Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I am getting so sick of my Boiga dendrophila not eating. It has been over 2 months since its arrival and still, not even close to a meal. He drinks water, plenty. He comes out every night cycle like clockwork, but never resopnds to any kind of food. He is under 4 ft. in a 55 gallon tank with 4 large branches, lots of fake foliage cover, I mean a lot, and both a hide on the ground and a hide in the tree he never uses at all. His temps are 92*F during the day and about 80 - 85*F at night. What can I do? Does anyone have experience force feeding? It is rediculous at this point. Also, I treated his for parasites even though his fecal came back negative because it was about the only thing left I could think of that would cause him not to eat. I have tried feeder fish, frozen/thawed chicks, live chicks, frozen/thawed mice, and live mice. Nothing. He is looking terribly skinny and I dont want it to come down to his death. Any suggestions? Please help, I can't take this anymore. Attached is a current picture of his enclosure, you can see the ground hide just behind the one propped up like a tree trunk. You can also see him underneath a bunch of foliage in the middle.

I was in a similar situation and here is what I did and it worked. I took a wild bird nest with hatchling chicks and placed it into the cage. The snake ate within a day. I then would place mouse and rat pups into the nest. The snake ate them. I have also heard they will not refuse snakes of other species. I have not tried that but scenting with other snakes might work if that is the case.
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"Life without risk is to merely exist."

Well when I was still getting mine acclimated I threw some towels over his cage and made sure he had enough water and left him like that in semi/total darkness for about 4 days. I mainly did that just because he was striking at the glass every time I'd come in the room but after I took the towels off and offered food the first night, I just left a f/t chick in the branches just before he came out for his night cycle. Came back two hours later and it was gone. To this day I've still never seen him eat. If he sees me at all before I put the food in there he won't eat that night. It's definately the most nervous snake I've ever had.

Other than that if nothing else works there's some water snakes and green snakes in the classifieds for cheap. Maybe pick one up and toss him in the cage with your mangrove and see what happens.

I tried a similar method of taping newspaper over the outside of the tank for 2 weeks and it didn't seem to make any difference to him. Maybe i'll try it again though. Also, my particular snake has never acted very agressive at all. It takes a whole lot before he'll go into defensive posture and start striking, though after a while he will. Maybe this individual is just particularly docile and inoffensive and that is why he is struggling so much. I have heard that Waglers temple vipers can be that way also. I like the idea of trying to feed him another snake or maybe an anole, as other reptiles are the only thing I havent tried. I have just never had a snake this finnicky (i dont think i spelled that right) about food before. My FWC was easy enough to convert, same with the red-tail and my Nerodia (water snake). I am giving him plenty of alone time, cover, water, de-wormer, a variety of prey and I just dont know what else to do. Since i stressed him out a lot today giving him his last dose of Panacur I suppose i'll give it a few days and then try a lizard or garter snake. Thanks for the help. Any other pointers would be appreciated.

Garters make other snakes regurge. I there are mild toxins in there system from frogs. I would use racer pups or corn or milk-king.
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"Life without risk is to merely exist."

Thanks for the heads up. The local Petco has both small corn and kingsnakes for sale. Though I am sure the corns will be cheaper. I will try offering him a snake this weekend after he gets a chance to relax for a couple of days after the Panacur treatments. Anyone have any experience force feeding snakes. I have 2 feet of 1/8 inch tubing that fits perfectly into the end of a 60 mL cathater tip syrenge. Just put tube down throat and pump blended chicken breast plus vitamin powder into the stomach? I want to avoid this sort of thing at all cost. Anyone with any experience doing this sort of thing, I want your advice.

I know Dr. Fry does this a lot, and has a lot of boiga experience. You should ask over on the venomdoc forums. He probably has a bunch of tips on how to force feed.

Any luck yet?

I havent tried a snake yet. I tried a live freshly hatched chick last night. His tank has been covered with a towel the past 5 days so I figured he'd be nice and comfortable to eat. But sure enough this morning the chick is alive and well right in the fake nest I left him in overnight. This is so ridiculous. I'll leave this chick in the tank for another day and hope for the best. Friday i'll try a snake and let you know if that works. I hope to God it does because I really don't want to fore feed this guy. But if it gets close to 3 months with no food I will have no choice.

You know what's weird about mine... mine will take f/t chicks but he won't touch the live ones. I tried feeding live 4 times and he completely ignores them. Last time I tried feeding a live one I came in a few hours later and the chick was in the snakes hidebox cuddled up right next to the snake sleeping. lol

One live ckick gone, now a lump in his belly. Thank god! I was getting really worried. Thanks for everyones help.

I can't tell you how happy I am to hear that! Congratulations, I'm really glad he came around for you! What method did you use?
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Roy Blodgett
royreptile@yahoo.com

1.1 Drymarchon corais
0.1 Coluber mormon
1.1 Lampropeltis getula californiae (desert phase)
1.0 Boiga dendrophila dendrophila
0.1 Candoia aspera (red phase)
1.1 Uroplatus henkeli
0.1 Corytophanes cristatus
2.1 Pogona vitticeps (snow and red/gold)
1.0 Iguana iguana

“All men lie enveloped in whale-lines. All are born with halters round their necks; but it is only when caught in the swift, sudden turn of death, that mortals realize the silent, subtle, ever-present perils of life.”- Herman Melville

I left the chick in a fake nest overnight and it did nothing. So I left it in the same nest for another 24 straight hours, then the second morning I awoke and it was gone. Replaced by a lump in the middle of his belly. I was so relieved as must already know. I left the tank covered with a towel as it had been for the previous week during the two days the chick was in the nest, i'm sure that helped. I guess he just needed a little more time than usual, this makes it eactly 2 months and 10 days since it arrived and hadn't eaten. Sure am glad to get this first one ot of the way. Off to the second feeding seven days from now, hopefully the same method will yeild similar results. Thanks so much for your help along the way, I was really getting worried there for a while and it really helped to be able to get advice from someone who had been through something similar.

-Jarryd

By the way, what's the humidity in the cage/setup. Humidity seems to be an important role for Boiga.