. If not, I'm gonna toss in a couple of the baby crickets and see if she doesn't eat one or two of those. If that doesn't work, I'll be sure to come whining again on here and ask for more of your expert advice. *LOL*

Wish me some luck please! I'm paranoid because I'm in love.

Just plop the Rosey Reds in with her, don`t mess with the water dish.
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0.1 Western Hognose
1.0 Bearded Dragon
0.1 Common Corn