Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Ok, so I am venting now about my dwarf burm again. Man this thing is killing me I tell you. I bring this you all because I know the g friend does not have a clue of the stress. So I have been trying to drop the pre-killed rat in for awhile, every 5 days. No go, so I actually thought I killed this rat and dropped it in and it was knocked out, Took Brians advice, about that kind of thing. Good thing it woke up and when it started to move she nailed it right away. So today 6 days later, tried to feed her a large pre killed rat, she stayen hidden and that was it. So I moved her branch type thing that she hides under and she just kept biting the food again. I tried the dead rat in the bag last time no go. SO, I remember the first time she every ate a prekilled rat was because it was hidden under the carpet in the tank. SO I tried that, I walk in the room and I see her over there, I dont see the rat and I am thinking SHE ATE IT, I was feeling good, ya so I open the cage and move the carpet and she pushed it aside. She needs to get some girth on her, she was getting bigger again, when I was just stunning the rats, now she is back to not wanting it. So the question becomes once again, do I start to feed her the stunned rats again, or do I say you will eat a pre killed one. I am getting tired of killing these rats and them going to waste. In my huge collection of .1 boa, and .1 ball python, hahahha, she is the only one who will not eat frozen or dead food. I am going CRAZYYYYYYYYYYYYYY. I did think at one point I was going to get ride of her but I will not do that, I just can't give the kid up. She is a great snake dont get me wrong I love to take her out, nice calm, but feeding time is very stressful for me as I am sure it is with her.

the thing that worked for me was to let the snake go hungry for a coulpe of weeks and then feed it a frozen thawed from some tongs what you have to do is move it as if it were alive and then every feeding ther after move it less. What I also found out was to make the head really "warm" under hot water actually helped out with my problem.

Where are you getting your rats? It may be possible if you are getting your rats at pet stores that they may have a pesticide on them that your burm smells and is cautious of and has a loss of appetite as a result. Some pet stores put anti-lice poisons on their rats to prevent any children from contracting lice from pet rats. I forgot what it's called, but I'm sure it's dangerous to reptiles and with their keen sense of smell they would likely easily detect it. If you have the means and the motivation I'd suggest raising your own. It's easy and you'll save a lot of dough. I easily save over 500 per month by raising my own food. Actually,... I sell a lot of "overage", so in all actuality the rats MAKE me extra cash. Not a bad thing at all. Free food and some extra moolah.

>>Ok, so I am venting now about my dwarf burm again. Man this thing is killing me I tell you. I bring this you all because I know the g friend does not have a clue of the stress. So I have been trying to drop the pre-killed rat in for awhile, every 5 days. No go, so I actually thought I killed this rat and dropped it in and it was knocked out, Took Brians advice, about that kind of thing. Good thing it woke up and when it started to move she nailed it right away. So today 6 days later, tried to feed her a large pre killed rat, she stayen hidden and that was it. So I moved her branch type thing that she hides under and she just kept biting the food again. I tried the dead rat in the bag last time no go. SO, I remember the first time she every ate a prekilled rat was because it was hidden under the carpet in the tank. SO I tried that, I walk in the room and I see her over there, I dont see the rat and I am thinking SHE ATE IT, I was feeling good, ya so I open the cage and move the carpet and she pushed it aside. She needs to get some girth on her, she was getting bigger again, when I was just stunning the rats, now she is back to not wanting it. So the question becomes once again, do I start to feed her the stunned rats again, or do I say you will eat a pre killed one. I am getting tired of killing these rats and them going to waste. In my huge collection of .1 boa, and .1 ball python, hahahha, she is the only one who will not eat frozen or dead food. I am going CRAZYYYYYYYYYYYYYY. I did think at one point I was going to get ride of her but I will not do that, I just can't give the kid up. She is a great snake dont get me wrong I love to take her out, nice calm, but feeding time is very stressful for me as I am sure it is with her.
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It isn't "Ideas" that fail or succeed,... it is the "Systems" which are instilled to launch and sustain the idea that either fail or succeed.>[Me.]

