Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have 2 orange albino black rats that are about 2-3 months old. My problem is...that when I take them out of the cage to feed recently they refuse to eat in their feeding containers... They ate wonderfully and imediatelly (sp?) the first month or two but now they smell and watch the pinky and even poke it with their noses but they just won't bite it... I did make the mistake of giving them hampster pinks a while ago and thought that might be the reason.... but if I put them in their cage and put the pinkie in there they eat it within 2 minutes or so... I handle them several times a week and they don't usually act that scared of me (all young snakes are slightly flighty) But I don't see how they could be shy eaters if handled so often (and they have eaten many many times with no problems prior) so any suggestions would be much appreciated!
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0.1 Snow Corn "Hope"
1.0 Redtail "Kilo"
1.0 Ball Python "Road Hog"
1. Orange Albino Black Ratsnake "Chunk" (Goonies)
.1 Orange Albino Black Ratsnake "Peaches" (Didn't name her!)

My suggestion is: If they will eat in their cage, feed them in their cage. Problem solved. Duffy

I'm afraid it may come down to that... they are too small to swallow the reptile bark now but may post a problem later in life.... But I can get them to eat so that wasn't really my problem, What I was wanting to know is if anyone knows why they might suddenly pull a 180 in eating behavior... both of them do it and they have seperate vivs...
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0.1 Snow Corn "Hope"
1.0 Redtail "Kilo"
1.0 Ball Python "Road Hog"
1. Orange Albino Black Ratsnake "Chunk" (Goonies)
.1 Orange Albino Black Ratsnake "Peaches" (Didn't name her!)

I currently have around 150-200 black rats, and I see the same thing every year. About this time (although usually a little later...like Octoberish), they seem to change in their feeding responses. Not all of them do it, and they don't do it all of the time. My guess is that the temps are starting to get lower, and the end of the feeding season is approaching (depending on where you are). Something else that I have noticed is that about this time of the year, they want smaller than usual food items. Long story short, it is normal for this to happen, and there is no reason to worry. However, I would be careful offering hamsters and gerbils as food items to ratsnakes unless you have an endless supply. They can and will get hooked on them, and it is rough switching them back. But if you do happen to have a problem feeder, hams and gerbs almost always get a feeding response (or a chick). Anyway, sorry for the rambling, I hope this helps. Now, I'm curious to see these "orange" albinos. Post some pics for us to enjoy. Good Luck.

Dewey