We got our Ball on 3/27 and, being our first snake, had a learning curve with his husbandry (temps/hides/etc). We sorted that out quickly so by mid-April we thought he would take food...no dice. We tried every 10 days with minimal handling and then we found mites on him. We treated for the mites - three more weeks passed and still he hadn't eaten. He had a complete shed with no issues so we thought it was time for him to eat...again, nothing. Last night I tried again, this time pre-scenting the room with the rat on top of his cage and then hairdrying the poor dead thing until it was piping hot. I used the tongs to gently touch the mouses nose to my snakes and about peed my pants when he struck - WAHOO! I was thrilled that he'd finally eaten. I left him undisturbed for the night and he was snoozing happily buried in his aspen this morning. Thanks for all of the past threads on this issue...it helped me figure out what techniques were best for getting my guy to eat.
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