Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I hope this can be useful to some folks out there. In 2003 and again in 2005 I was working with hatchling mandarins that refused to eat. I tried all the usual tricks, a December cooling and warm up, live, thawed, brained, exotic rodent pinkies, lizards, fish, everything. Nothing worked. In both cases I fell back on force feeding with mouse tails. In both cases I had to keep this up for a solid year. In both cases the break came in late summer. The year before last year the stubborn holdouts started feeding on live pinky mice. This year the only thing that worked were live dwarf hamster pinkies (dhp). Now I've gotten him to take live pink mice that were washed and scented with dhp odor.

I guess the lesson for me is patience pays off. It's a good thing for them they were pretty little devils or I might have given up.

Glad you got them started, John. Makes ya wonder what they eat in the wild? TC

Hi Terry:
I'm starting to think they don't eat at all their hatchling fall (at least in some areas of their range). But whatever the case may be they are definitely not a foolproof captive snake. But I've learned some good techniques for them so I guess I should be thankful for the training.
Regards
John

>>Hi Terry:
>>I'm starting to think they don't eat at all their hatchling fall (at least in some areas of their range). But whatever the case may be they are definitely not a foolproof captive snake. But I've learned some good techniques for them so I guess I should be thankful for the training.
>>Regards
>>John

I remember when I used to keep moellendorffi that the babies sometimes were difficult to get going. They did great after the brumation. I wonder if the species doesn't time it in the wild to hatch in the fall, or even, late fall?

Cheers...TC

Terry:
That could be. I've noticed that the lighter colored mandarins seem to be the worst initial feeders. So I've speculated that they come from the cooler shorter summered areas and that they are most likely to go into the ground without eating. Pure speculation of course, but that's half the fun in making up theories. The less the proof, the harder to disprove.

>>I remember when I used to keep moellendorffi that the babies sometimes were difficult to get going. They did great after the brumation. I wonder if the species doesn't time it in the wild to hatch in the fall, or even, late fall?
>>

John (good one):
Problem is, everywhere they come from is terribly hot and humid, unless it's really high in the mountains. Maybe it's that they're aestivating, not brumating. Any rate, they're not eating, and a cool down would be in order, for a few weeks anyway.

I have a Pantherophis guttatus that isn't eating, but it's big and healthy baby. I'm sure it'll come around eventually. It's been hot here, and no way to cool down other than to put in the frig. I don't think I'll do that. But maybe that's what they need is that rest period before starting in on the new growth. We'll see. Good luck with those.

TC

>>Terry:
>>That could be. I've noticed that the lighter colored mandarins seem to be the worst initial feeders. So I've speculated that they come from the cooler shorter summered areas and that they are most likely to go into the ground without eating. Pure speculation of course, but that's half the fun in making up theories. The less the proof, the harder to disprove.
>>
>>
>>
>>>>I remember when I used to keep moellendorffi that the babies sometimes were difficult to get going. They did great after the brumation. I wonder if the species doesn't time it in the wild to hatch in the fall, or even, late fall?
>>>>

Terry:
I'm pretty sure that (at least) the mandarins I'm working with are a cooler climate animal. I've kept them in an air-conditioned room this summer and they've thrived!!! A long term wild caught male that previously was a very poor eater is getting fat. Others that used to stop eating in July are going strong here at the end of August. For the most part they are actively avoiding the heated cage areas and enjoying the colder temps (70 F at night, 74 F during the day). I would say they are definitely not hot weather animals.

Best of luck with the guttatus.
John

John, I didn't mean to imply they liked hot weather, but that they were avoiding hot weather. That could be a reason why they're so fossorial too. Just trying to come up with a reason why the babies sometimes don't eat. Is this the first year you've kept them in the air-conditioned room?

TC

>>Terry:
>>I'm pretty sure that (at least) the mandarins I'm working with are a cooler climate animal. I've kept them in an air-conditioned room this summer and they've thrived!!! A long term wild caught male that previously was a very poor eater is getting fat. Others that used to stop eating in July are going strong here at the end of August. For the most part they are actively avoiding the heated cage areas and enjoying the colder temps (70 F at night, 74 F during the day). I would say they are definitely not hot weather animals.
>>
>>Best of luck with the guttatus.
>>John

Yes, this is the first year I'm using A/C.

>>John, I didn't mean to imply they liked hot weather, but that they were avoiding hot weather. That could be a reason why they're so fossorial too. Just trying to come up with a reason why the babies sometimes don't eat. Is this the first year you've kept them in the air-conditioned room?
>>
>>TC
>>
>>
>>>>Terry:
>>>>I'm pretty sure that (at least) the mandarins I'm working with are a cooler climate animal. I've kept them in an air-conditioned room this summer and they've thrived!!! A long term wild caught male that previously was a very poor eater is getting fat. Others that used to stop eating in July are going strong here at the end of August. For the most part they are actively avoiding the heated cage areas and enjoying the colder temps (70 F at night, 74 F during the day). I would say they are definitely not hot weather animals.
>>>>
>>>>Best of luck with the guttatus.
>>>>John
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