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Hatchling Anaconda Feeding

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aquariusoutreach

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I aquired a hatchling green anaconda about 2 weeks ago. It is extremely docile, but shows absolutely no interest in feeding at all. The green shows no sign of stress and explores its cage daily and soaks in its water bowl. Any suggestions?
 
I'm assuming that you've tried both rats and mice? When that's failed, I've had some success with very young chicks and guinea pigs. Scenting with fish may also work. I've had to get rosies (very small goldfish) from the local pet store and use them to scent rodents before. At times, scenting alone wasn't enough. I had one baby green that would only take rat pups if it actually had a small rosie sticking out of it's mouth.
 
Yes I tried both mice and rats. I have some rosy reds from my snapper tanks I'll grab and try scenting. I was told by the seller she has fed many times already on mice, but just doesn't seem like it has eaten to me.
 
Yeah, they rarely tell you that you just bought an imported WC baby, that they just received in a wholesale lot, with little to no idea of it's past feeding history. There aren't really a whole lot of people producing CBB green anacondas, and the ones that are CBB, are usually on the pricey side.

The scenting is worth a try, as it has worked for me. However, I'm thinking that you may want to avoid using ones from a turtle tank. They're likely to be loaded with salmonella. While most reptiles do have a certain amount of the bacteria already in their digestive tracts, I'd personally want to avoid blithely adding to it. Just a thought.

I'd have to say that chicks have probably yielded the most aggressive feeding response that I've seen with young green anacondas.
 
good point about using turtle tank feeders. I have access to some day old chicks that I normally feed my falconry birds. I'll give one of those a shot tomorrow. Thanks for your help
 
So how's your annie? We purchased a small annie in Feb. that, after 2 weeks, would only take small frozen/thawed chicks danced close to her while she hid in her water bowl. We raise our own rats & mice, but she refused everything till I tried a fresh killed small naked rat that was well washed and had a chick leg stuck in its mouth. That went on for quite some time. Now she's taking fresh killed small/medium rats.
The big thing with her has been imo security. So far she's only eaten/struck from her water bowl. The water bowl is small with some artificial vine in it so she can hide under the leaves. The tank is a 20 gal. w/green grass carpet and under-tank heater. There is a large flat piece of bark held up with a rock for a lean-to shelter and the heater is half under her hide and half under her bowl. Of coarse she always poops in her water which gets changed asap afterwards.
Temps in our critter room are 80-85 daytime & 75 nite. Water temp stays right at 85. Her dry hide reads 88-90. She'll spend time in & out of the water but only eats submerged.
Hope you're having luck with yours :)
 
Mine hasn't eaten anything yet. I have an order of chicks coming in early next week, so hopefully that will do the trick. She spends a lot of time in her water, but wanders the cage quite a bit as well. I have her in a boamaster 4'pvc cage. Temps are 90 on the hot end, and 78-80 on the cool. I have an artificial grass 12"x12" plant in there that she loves to lay on when out of the cage, and there is also a half log and a pvc hide. She doesn't use either of them.

I will try the chicks next week and post back here. Tried scenting a rat and mouse with fish- no dice.
 
Hey Kris, Since you have a bit to wait for the chicks, you might try a sliver of raw chicken from the grocery to see how she reacts. I use long tweezer/forceps when offering to minimize disturbance. If you don't get a response (tongue flicking or reaching) do not dispair, the frozen chicks, if you haven't used them before, are full of yolk. Once she takes the chicks, you'll be able to use yolk to scent a mouse or rat. Simply laying the offering on the floor of the enclosure is normally not enough to entice a fussy feeder. I don't know what your experience with scenting is and I know it can be frustrating, but once your annie starts to eat, the biggest problem will be keeping it full. :)
 
About the sunfish.... Keep those for your dinner. Scenting with fish makes it tough to switch to rats. Also wild caught foods can be full of parasites that your baby may not be able to handle. Only offer fresh-killed home-grown or frozen/thawed.
 
So the anne loves f/t chicks. I defrosted one today and she literally pounded it. Took it right off the hemostats and sucked it down underwater. After consuming it, she came back up flicking her tongue all over the enclosure where the chick was. She took a second f/t chick instantly. I'll give her chicks for a bit and then try to switch her over to rodents! I'm stoked she finally ate though!

On another note, my female Colombian Red-Tail Boa ate her first rabbit today, so today was definitely a good day!
 
Glad to hear that the chicks worked out for you. For the most part, they were my go-to feeder for stubborn your anacondas. That first successful feeding in my care was always a big load off my mind.
 
How did you get a permit for an anaconda? Last time I spoke with DEC, they made it sound like they permits didn't happen.
 
Permits do happen on a regular basis now, however there are a lot of stipulations. You need to do educational programs, submit annual reports, and submit to state inspections of your facilities. They also state how you need to house them. Large constrictors are being temporarily placed on a venomous license as well.
 
They must have been cranky the day I managed to get up to Special Licenses, lol. (and just getting there was a chore - I'd been blocked from doing so on two prior occasions). I'd had an extensive venomous license + endangered species license in the past, so this was a surprise...but I was basically given a bunch of double talk, and told that it wasn't happening. I was later told by people that knew me that one pretty much had to be a zoo or research facility to get a new venomous license (even though mine "should" have just been a reinstatement). It was a few years ago, and I've got no interest in the hassles any more; but I'm glad to hear they seem to have a different outlook. Thanks for the info - sorry to sidetrack things.

I don't know how it would work for babies, but I used to have good luck using caiman or alligator scented rodents for nonfeeding 'condas.
 
I believe they just recently finalized their new application, and both the vri and ets licenses require a lot of paperwork. I had an extensive license in the past, but I had to reapply for everything. There is a new guy handling the reptile licenses now, and he is very nice and helpful. If you want to see the new applications, I can email them to you.

Thanks for the crocodilian scenting tip. Problem is my gator will eat anything I try to rub on her. ( I do have a license for the gator btw)
 
aquariusoutreach said:
Thanks for the crocodilian scenting tip. Problem is my gator will eat anything I try to rub on her.
Click to expand...
We had a little pi$$pot caiman that would bite the heck out of anything we stuck close enough, even if it had already fed. I'd put it in a good size box, and approach it with a f/t rat...it would chomp on the rat's head, and just hold it. After a little while, I'd reach in from one side... it would drop the rat (so it could have a go at me). I'd use my other hand to pick up the rat with a pair of long hemostats. Drape the rat over the edge of the water container in the 'conda's enclosure, walk away - done.
 
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