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Feeding problems, male strikes, but won't take

T

tradrack

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My het pied stud who would once take frozen thawed rats easily hasn't had anything to eat for almost five months now. I try feeding him every other week, when I feed my other snakes, but all I can get him to do is strike at the food. He strikes and retreates. He seems interested to. He doesn't strike at me.

I have tried feeding him stunned and even live rats. With the stunned he strikes them, and with the live he will strike them and release. I think he was bit once striking a live rat, only because I heard the live rate scream for about 3-4 seconds, but when I checked he had released it.

I really have no idea, I'm kind of new to reluctant feeders, I'm used to having bloods that pound everything I give them.

He is in the same small room with the females he bread this same season, should I be moving him away from the females? Should I try something really small, like a small live mouse?

Thank you so much for your help. I'm starting to get a little worried.
 
try holding a live mouse with forceps in the air in front of the snake. just hold it till he strikes and coils. if this dosnt work, kill the mouse and try again dangling it again in front of the snake. I know its worked for me plenty of times, and reduces the risk of the mouse/rat fighting back.

just dont leave the snake and live prey unnatended at all! its not safe to leave them both alone in an enclosed space for any length of time without being watched. You ahve to be ready to intervene and be bitten by either animal if you feed live.
 
He also may not be hungry. How old is he? I assume calling him "stud" means that he is old enough to breed. maybe he is smelling the females and still wanting to breed. Can anyone who breeds help out here?
 
I'll try the mouse forcept question. The male is probably 1-2 years old. He breed last season and weighs about 900 grams. I looked at him today and I think he looks pretty empty. Do I have to move him away from the females?

Thanks for the feedback that has been given.
 
After 5 months I finally got my male to eat. He has eated full size rats in the past, which is what I would prefer to have him eat, but I think after mating season he was acting scared of them because of the size. So I got two live rats from the pet store that were very small, about the size of mice, put them in the cage with him and he ate both of them :)
 
tradrack said:
After 5 months I finally got my male to eat. He has eated full size rats in the past, which is what I would prefer to have him eat, but I think after mating season he was acting scared of them because of the size. So I got two live rats from the pet store that were very small, about the size of mice, put them in the cage with him and he ate both of them :)
Click to expand...

Glad to hear he finally ate! its always a relief when they finally do after fasting for so long!
 
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