My New Retic WILL NOT EAT! Someone help me out here!

KyleKennedy · 04-14-15, 07:13 PM

Hello everyone this is my first time on this site. I created an account because I am in desperate need of help and advice from experienced retic owners. I owned a 7 month old tiger retic since it was a just a month old, but two weeks ago I traded him for a 7 month old mainland male. Now I am started to think I got screwed on this deal. My tiger was a great eater, ate every week, shed perfectly every time, and was already about 5 feet long. I loved this snake, but I always wanted to own a mainland. So about two weeks ago, I ended up trading him for a mainland. Anyways, let me start off by saying the mainland I acquired was very small for his age, only about 4 feet long and rather thin. I didn't think much of it because I know all snakes grow at their own pace. Anyway, he was in the process of shedding when I got him. I left him in his new enclosure overnight and the next morning I noticed he had shed pretty good. That same night, I offered him a live large rat (the previous owner said he ate both live and f/t large rats weekly, but I'm starting to doubt it). The snake didn't even make an attempt to go after the rat. He just strikes at it, kind of like a defensive strike and then retreats back into his hide and doesn't come back out. After about 30 minutes of not showing interest in eating, I took the rat out. Few days later, offered the same rat again. Still nothing. Few strikes here and there and then slithers back into his hide. After that, I did not mess with the snake for a week. Offered him the rat again, and still does not show interest in eating. I even killed the rat this time before offering it to him, yet still does not appear interested. I am getting very worried now. I know young retics eat whenever food is available. My tiger ate was eating every 5 days without hesitation, but this mainland hasn't ate for two weeks. I tried to get in contact with the previous owner, but he is ignoring my calls. I am thinking he knew he screwed me. Something is wrong with this snake, but I do not know what.

I have him in a 30 gallon breeder tank, with a 100 watt heat lamp on the hot end, and a heat mat underneath the tank. Humidity is at a constant 68-74 degrees. Hot end is 94 degrees, cool end around 74. The temps and humidity are perfect. I have him on aspen bedding and there is a huge water bowl in the middle of the tank that gets cleaned daily and a buffalo skull hide.

This is the exact set-up I had the tiger in, and he never gave me any problems.

Any suggestions on what I can do to make him start eating? Anything I am doing wrong? This is my 2nd retic, first was the tiger. So I am still an amateur at owning retics, but I did plenty of research and spent lots of money to make sure they have the perfect set-up and eat regulary.

Any help would would be greatly appreciated! Thanks.

**millertime89** · 04-15-15, 12:14 AM

How many hides do you have? Do you have the sides covered? Did you check to make sure when he shed that he didn't have any stuck eyecaps? Can you post a picture of your setup please? Clean the water every 3-4 days. Daily can disturb your snake which will stress him out and may result in him not eating. What size rats are you using and how big is your snake. Post something for scale for him so we have an idea of how big he is.

Ballchris · 04-15-15, 12:34 AM

millertime will help you he has answered some of my questions about my retic, they will not starve them selves it may be due to the fact he's in a new environment that he doesn't know, good luck man keep us updated, I have done tons of homework on these snakes as I am a new herper, I love the giants post pics when you get things ironed out.

KyleKennedy · 04-15-15, 10:24 AM

@millertime89 - There is only enough room in his enclosure for one hide but it is big enough for him to go in and it has ton of privacy. The snake is about 4 feet, and I have been offering him live jumbos to beef him because he is underweight. He does not have stuck eyecaps. I gave him a warm bath with Zilla Shed-Ease formula and all of his remaining skin including eye caps came right off.

themeyers · 04-15-15, 11:14 AM

be patient. and only offer food every 7-10 days. I have a male that at almost 2 years old is only about 6' (mainland)he is a picky eater and only take quail in the winter time. but during the spring and summer will take jumbo rats. keep in mind it is in a new environment and I typical give at least a week of settling time before I handle or offer food. the rest of my retics have that typical feed response that will take the feeding tongs right our of your hand. always if you are not seeing a feed response than check temps and hides. make sure you have a hide at either end and that you have a water bowl big enough for it to get into to soak. keep your head up and us posted.

KyleKennedy · 04-15-15, 05:26 PM

He has everything he needs. A big hide, large water bowl, tons of privacy, and the proper heat and humidity. My worst fear is a parasite, which would explain him being underweight.

KyleKennedy · 04-15-15, 05:32 PM

Millertime89 - No stuck eyecaps, 100 percent of his old skin came off perfectly

KyleKennedy · 04-15-15, 05:33 PM

I've been offering him jumbos to beef him up since he is very thin.

IW17 · 04-15-15, 07:13 PM

You really should post pics of the snake and setup. Sometimes little things you might miss are easy for someone with more experience to pick up on. This is a wonderful site and hopefully we can help you get things in order.

KyleKennedy · 04-15-15, 08:08 PM

Here he is. As you can see, he is pretty thin and only about 4 feet long. Sorry for the poor quality pic, the camera on my phone sucks. I will post a pic of his set-up when I get home so you can see if there is anything wrong with it.

Albert Clark · 04-15-15, 08:55 PM

Be patient and don't worry about him being underweight right now. His enviornment has changed and he is still in acclimating mode. Don't keep putting food on the table when he is still experiencing some stress from both. I would just let him get used to the new home for at least the next ten days and do not try to feed him either. Give him fresh water every two or three days. Just relax and enjoy him and don't try feeding for 10 days. Stay in peace and not pieces.

**millertime89** · 04-15-15, 11:41 PM

You don't want a big hide. You want a small hide that they barely have enough room inside. It provides them security because then something else can't get in or can't get them out.

MDT · 04-16-15, 07:40 AM

Albert is right....try not to overthink this. I have a SD retic that was a very slow starter in terms of eating. Very frustrating. However, after about 6 or 8 weeks, he eventually chilled out and now eats like a pig. Just give him time. Enjoy him. Let him acclimate. There are a lot of really knowledgable retic folks on this board. Stick around and they will be a huge resource. Best of luck to you

KyleKennedy · 04-16-15, 07:22 PM

Thank you all for the helpful advice and comments! I'll just be patient, I guess. However, I tried feeding him again earlier today (before I read the comments saying to wait 10 days), and he didn't appear interested...again. He bit the rat pretty good on the face but quickly let go. I went to remove the rat from the cage to prevent the rat from going after the snake, and the snake ended up getting a pretty good bite in on the top of my hand. I'll wait 10 days and try to feed him from tongs next time. Thanks again, guys.

KyleKennedy · 04-16-15, 07:33 PM

One more question. What would be the better option after 10 days? f/t or live? The previous owner said he took both. I honestly prefer to feed live, but I think f/t is the safer route for now, but when he gets bigger I would like to switch over to live. What do you guys think? Don't mean to ask so many questions, but I don't have anyone else I can talk to about this hobby. I just want the best for this snake.