Worried new owner

TheVoid · 06-10-17, 04:09 PM

I attended repticon today, and I got a beautiful butter morph

The owner said he hadn't eaten for 2 weeks (they wanted to avoid having droppings on the customers) and the last thing he was fed was an adult rat.

They put him in a snake bag and we went home (which was about an hour long drive).

I bought a pinkie and when then enclosure was set up, I attempted to feed him the pinkie with a pair of tweezers. he refused, and is now curled up in a ball in his new (properly set up) enclosure. He seemed perfectly healthy. Should I be worried? Hes about a month old.

Scubadiver59 · 06-10-17, 04:21 PM

Nice pickup! Give it a few days to get over the stress, if not a week, then try offering food again.

ThirteenRavens · 06-10-17, 05:28 PM

Give it at least a week before any attempts at handling, offering food, general pestering (with the exception of spot cleaning if needed and changing water). It will need time to acclimate to its new surroundings.

**Andy_G** · 06-10-17, 06:02 PM

Always wait a week before offering food and get it eating steadily before you handle it.

dannybgoode · 06-10-17, 11:41 PM

How old is the snake? If it was last fed an adult rat then there's no point feeding it a pinky. Maybe drop down a prey size for a couple of feeds but not down to a pinky.

As others have said though give it change to settle. Leave it completely alone except for routine water changes etc.

Also did the seller give you any feeding records so you can see how regularly it was feeding?

TeamSlitherin · 06-11-17, 04:20 AM

Don't be worried, just let him get used to his new home. Resist the urge to cuddle him the first week. Tough, I know, but it is much better for the little guy. If he's a month old and last ate 2 weeks ago, there's no way he ate an adult rat. Pinkies are definitely more appropriately sized for a hatchling BP. Congrats on the new acquisition! I know you've been excited and put alot of thought into it.