corn wont eat

[viper99]

i have a 2 month old ghost corn and it hasent eaten for about 3 weeks.and it is starting to become thin how long can a baby corn go without eating?

[RIBBIT]

Take it to a vet

[gonesnakee]

Describe in full detail (the more the better) its setup. Size, type, substrate, heat source, temps (hot & cold) etc. etc. Also the last time it ate & what (FT, live). A vet in this case is a waste of time & $ as there is nothing they can do except ask all the same Qs & maybe possibly force feed it. Nothing that can't be done at home without having to take a trip & dropping $60-$100 for the same advice as you would get here. The advice here likely better unless the vet has kept 1,000's of snakes before ;) Mark

[viper99]

im using a heat light and heat pad the tanks to cold without the ligght its in a 15 gallon tank im using carpet and the warm side is about 87-90 cool side 79-83 and it ate frozen thawed 3 weeks ago

[gonesnakee]

A little on the warm side maybe. Shoot for 75F cold & 85F hot side. Moving the lamp up higher or dropping the wattage on the bulb will help to do so. Possible it is in a shed cycle? I would ditch the carpet (bateria breeding ground) & go with papertowels they are way more sainitary. What do you have for hides? I would use something small & tight & have at least 3 or 4 of them (hotside, coldside & a couple in the middle). Make sure it has lots of fresh water available to it. It wouldn't hurt to add some unflavoured gatoraide or pedialite to it either to help it retain more fluids. Dehydration is usually what ends up killing them not starvation. I would attempt at night every 5-7 days to feed. if you have access to live a small live pinky may be taken if left overnight. You are trying to feed it in the cage right? If not do so. The stress from being moved to a deli or other feeding container may be what is turning it off feeding. You can also go to a smaller rubbermaid type container until it is feeding well again too. baby snakes feed better when kept in small quarters as they feel more secure. Sometimes a bigger enclosure will make them insecure & they stop feeding. Good Luck Mark

[viper99]

i change the water everyday and i have 3 hides one on the cool sidde 1 on the warm 1 in the middle and i have a log wich it likes 2 hide under. i dont think it is in shed because it already shed once and it ate the first time it was in shed.

[rosky19]

I'm having the same problem with my kenyan sand boa and from what I gather she has a respitory infection. She is opening and closing her mouth and I found substrate stuck to her mouth. She is going to the vet first thing in the morning I hope that helps. I hope you get her of him fed soon.

[chu'si]

k can u give me more info when did he/she last shed k now as far as everythin elce day lamp 80 to 85 tops nite 75 to 80 corns love 2 climb so falce greenery could make it happyer corns in the wild drink from rain broplets so mist the tank 3 times a day then u know he/she is gettin fluids heres a care sheet http://members.aol.com/Kathandcam/Hawkherp/care.html as far a the sheddin mine sheds monthly and regularly if urs aint and also not feedin seek avets help

[viper99]

it last shed september 17 im misting the tank twice aday it has stuff to climb on and the night temps are 73-75cool side and77-80 on warm side

[gonesnakee]

Unless you are living in a desert (which I see you are not) I would not bother misting. Out of the 1,000s of Corns, Kings, Milks etc. I have kept I never misted any of them once ever. Just make sure a large accessable bowl of fresh water is provided at all times & the humidity will be just fine & the snake can drink whenever it likes. As for the shedding young corns usually shed monthly so its likely due right away & could be the main reason why it doesn't choose to eat right now? Mark

[viper99]

the last time it was in shed it ate is it not eating because of the misting?

[gonesnakee]

Not likely unless it is aggitated by the spraying & possible "too much" humidity. If its always damp it might not be happy. Its really hard to say really. Mark

[chu'si]

the last time it was in shed it ate is it not eating because of the misting?
no its not the mistin i do it and she eats fine u seem 2 be doin everythin k if it dont shed in the next 2 weeks or still aint feedin a vet check is def in order

[viper99]

i should be able 2 get it 2 the vet in the next few daysim going 2 see if it will eat later on today its been about 6 days since i lAst tried to get it 2 eat

[chu'si]

hope ur sweety dose gd luck

[viper99]

he/she ate but for some reason it constricted the pinky and he never used constrict before why would he start 2 constrict when he never did it before?

[gonesnakee]

Because its totally natural & its instincts are showing ;). Constricting the prey is a good thing, it should be encouraged, its good for the snake to use those muscles that way. Bet you are glad you didn't rush off to the vet & waste a bunch of time & $ for no reason. Mark

[viper99]

i know snakes usually constrict the food but it dident the first couple time is it normal for it just to all of a sudden start constricting their food? ya im glad that i dident go 2 the vet 2 get it force feed or somthing like that and have to pay $100+

[gonesnakee]

Usually once they get a little older their feeding response increases somewhat as they "clue in" a little more about life. Mark

[viper99]

ya thats what happend with my other corn it took him a while to ge used 2 what time he got feed at but know hes eating once a week

[viper99]

its going into its first shed and hes 3 months old

[gonesnakee]

After it sheds might want to bump it up to a couple pinkies at a time or bigger ones more often. At 3 months should be taking 2-3 pinkies a week, depending on the size of them. Mark

[viper99]

ive tried to feed him more then i pinkie a week and he wont eat more then 1 a week.I have another corn that is about 5 months should i be fedding him 2-3 pinkies a week?

[gonesnakee]

Likely or even small fuzzies depending on the snakes size. A general rule is 1 or 2 prey items the same girth or upto 1.5 times the girth of the thickest part of the snake every 5-7 days. My 2007 babies I still have here eat 2-3 pinkies a week depending on the size of the pinkies. I could likely feed them 1 small fuzzy weekly, but I prefer to go with smaller prey items as it is easier for them to eat & digest. Mark