| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| baitman |
Posted - 19/01/2011 : 22:12:35
hi all.
as you know i recently purchased 3 young corns, 2 females and 1 male, now, the male weighs 4.5g, he is a late bred 2010, the woman i got him from said he had not eaten for abour 9 days, i have had him for 5 days and he still not eaten, i know they can go for quiet a while without feeding but my worry is his size (or lack of it).
i have him in his tub on the sofa beside me with a pinkie that is absolutely tiny (just over 1g)every time he goes near it he flicks his tongue then shies away from it like he is scared of it, how long before i need to really worry and is there anything else i could try,i have tried....
really warming it up....
cutting....
braining....
small pieces...
all refused...
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| 20 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| Invalid User |
Posted - 22/01/2011 : 17:29:17
Great news.
Hope the little one continues to eat :) |
| Doogle |
Posted - 22/01/2011 : 17:24:31
Cool! I am glad he as ate for you mate! And freshly killed is one step closer to a warmed up defrosted! 
Goodluck and keep us updated!
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| scubadude |
Posted - 22/01/2011 : 15:55:09
Good news baitman glad to hear the little 'un eat eventually, and shame on the breeder for letting a picky feeder go without at least warning you. |
| baitman |
Posted - 22/01/2011 : 15:16:32
well, good news, i went to the local pet shop to see if i could get some tiny pinks, when i spoke the guy he said he would look out back o see if any of his had dropped young, he came back with a couple of live pinksonly hours old by the size of them.
anyway, i got home, flicked one on the head to kill it and offered to my little man.......he took it wiithout hesitation, so fresh killed is the way to go for now......
i would like to thank those who offered advice... |
| baitman |
Posted - 22/01/2011 : 11:00:37
thanks mike...
i was told he was not eating properly but he had eaten defrosted pinks and as he is such a pretty pattern snake i said i would take him for 10 quid instead of the 30 asking price....
will see if ii can find a smaller tub... |
| mikerichards |
Posted - 22/01/2011 : 08:51:37
I have never heard of a corn that 'needed' to start on live, they nearly always start of their own volition within the first few weeks.
Doogles method is the best, i have done this in the past and had good success rates with it, even used old 35mm film cases for small babies.
To be totally honest though, the breeder shouldnt have sold you that animal, and certainly not keeping you in the dark about the feeding.
If i was you i would be tempted to ask the breeder to take it back and get it feeding defrost, or to change for another.
The majority of corns that are refusing to feed for long periods either die or dont grow properly, selling you a known bad feeder sounds like the breeder just wanted shot of it, and you were there.
I would go smaller than that tub too, half the size.
I am surprised no one mentioned leaving the pinky in overnight sooner! |
| baitman |
Posted - 21/01/2011 : 22:51:33
this should do it, just put some holes in the lid.... |
| baitman |
Posted - 21/01/2011 : 22:28:14
i have just looked in the cupboard and we have a plastic container for spices, never been used and its just about big enough to put a chicken egg in and shut lid without squashing the egg..... |
| Doogle |
Posted - 21/01/2011 : 22:17:36
Needs to be smaller than that mate!
Maybe worth trying to make something if you can! Even if its a plastic drinks cup with something heavy on the top with holes!
It needs to be small so the snake as no means of hiding away from the pinkie! If He wants it out of his space then he will have to eat it! |
| baitman |
Posted - 21/01/2011 : 22:01:23
my last attempt to get him feeding was wednesday so the headless trick i will try tomorrow night...
the smallest container i have is like the ones chinese comes in.... |
| Doogle |
Posted - 21/01/2011 : 21:48:51
I know there seems to be loads of suggestions but there is no point trying one everyday! Try him every 2 to 3 days with a new method or he may not associate a pinkie with food!
For something that small they wont normally take a whole pinkie!
I Find this the best method for small fussy feeders! Chop the head of a pinkie with a scissor! Then get a real small tupperware tub! I mean small! Just a bit bigger than the snake coiled up as it needs to be very enclosed!
Then put the snake and pinkie in at night and leave in total darkness until the morning! Try to place the pinkie with flesh facing up or it will stick to rub!
Got quite a few feeding with this! 
Also as eeji said! Boiled can work good too! I usually put boiling water in a cup and drop the pinkies in the water for 10 seconds then into the rub! Do not use your fingers tho so they are totally scentless!
Good luck Matey!
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| baitman |
Posted - 20/01/2011 : 21:20:14
thanks guys, i wont be giving up on him and will do whatever it takes to bring him round.... |
| lotabob |
Posted - 20/01/2011 : 20:09:40
I'm far from an expert on problem feeders but I would try heat the frozen pinkies up, put them in a bag and heat them in hot water then put them in and get some tongs/tweezers and wiggle it about a bit.
I would also feed on a stable surface not the sofa so its not rocking about when you move. I dim the lights too. and put paper towel up a bit higher on the side that I am so me been there doesn't worry him. I avoid looming over him too, stay low and keep your involvement to a minimum (other than the wiggling).
Sounds a bit rubbish that the breeder sold you a problem feeder and even even worse a live feeder. I hope you can slowly get him back to frozen as it could be very problematic and expensive getting and keeping live feeder mice. |
| stotty01 |
Posted - 20/01/2011 : 19:52:11
that is very bad, the breeder should of not sold to you if was on lives. you can try fresh killed so twitches then slowly get him on defrosts |
| SexyBear77 |
Posted - 20/01/2011 : 19:50:11
Oh, thats not so good! If he has been feeding that badly then I'm afraid to say you might need to continue with live pinkies for a bit longer.
Or-
rub the pinkies in dirty smelly (fresh) mouse/rat bedding
take the snake for a 15 minute drive in the car
snake and pinkie in mealworm tub overnight
snake and pinkie in paper bag
boiling pinkie
scenting pinkie with brine, chick, other fluffy creature or dilute Marmite
trying chick thigh
putting snake and pinkie in a tub on something that vibrates gently...
I'm out of ideas. Too many uni exams. |
| baitman |
Posted - 20/01/2011 : 19:17:38
ok, now i am more than a little worried,i called the breeder earlier today and this is what i was told....
1st feed.......MEALWORM
2nd feed.......MEALWORM
3rd feed.......pinky t/f...refused
4th
5th
6th
7th all live pinks.
how can i convert him back to f/t. |
| eeji |
Posted - 20/01/2011 : 19:13:20
boil a pinky |
| Kazerella |
Posted - 20/01/2011 : 12:40:56
Also if you still have the breeders contact details you could try getting in touch and ask her if she knows anything that's worked with him before.
If he's been a funny eater for a while she might already have tried a few tricks and can advise you on the best things to try. |
| herriotfan |
Posted - 20/01/2011 : 09:30:55
You could also try putting a towel over the rub so he has semidarkness. This may sound daft but a friend once had a non feeder who decided to eat if it had been out for a car ride. Even now she still drives round the block before feeding him! |
| n/a |
Posted - 20/01/2011 : 06:30:15
there's a few things you could try, i'd try kehhlyr's suggestion first. if that doesn't work try taking it's water dish out for 24 hours, dip the pinkie in hot water, wait for a few seconds so it cools a little and offer, it's desire for water should make it eat.
if this method doesn't work you may need to scent the prey, rub the pinkie against a flake of tuna, dipping the prey in chicken soup etc.
we've even had success by getting the suds from organic soap, washing the pinkie and offer to the snake, sounds crazy but there's lots of scope to be very creative and the most unlikely things can be the most successful. |
