What to do??

[CJN2216]

I have had my BP for 2 Full weeks now and I have not yet handled him yet as I wanted him to get use to his enclosure and eat for me first. He seems use to his enclosure and doesn't get nervous anymore when I come into the room. He has even gone to the bathroom.
He still will not eat for me yet?? I've tried several times and nothing! The temp is perfect now, doesn't seem stressed as I have not handled him yet, so now I'm just like WTF? Every time I put food in his tank, he gets nervous and goes into his hide until I remove it!
I want to start handling my snake but I also want him to eat but that might not be for Months yet! What are your opinions on what I should do?

[Pixie]

First, it's normal at this time of year that BP's don't eat so don't worry too much, many first owners get stressed about their snake not eating but as long as he's not losing much weight, there's nothing to do but wait it out. As for going to the bathroom, mine only goes once a month so that's not a big worry either.

You can go ahead and start handling your snake to get it used to you and the exercice will do it good and maybe even work up a bit of an appetite. Do small sessions at first 5-10 minutes and work yourself up from there.

As for your next feeding attempts, I would suggest you try feeding outside your snake's enclosure. I don't know the size of your snake so it's hard to suggest a good spot. You can use kritter keepers, rubbermaids, brown paper bags, etc. Choose something that the snake would be relatively snug in, covering about half the floor space. Leave it in for a little while 30-60 min. and then introduce the meal and leave be in a dark space alone for a couple of hours (this is provide you do not feed live, if you do, you'll have to keep an eye on your snake till he catches it's prey). If your snake still doesn't eat, don't worry too much. Long fast are not uncommon (the record is 22 months) and the snake will start back eating and still be perfectly healthy.

Don't try and feed to often even if your snake refuses, once a week is fine.

Good luck and keep us posted
Pixie