Reptile & Amphibian Forums

OK, my male dum went through his first shed under my ownership. He stopped feeding a week before his shed, and now has not eaten since. It has been a month since his last meal. He doesn't hide much, he usually basks by a log under the heat all day, then hides at night.
Now I am still being patient, not freaking out yet. Is there a trick to this? Is there anything to be concerned about? I am a new owner and still don't know a ton about this fella yet.Thanks for your help.

What size snake is it and what size enclosure do you have him in? Hatchling dums should be crammed, they hate open space. Also, dums love to hide, and if he is basking I assume you are using a light, which limits the amount of secure hiding spots in your tank. Most breeders keep their snakes in rack systems which offer no light at all to the snake, believe it or not, the snakes love this type of set up, and sometimes feel less secure in an aquarium that has a lot of light and open space.
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Thanks,
Amy
My Boids

Not sure how old he is, but he is about 2' to 2.5' long. I keep him in a cabinet-style enclosure that has roughly 2'x18" floor space. It is enclosed on 3 sides with a plexi glass front. He has only 1 log to hide under. He never used this hide, he was always burrowing in his repti-bark substrate.

I will definitely add more hides without a doubt, and cut back on the light. The thing I find odd is that he was consistently eating every 5 days for like well over a month. Then when he went through his shed, he stopped. His habits are much different now. He basks all the time, hides at night, never burrows, and stopped eating.

With the winter temperatures approaching, he may be too cool, and/or he may be seeking more humidity. This time of year it really dries up for most of us. Lights dry out the cage quicker than a heat pad, and don't offer as consistant temperatures. Maybe try using a heat pad instead...at least during the winter time.
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Thanks,
Amy
My Boids

Ok thanks for your help. I will be buying a heat pad today and ditching the light. Does everything else sound ok to you? I am really new at this. I have successfully kept and bred beardies and have a nice blackthroat monitor, so i am more lizard oriented, hence the basking light, lol.
should I have a pad on one side of the tank only? for thermo regulation. Or cover the whole floor.

The heat pad should be situated on only one side of the enclosure. I started with lizards as well, and went through a very similar situation with my first snakes. Honestly, you have to go through a lot of trial and error sometimes to figure out what your snake needs to feel stress free!
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Thanks,
Amy
My Boids

try feeding him chicks. My dumeril's eat rats & chicks, but will not touch quail. My female ate quail a few months ago, but now she doesn't seem to like them any more. I have 2 olive pythons also & the male will eat rats, chicks & quail, but my female will only eat chicks & quail & will not touch a rat. She used to eat them when she was younger, but not now.