Bandy Bandy help

[Yogi]

Hello All,

Once again I have been tasked with something I am completely unfamiliar with in terms of captive care.

I will be shortly required to attempt to look after an injured bandy bandy and would love if anyone can help with a few things please only answer if you are competent.

I plan to keep the little guy roughly 50 cm long in a large click clack and under heating,

What substrate would you use? ( considering coir peat for humidity and ability for the little guy to dig or aspen)


Any help would be appreciated.

oh special thanks to RSPcrazy for helping out with info for the last guy cheers bud


Thanks Jacob



What temp do you think?

And what do I feed the guy ( obviously I can t feed it a blind snake) do you think it might go for a garden skink?

 

[$NaKe PiMp]

hello yogi,

what are the injuries to the snake?

if it has open wounds that will affect what substrate you would use as you want to keep wounds free of debris,i use shredded paper in the case of a snake like this they can hide in.

in scott Eippers book "a guide to Australian snakes in captivity,Elapids and Colubrids" he recommends heat and a thermal gradient of 30 deg at one end down to 20 at cool end and to force feed them small fish[h=1][/h]

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if you are not keeping it long you may not have to feed at all.

 

[eipper]

You can eventually get them onto mice.... But fish are easier. They are not interested in most lizards.

 

[Yogi]

Hello

cheers for the response s, the little guy though I have not seen him yet , I am told has a small head injury no open cuts and is in need of rest, but was asked to confirm that it could eat before I release him.

By small fish do you mean feeder fish/ tetra / guppies etc
Cheers Jacob

 

[eipper]

Unfortunately this is why i get the helling with wildlife carers. These are not easy to to get going. You will not get a voluntary food response.... You will need to force fed. This is very stressful for the snake. This compromises the snakes immune system. You are best off releasing ....at point of capture.

 

[jedi_339]

Unfortunately this is why i get the helling with wildlife carers. These are not easy to to get going. You will not get a voluntary food response.... You will need to force fed. This is very stressful for the snake. This compromises the snakes immune system. You are best off releasing ....at point of capture.

I couldn't agree more with you Scott. Whilst I have no experience with bandy bandy care Yogi I would say that this little guy is best left to his own devices, so long as he is not going to suffer a slow decline in the wild release as is would be the best optioin.

Despite all the time and effort carers put in unfortunately some animals aren't suited to care and others are removed and kept alive unnecessarily when euthanasia is the most ethical option, it gets tricky when there are human emotions and such involved.

As a point of interest question, if a specialised feeder such as a bandy bandy was force fed something else for a while, such as fish and eventually started taking them more or less by its own accord, would it readily convert back to blind snakes in the wild?

 

[eipper]

I agree Jedi. Turning it into a museum specimen might be a better alternative than prolonged stress from attempted force feeding.

In the case of this sp I had them for up to 6mths at a time.... I never had them voluntarily take but I reckon I was getting close. They were difficult to forcefed too initially they are very strong for their size..... Could imagine trying to hold onto a Ramphotyphlops without hands!

A reptile vet should be able to ascertain whether the snake is physiologically capable of feeding.

As for reverting to wild food after captivity I believe so

 

[Pythoninfinite]

Helling... just seeing if it works for me, or if Scott has special powers !

J

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Helling??? What is helling?

Jamie

 

[Yogi]

Hey guys,

Theres times that I agree with yous but I am bound by the conditions of the license under which national parks issues so therefore I try to gather the information to best take care of the animal that comes to me.

Also another condition is what the vet says goes and yes he was taken to a reptile vet.

So once again cheers for the help that was given and Ill try my hardest to see this guy back in the wild.

Cheers Jacob

 

[eipper]

Who was the reptile vet? If you are serious about trying for the best outcome with this snake then let it go tonight if there is nothing physiologically wrong then the wild the best spot for it.

If you would prefer give me a call 0419328251 ..... I can then answer any questions in real time

 

[butters]

If you really have to see it feed before release why not see if you can get someone to send you a flowerpot snake?
They are often handed in to wildlife parks up north.

they are an introduced species ( supposedly) so feeding to the bandy bandy should not be an issue depending on state. You may have to euthanasia it first.

 

[-Peter]

Get a dosing needle, some A/D Prescription diet and a protein supplement. Mix the A/D and the supplement making sure there are no lumps. Use a syringe and the dosing needle. Fill the syringe and make sure you don't have any air in the mix, If you tube the snake they tend to open their mouths and allow you to slide the needle down the gullet. That failing the back end of a scalpel blade is good for opening the mouth. You may need two people.
As Eipper points out this is stressful for the snake and you need to weigh up the pros and cons but I have had a lot of success with many species of snake and lizard but I haven't dealt with force feeding a bandi bandi.

 

[cement]

Why would you bother force feeding any snake that has a head injury? Snakes don't need food to heal, they need apropriate environments, free of stress.
I've rehabed and released dozens of reptiles, but getting them feeding before release is not high on my priorities. I agree with Scott, if its physiologically ok, then it can go.
Our permits are great guidelines, but occasionally we have to make mature decisions that are above all emotions and polotics, and have only purpose, whats best for the individual animal, and will release jeopordise wild population.

 

[eipper]

Hi guys,

Jacob and I spoke last night, he seems like a good guy and I am sure he will do what's best for the snake.

cheers
scott