I've had the same thing with bij pair of burms het for granite.. Both of them wouldn't eat dead prey. Only live ones. It seems to me that your just as stressed as your burm is. Leave it for a week or two and then just offer a dead prey. Not moving it around, just as quietly as possible offer it and if it won't accept don't keep on trying it. You will cause stress again. If that won't work i suggest you trade it with a burm that will eat dead prey or accept that it's a snake who wants live prey. It could get bitten by the rats but that's the risk..
I personally didn't accept it eating live prey and switched my pair with another pair from the same breeder wich do eat dead. I'm a lot more"unstressed" now!!!
Good luck.

ps a burm wich will grow older does sometimes have a period in wich it will eat everything. If it is used to eat all that is offered maybe it will suddenly eat a dead mice in between and you can switch to dead prey when it's a little older..

You are trying to do two things at once and THAT is causing you stress. I bet the Burmese is stressed also. Either you feed her up to speed so she gets some girth or you switch her- going back and forth from stunned to pre-killed is probably defeating both purposes. My recommendation has been and remains to feed her whatever she will eat and let her gain some weight. Back off the switching for a couple of months. When switching you should wait 2 weeks- not 5 days, hence when she is already thin it is not a good time. It seems you are obsessed with switching her because you are ready and that is causing you part of the problem. Work with her not against her. On a healthy stubborn Burm that refuses to switch I would wait as long as a month to offer pre-killed or thawed. You don't have that luxury because she is already thin.
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Marcia Pimentel
Tango River Reptiles
GiantFeeders

Are you calling it a dwarf burm, because it's a runt or its very
small? I didn't know that dwarf burms existed.

TGIFF!!
tc

No, its just cause she is small, about half the size she should be, I call her my dwarf because of that. No there is no such thing as a dwarf burm (that I am aware of), but it would be cool if there was.

Give me about 6 years,.. I'm working on it. (if my theory proves correct)

>> No there is no such thing as a dwarf burm (that I am aware of), but it would be cool if there was.
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It isn't "Ideas" that fail or succeed,... it is the "Systems" which are instilled to launch and sustain the idea that either fail or succeed.>[Me.]

Really, I got a green female for ya to start with hahahahahahhaa. Why do people breed burms to retics?

lol. no, people breed them together because it results in some incredible animals. I will be doing it soon when I have enough "extra" retic females to throw that way.

>>Really, I got a green female for ya to start with hahahahahahhaa. Why do people breed burms to retics?
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It isn't "Ideas" that fail or succeed,... it is the "Systems" which are instilled to launch and sustain the idea that either fail or succeed.>[Me.]

Does any one have a pic of that, I would like to see the end result. of a burm to a tic or vice versa

...and look at a thread entitled "Hagrid" from about 2 months ago. That's one of the better bat eaters I have seen. I don't like the ones that resemble yellow anacondas.

>>Does any one have a pic of that, I would like to see the end result. of a burm to a tic or vice versa
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It isn't "Ideas" that fail or succeed,... it is the "Systems" which are instilled to launch and sustain the idea that either fail or succeed.>[Me.]

Really, I got a green female for ya to start with hahahahahahhaa. Why do people breed burms to retics?

Gee, Columbo, lets see if we can figure it out. Normal Burms sell for < $100. Retics sell for < $100. Burm x Retics sell for $1500 and up. Nah, I just can't think of a reason.

Damn,.. so I guess I can't put you down for one, huh?

>>Gee, Columbo, lets see if we can figure it out. Normal Burms sell for < $100. Retics sell for < $100. Burm x Retics sell for $1500 and up. Nah, I just can't think of a reason.
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It isn't "Ideas" that fail or succeed,... it is the "Systems" which are instilled to launch and sustain the idea that either fail or succeed.>[Me.]