Hi to all, glad to join your community! I apologize for the length of my post - I'll try to limit myself to information that may be important background.
My daughter (now 8) has been wanting a snake for about a year. She didn't want something from the store but really wanted one of the local garters off of our property. Instead we've ended up with a Western Yellow Bellied Racer!
I'm looking for thoughts and advice. Soo many questions, so little knowledge (me that is! 
A brief history of Greenbean. I took the snake (now named Greenbean) away from one of our cats. 'Bean is an adult, maybe as long as 36" but definitely over 30". When rescued he has a cut on his back about 1" south of his head, another cut on his side maybe 3" or so north of his cloaca (sic). The worst wound was a crushing wound with punctures on both sides maybe 1/3 of the way back from the head. His gender is assumed from the length of the tail and what I think are the 'hooks' that show about where his cloaca is.
We treated the 2 cuts with triple anti-biotic (Neosporen) and they both seemed to scab over well. The one behind the head is raised up, but appears to just be a really large scab and does not seem to be infected or causing any discomfort. The puncture/crushing wounds on the side were left pretty much alone. I warned my daughter that Greenbean may not live. The skin on the right side would even puff up when he breathed deeply, but there was never any blood from the nostrils or bleeding from the punctures.
Well, 'Bean has lived. He has been with us about a month. He handles well for me and though my daughter likes being around, talking to him, stroking him and having him pass over her, she is not ready to handle him alone.
He passed on pinkies (not enough movement?) but has eaten maybe 3 dozen crickets and two hopper mice. He is not at all shy of eating with an audience. I know now from reading posts by 53kw and Royreptile that 'Bean is too big for his home. He is currently in a 10 gal. on ash with a den (looks kinda like one of those dog igloo things), a full spectrum light and a heating pad. He is curious and spends a fair amount of time out of the igloo watching things around him.
NOW the questions and plea for advice (finally they all sigh..)
It has been about twelve days since the last mouse and crickets. Bean has lost some of the shine that he has always had. He seems to handle the same but he passed on a hopper and crickets this past Saturday. He has defecated since the last feeding.
I think maybe the mouse could have been too large, and I'll probably pick up a smaller one on the way home today. He did strike at it but not with the enthusiasm of prior attacks. He was not in the least interested in the crickets. I took him out and my wife and daughter cleared all out of the tanks and put in new clean ash. He was out and active after until burrowing in for the evening.
Could he be getting ready to shed? Do they loose appetite and loose their sheen before shedding? Is there any change that we should make in his environs or handling if he is ready for a shed?
Though he seems healthy from his activity level and willingness to be handled, could he be succumbing to his earlier wounds? Even the crushing and puncture wounds seem to have healed well and there is no sign of the lung puncture anymore as the skin does not puff up at any time.
What about brumation? Could he be ready to brumate? Seems a little early to me, but I really don't know!
Lastly, does it matter that he was taken into captivity as an adult? Could he be wasting from his captivity? I thought all was well when he took the hoppers and passed waste, not once but twice. Should we be looking for a good place to release now that the wounds have pretty much healed?
Anyway, thanks to all for the information that you have given me already in the archives. Thanks again to all who reply to this long winded plea for advice!
For Greenbean,
Tom
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