Hognose not eating, please help
 

Hello Everyone!! I am new here and we seem to be having an issue. Our hognose female (almost a year old) hasn't ate since we brought her home, it has been a month now. I have reached out to the breeder and the local reptile shop in town. This is what we have tried and he living conditions.....

10 Gallon tank with heat pad on one side, shallow water dish, aspen substrate. The room she is kept in is warm considering we have 9 other reptiles in the room with heat bulbs.

The breeder said she was on frozen pinkies with nothing special being done to them. He recommended that we put her in something smaller, cover it up with the pinkie in it over night. We tried that several times with no luck. The local reptile shop (very knowledgable) had me try the same thing but we tried dipping the pinkie in sardine juice, I even tried tuna juice and vienna sausage juice. No luck!!

The last thing we tried over the weekend a live pinkie, again in a very small container this time covered up. Well not luck once again.

Please does anyone have any advice or thoughts? Thank you so much in advance! We truly love her, she is very sweet. Oh and also we have not over handled her. She doesn't seem stressed, has never hissed or played dead.

Wait her out and only offer every 10 days or so. We're coming into winter and even if not bromated they sense the change of the seasons so they slow down on eating.

Also a month isn't long for a yearling. I had a baby get out of the rack two months ago, finally found it last weekend none the worse for wear. It had been picky before going AWOL but it ate for me yesterday.

I agree with Melinda. So long as she is being kept in suitable conditions (hot spot ~90 degrees, cooler side 15 or so degrees cooler, a couple hide options, regular photoperiod), I wouldn't worry, at least not for a few months.

My male hog is an irregular eater and will occasionally go a few months without eating -- then suddenly, one day he'll turn ravenous and eat everything in sight (including fingers). My female hog is a regular feeder with no drama.

Thank you so much!! I feel so much better now. I will give her break and try in another week. I can't believe how long they can go without eating! I truly appreciate the advice. Really love this breed of snake. We have a long snake who is a incredible water but man can he be testy! Lol

No problem -- we all like to help here!

By the way, a hognose snake is a 'species'. 'German Shepherd' and 'Holstein' are breeds (of dogs, and cattle, respectively). There aren't any 'breeds' of reptiles, thankfully.

I'm glad you're enjoying your hognose. They are truly interesting and entertaining.

Hahaha yeah sorry about that, I am a dog trainer, so saying breed is just a habit I guess. Thanks again