Quote:
Originally Posted by LampropeltisCollector
I have a pair of baby Prairie Kingsnakes. One is amelanistic and the other is a normal specimen. I really want to get a sweet breeding project with these done, but they just won't eat! I've offered them frozen thawed and I leave them alone for the whole day, and I come back to a pinky sitting in there. Then I've tried live. I hate feeding live, but it's a must in this case. I leave a live pinky mice in with each one. I come back to check their tubs, and I find a pinky sitting in the corner. These are sweet snakes, they don't need to be making friends with rodents! I just need help getting them eat; tricks of the trade shall I say for any of you calligaster gurus 
I keep all my snakes in my garage. I live in Florida, and my temps in my garage are at 79 as a high right now and they drop down into the 60's at night this time of year. I'm not sure if it has affected the eating plans, but some of my snakes have gone off feeding and some are still feeding. Mostly males that aren't like a bunch of my Western Hognose, my male Central Plains Milksnake. Funny though, some of my Eastern Hognose are still eating along with a 2011 Dade County Brook's Kingsnake.
I just know these Prairie Kingsnakes are difficult to work with, and all the best advice is appreciated.
They are kept in 6qt sterilite tubs on a rack if you were wondering. I keep my baby Lampropeltis snakes on paper towel.
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Try offering a tiny dead skink or anole with a long set of tongs, or even a PART from the lizard to see if they are interested and will accept it. Then if so,
already have a thawed pink ready to immediately back it up with when their feeding instinct is initiated with the accepted item with some heavy scenting techniques with the skink or anole.
I have a tiny shot glass that I crush up a lizard in after I have cut it into as many tiny pieces as possible with scissors, then ad maybe one or two drops of water to help make a wet "stew" concoction to dip and smear the pinkies into.
I have had some
EXTREMELY reluctant to feed Outer Banks kings and floridana clutches take to this method very well in the past. Some took to dead cornsnake hatchling segments that were cut in nice manageable pieces, then used it for scenting the pink. Whatever the accepted prey though, this technique is exactly the same regardless. Just YESTERDAY as a matter of fact I finally got a couple more to feed this way after a LOOOONG duration of not wanting to voluntarily feed on their own. Then after a couple of these scented feedings, you can try un-scented. Then if they don't show any interest, scent it again. Eventually they associate the pinks on the tong with being food and will go ahead and start feeding on them after a while without being scented. Or with a gradual decreased in the amount of scenting until the pink is virtually un-scented.
If none of this seems to work with them soon though, I would simply brumate them and try later on when it naturally starts warming up as they would instictively do in the wild.
ps, ALSO!.......if you are expecting them to feed, they need a warm spot in the one far side that is in the low to mid 80's to properly digest the meals anyway, and they won't naturally want to feed anyway if it is too cool for them to do so.
good luck!
~Doug
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