kenyan won't eat

askaboutrep · 10-17-04, 09:25 PM

My male kenyan sand boa has always been very finicky with his food. Would only eat live. I have tried everything I can think of other than force feeding. Any ideas how to get him to eat? He's about a foot long just to give you idea of age. Although the eating problem started before this, his buddy dissappeared awhile ago, and I kenyans are somewhat community animals, would that affect his eating too?

Stockwell · 10-17-04, 09:33 PM

They're not community animals!
Have the snake completely covered with substrate, preferably a particulate type, such as BETA CHIP. It thats not available use sand or shredded aspen.
Get the snake hot up to 90F and keep it dark and in a small enclosure with a lid to help hold the scent in.
Leave it alone like that for several days, then carefully drop a live hopper in, and leave it overnight.
Male Sandboas will occasionally go months without food, but keeping them hot and covered and in a fairly small cage, such as a food saver or rubbermaid shoebox, often works well on getting them feeding..

askaboutrep · 10-17-04, 09:41 PM

What scent are you trying to hold it in?
I have heard people talking about sand boas being community animals....they could be wrong.
I have a rubbermaid box about 10inch by 12 inches filled with 3 inches sand, and a hot rock in a ziplock(to avoid it soaking up yuckies and being a bacterial breeding ground). It doesnt seem to get too hot, but it is very warm, and he can choose his temperature that way.
Do suggest an even smaller enclosure? He doesnt get very much attention from me anyways, asides from changing water, and feeding time. He hasnt eaten since July.

bighillreptiles · 10-17-04, 09:49 PM

Get rid of the hot rock and get an under tank heater thay work much better and safer than hot rocks

askaboutrep · 10-17-04, 10:00 PM

Yes I know about the hot rock, thats why I made sure to say it doesnt get "hot". It should be called a warm rock. Its all I have for now. Under tank heaters arent cheap.

askaboutrep · 10-18-04, 12:15 AM

Anybody have any other ideas??

Ian · 10-18-04, 12:54 AM

Just get one of those heating pads that are at pharmacies, the ones you use for you're back. They're only about $20 (same as a hot rock) and keep it on the middle setting and make sure no more then half the tank is on it.

Stockwell · 10-18-04, 01:05 AM

The scent you're trying to keep in is that of the prey's. I suspect the sand isn't warm enough, have you measured it with a probe type thermometer? They don't have much of an appetite unless they are between 85 and 90F
Now is the problem that the snake only eats live?
If thats the case, that isn't really a problem. Feed him live.
Most adult sandboas will take dead but it can be tricky. Both the sandboa and the food needs to be hot enough, and getting sandboas to take dead can required dangling it with long forceps until they strike, then continue to hold till they wrap around it.

Tigergenesis · 10-18-04, 06:37 AM

Buy a human heating pad from the drugstore, etc. Just make sure it doesn't have auto shutoff and has different settings.

askaboutrep · 10-18-04, 08:44 AM

Thanks stockwell.
The problem isnt the live feeding, its any feeding. I think I have wasted over 20 mice trying to get this guy to eat anything. Often he will kill them, and then just leave them. Or even start to swallow, and then leave them. I can tell by how the hair is slicked back on the mouse. I usually feed him and then leave him alone.
I will try and get better heating right away. I just assumed when he hangs out by the hot rock all the time, that it would be warm enough.
You said keep it dark, would it be a problem to be dark all the time?

Tigergenesis · 10-18-04, 11:00 AM

If he's hanging out by the hot rock alot it could be because he's cold and trying to get warm. And if he's on top of the rock he could also be sacrificing the security of being able to burrow for the chance to get warmer.

askaboutrep · 10-28-04, 03:24 PM

Thanks guys, I warmed him up a lot, and he actually took a frozen. Which is a first.

Tigergenesis · 10-28-04, 06:21 PM

That's great to hear!

BabyFirefly · 11-12-04, 07:28 PM

isn't it dangerous to leave a live hopper in the enclosure overnight?

Bartman · 11-12-04, 08:33 PM

[quote]isn't it dangerous to leave a live hopper in the enclosure overnight?

[quote]

I dont think so. When I got a live hopper, the one I got was still pretty "useless", meaning he just squirmed around and stil wasnt really able to harm the snake. If it is able to run around the tank and possibly do harm to the snake, then yes it would be dangerous.