Houdini corn!

[HerpAm85]

Hi, im new to the forum,
i recently adopted a approx. 3 year old corn off my friend, he is 3 to 3 1/2 feet in length. Yesterday he managed to escape and it looks like he has found a tiny gap hole behind a radiator and gone into the wall cavity.
The hole is maybe 1/3 the size of the widest part of his body, i guess its possible for them to squeeze through something of this size?
Im worried i will not get him back, does anyone have any tips on enticing him out? i dont know where in the cavity he is! Also, he has not eaten for maybe, 7 weeks, as i think he is busy looking for a mate? any help with my situation will be greatly appreciated, thank you.

I also have a beautiful 4 month old Snow Corn, just thought id mention it, haha, thanks again

[Will0W783]

I would first of all set a trap for him. You can get one of those live animal Have-a-Heart traps at most hardware stores and load it with a pre-killed rodent of whatever kind he was eating. You can also put a live rodent in a tupperware container with holes poked in it inside the trap so the rodent can't escape. The snake will hopefully get hungry, smell the meal and go into the trap, triggering it to close and lock him in. I've used empty 2-liter soda bottles on their sides as traps for smaller snakes loaded with live pinkies, but I think an adult corn would easily escape from the soda bottle

[HerpAm85]

Thanks for your time, i have put a thawed mouse out over night,but no luck, i will try with a live one in a box, but as has not eaten in 7 weeks, i'm a bit skeptical i think hes too busy looking for a mate?? , once again, thanks for your time, i will let you know if i have any luck

[Will0W783]

Yes, please keep us posted. What are the temperatures like where you live? If it's too cold, he won't be doing much moving around at all.

[HerpAm85]

well, its wet and about 10 degrees c in the day, and 2 at night. but over the last 2 months he's been very active, as i mentioned before ( i think) he is looking for a mate? is this right, with it being spring time? i have another corn snake, but he's a male, would it help in attracting him back out of the cavity if i put the other corn in the room he escaped from? or is that daft, as they're both males? as you acn probably tell, ive only just starting keeping snakes :s, thank you

[shaunyboy]

hello and welcome,he will have found a warm spot in your house mate.try looking in all the warm dark places you see.coat pockets,shoes,boots,under beds,etc,etc.try braining a f/t mouse put it in a hessien sack prop open 4 to 5 inches of the sack.leave the sack in the darkest,quietest,warmest part of the room he disapeared in.i did this every night with a fresh food item,then 3 nights later i heard my missing kingsnake scuttle out from under the skirting boards across the floor.i wish you the best of luck in finding him.
cheers shaun

[HerpAm85]

thanks for your time mate, ill try this yeh, but the thing is, he hasnt seemed interested in his food for the last couple of months, but i'll give it a go, thanks again, i'll keep it updated, matt

[HerpAm85]

Still no sighting, although i have heard a few noises around the house at night, mainly in the cavity, its a 3 story house and we've all heard things on different levels of the house, so he musy be getting round!, will keep trying, thanks

[shaunyboy]

is there only the one way into the cavity for the snake? if so try putting the hessien sack near the way in to the cavity.it would be worthwhile really mashing the food items head right up.then with a bit of luck he smells all the brainmatter and comes to see where its coming from.at least your still hearing movement so the snakes found somewhere hot enough to keep it going.i hope you find him soon mate.
cheers shaun

[HerpAm85]

nah mate, ive tookk all my radiators off the walls and theres a holw behind all of them, whoever put them on put a white plastic cover, siliconed it to the wall, just above the holes, so when you look down from the top you cant see the holes, shocking! i thought about tryin that mate yeh, drilling the skull or using a live mouse, im goin turn the huse upside down again tomorrow, its been a cold few days, as you probably know yourself, so im hoping hes coem in somewhere,
cheers mate

[shaunyboy]

as gross as it sounds i usually put the f/t rats head in a bit kitchen roll and give it a good squeeze with a pair of plyers.then put the brained item into the corner of the hessien sack,then slightly prop open a few inches of the bag.then with a bit of luck you'll find a full bellied snake curled up in the morning.my wife and kids were away on holliday when my kingsnake escaped so i used to turn everything of that made a noise,turned the lights off then sat in the dark and listened.i heard him long before i saw him scuttle out from under the skirting boards.he should have found some where warm for the duration,its when he gets hungry imo will be your best chance of coming across him when he's out looking for something to eat.all the best mate.
cheers shaun

[HerpAm85]

Hes back! ive just walked into my dining room and he was there, curled up under a lamp where his Viv used to be, i had just had tea in there half an hour before haha, he's now been re-united with his viv and all is well, he did drink about a litre of water though haha, very pleased! thanks for all the help people, i was just starting to give up hope aswell!

[Lankyrob]

Thank god you got him back!! Am very glad for you.

[Will0W783]

Congrats, I am so happy for you that you got him back! Now make sure you put heavy duty cage clips on the cage so he cant' get out, or weigh down the ends of the lid with some heavy objects.

[HerpAm85]

thanks, yes the viv is now fully secured haha, but i have another question now, when i had him off my friend, he said that the snake hadnt eaten for a good month or so, and that was 2 months or so ago, and he has still not eaten, ive looked on the net, and it mentions breeding season and that they'll be to busy looking for a mate than to be feeding, but this was 3 months ago now, should i be worried or contact a vet? thanks, matt