Feeding my new snake

[billiemay]

Ok, I was going to leave my yearling stimmi to settle in for a week but then I found out she hasn't been fed in two weeks... so I tried to feed her today (after leaving her alone for 4 days). The person I bought her off said she was feeding on adult mice but they seemed a little big and I asked the lady and she told me to get a size down, so I did. I defrosted it under warm tap water and then tried moving the mouse about in front of her and at first she seemed interested but then she seemed more interested in smelling me... So i let her check me out a little. Should I leave her alone for a few more days and then try to feed again? I'm worried because it's going to be hot the next few days :?

Do you think she looks like she should be feeding on sub-adult(forgot what they're called) mice?

 

[Helikaon]

Ok, I was going to leave my yearling stimmi to settle in for a week but then I found out she hasn't been fed in two weeks... so I tried to feed her today (after leaving her alone for 4 days). The person I bought her off said she was feeding on adult mice but they seemed a little big and I asked the lady and she told me to get a size down, so I did. I defrosted it under warm tap water and then tried moving the mouse about in front of her and at first she seemed interested but then she seemed more interested in smelling me... So i let her check me out a little. Should I leave her alone for a few more days and then try to feed again? I'm worried because it's going to be hot the next few days :?

Do you think she looks like she should be feeding on sub-adult(forgot what they're called) mice?

Billie let it rest for a few more days and try again. make sure the mouse is nice and warm and probably feed in the evening. also i wouldnt handle it at all till you get it eating. you'll be right looks a nice healthy sized snake a couple of weeks without a feed is nothing.

is it a certain locality? nice looker thats for sure

cheers
H>

 

[Mighty_Moose]

My snake ate 1st day i got it and i think the mouse that im feeding it are called Hoppers (sub adults) i think.. But yeah hes a perfect little snake =D I defrost mine in a bag of water (hot) for about 20-30 mins

 

[kristian101]

hey billie i had the same problem with my spotted she is roughly the same size and age,
it took my little girl 2 weeks until she ate with me so maybe just leave it for a bit longer another 4-5 days then try again.
hope all goes well

 

[billiemay]

Thanks. I'll leave her alone for a few days and make the mouse a little bit hotter next time and see if that does the trick- i didn't want to cook it though. When I feed should I leave the heat on a little at night to help her digest?

She's a WA stimsons but no specific locale.

 

[gozz]

By the look of the size in the pic,
It would easy be able to eat an average
sized adult mouse cheers

 

[azn4114]

1..nice stimmie,wheatbelt?
2..get her onto rats
3.what temps are you keeping it at?hot end?
4.yes leave the heat on

 

[junglejudd]

Not sure if this is your first snake but I read some where a lot of keepers especially females don't feed theír snakes enough as they look at the size of the snakes head and think they won't get their jaw around the food,you'll be suprised, you should compare the width of the body to the size of the food offered just a little bigger is good .as for the interest in the food as others have said two weeks is nothing,let it settle in if it still isn't interested try a fresh kill, i had the same prob with one of my darwin hatchlings, good luck.

 

[tenacres1100]

Thanks. I'll leave her alone for a few days and make the mouse a little bit hotter next time and see if that does the trick- i didn't want to cook it though. When I feed should I leave the heat on a little at night to help her digest?

She's a WA stimsons but no specific locale.

when heating the mouse just use hot tap water, it will take about 5-10 min to warm through.
yes you can leave the heat on after feeding it.

 

[billiemay]

Haha yeah but the lady in the pet shop was walking around with a snake on her shoulder that was a lot bigger and she said it ate adult mice. They also looked a lot bigger frozen and flat. Will give some adult mice a go

 

[antaresia_boy]

my childreni looks about that size and is easy taking down small adult mice. just put him onto normal adult mice.

 

[billiemay]

Ok. I've just seen that she appears to be getting ready to shed. Her eyes are cloudy, colour has faded a little, she's mainly hiding and skin appears looser around heat pits/neck... all sound fine? Should I just leave offering food until she sheds and then offer a nice big mouse? Anyone in bris(around the valley) feel free to pm me if you have mice available!

 

[billiemay]

bumpity? Will snakes stay at the cool end when shedding and should I keep the temps a little lower than usual? I feel so sorry for her... poor blind mouse(muncher)

 

[Helikaon]

just leave everything as per normal. and in about a week she will shed and then offer her some food

 

[bundysnake]

Leave it alone for 2 weeks then attempt to feed with a hopper mouse. or day old quail (quail works quite well to get them feeding).

 

[bajamat]

what pet store did u get the snake from ? as i learned the hard way with my first snake some pet stores don't mind doing the wrong thing and selling u a snake that doesn't feed proply

 

[Rainbow-Serpent]

Shes very pretty!

Heres a tip, DON'T DEFROST THE MOUSE IN HOT WATER I learnt that the hard way.

It makes the mouse too defrosted, so the moment the snake grabs it, it pops open and you get a gut-filled clickclack. Not fun to clean up.

I'd leave her alone for a couple more days and see if she feeds then

 

[Aslan]

Billie - a couple of quick points...

...your first post mentions lots of pieces of advice given to you prior to (or at the time of) purchase. You have disregarded them all...

...if you follow those pieces of advice you will be fine...

YES, some snakes will feed the first day the enter your collection - best practice is to give them a two week settling period. The fact that your snake had not fed for two weeks prior actually means very little - that is a small amount of time for a snake and particularly if that wait is going to ease the snakes transition into your custody...

Another quick pointer, when you have a food item in the enclosure it is not a great idea to let your snake 'check you out' - they are looking for food, you are warm and mammalian...you will get bitten. A bite is not a big deal but still not a great idea to be waving your hand around in an enclosure with the smell of warm mouse in the air...

Just let your snake settle in for a week or two and then offer him/her a feed. If the food is refused wait 5 - 7 days and try again...

 

[billiemay]

Thanks for the tips everyone. She had her shed this morning and took a sub-adult mouse tonight. I shut up all the blinds and made it as dark as I could and wiggled the mouse and she took it! I found heating it up inside a plastic bag placed in hot water works well.

Thanks again, Billie