Incompetent snake

[Fantazmic]

Hi Guys

I was just reading one of the other threads about a snake that was eating bum first...and to slit the back of the preys head to help the snake find the head and I think this might be part of the answer to my problem...however I thought i would tell my story in case anyone else has anything else they can suggest.

I have this beautiful Jungle Carpet Python boy who is Mr Incompetent. The reason I call him this is he just cant seem to eat his prey. Love him to bits and he is coming on beautifully...because I perservere with him and dont take no for an answer when it is feeding time.

I have to really get his dander up to strike and then when he does strike it is like there is no warning....no sssing up of his neck etc he sort of just grabs the rat. Sometimes he coils sometimes he doesnt. If he strikes the rat anywahere but on the head he wont eat it. If he strikes on the side...and then coils he lets go and then it is like he doesnt know what to do next....and if i leave the rat with him he loses interest and just leaves in and goes back to hunting.

heres the weird bit.....he is hungry.....I wait until he starts hunting before I feed him to be sure he wants it. I use the food in food out method and keep really good records so I know everything is getting digested etc.

And it is like he wants to eat because he gets himself into a state and it is like we get really frustrated with each other.....and then once I get him started....which can take half an hour just to get one hopper rat in......he is better....it is like the hunger pain goes away and he calms down.

My snake is 12 months old......and currently is of good weight (because I persevere with him) He is in a 20 litre click clack (about to go into a new enclosure and I will be making sure he is well fed before he goes in ) temps are good about 26 in the cool end and about 31/32 in the warm. He has dowel to sit on to hunt and he uses this he is lovely and alert etc and since i got him his colours have come on really well he has gone from a dull brown to vibrant yellow !!. His appetite is there it is just that he is such a difficult feeder...

ANYTHING anyone can suggest to make feeding time easier would be greatly appreciated.

Regards

Elizabeth

 

[junglepython2]

I had a similar adult jungle that would never consume unless it hit the prey right over the snout. Get a gardening glove and hold the rat so only the tip of its head is sticking out and then hand feed. It rarely ever never fails. You can do it with tongs but it is harder to make sure they hit the snout only and you end up doing it over and over.

 

[Fantazmic]

yep that is exactly what is happening and it is like we get frustrated with eash other.....

I will try it and see how i go he is such a poor striker that he ight even get used to just taking the head from me.........


Thanks for suggesting that

Elizabeth

 

[hugsta]

Actually you should use a long pair of BBQ tongs, makes it much easier to feed IMO.

 

[Fantazmic]

well i use tongs and sometimes he only takes 15 minutes for us to get it right and for him to strike...other times.......30...to 45 minutes and just when I am about to give up he strikes.......

 

[rockstar_jones]

How often do you feed him mate?

 

[Fantazmic]

he would eat every 10 to 14 days

and he is so fussy I feed him hopper rats and he eats one still seems hungry and in the end takes about 3....i am going to try him with a slightly larger rat next time.....he has been so fussy that i was trying with a larger food items but he wouldnt strike at all so i made them smaller.....and have been gradually building up the size....so next time i go and buy rats for him i will go to the next size up from hoppers. I know the fact he takes three means the food item is way too small but if i offer him something larger its like he gets scared of it...lol

so i am sort of gradually increasing the size in the hope that eventually we can get the the correct size for him and he wont be scared of it.......he is a problem child

So even any help...not just with this strike on the face problem but also getting him to be game to take something larger would be fantastic

 

[rockstar_jones]

Have you tried baby chickens or quails or something? Might be an idea to see if these get him going.

 

[waruikazi]

Try scenting with chicken or some other avian friend or even fish but only scent the head of the rat. This will give your snake a starting point. This has worked for me.

 

[Fantazmic]

if im going to scent with chicken or fish........I know this sounds dumb but should i get say day old chicks and thaw them and use them ???I just dont thing supermarket bought chicken will be smelly enough

and thanks everyone for your replies......he is such a sweetie we all love him...and want him to keep doing well

i wonder where i would get a good reliable supply of baby chickens or quail in victoria ....im in Melbourne metre? Can someone pm me if they know anywhere

 

[waruikazi]

Shop bought stuff will be fine, so long as it hasn't been seasoned. Even chicken stock will work sometimes. Remember just because it doesn't smell real chickeny to us doesn't mean it is the same to the snake.

But if you or friend has a budgie or other pet bird try using that. Roll it around in the mess on the bottom of the cage, stick a feather in its mouth, clip one of those plastic feathers so the bird bleeds onto the rat :lol: (joking, don't do that.)

 

[Fantazmic]

Thank you to everyone who has suggested things for me to try
I am going to go get myself some touch gardening gloves....the ones i have....apart from stinking of dynamic lifter are nylon on the back and i can just see little snakie teeth getting hooked up on them
I am going to cut the back of the head and give scenting a try...and if sall else fails try and feed him chicks or quail.

Just to make a lier out of me he was hunting this morning so I fed him again and he took it first go without any bother...lol.....i know dont say it its the owner with the problem not the snake lol

Anyway if he is like it again and i expect he will I have some ideas to make things easier......

Also and maybe I should put this in another thread......id really like to know a good supplier of chicks and quail in the south east of Melbourne they must be out there....i have a good source for rats......who i really trust but not the birdies

Thanks everyone for your help I really appreciate it......

Elizabeth

 

[Fantazmic]

just an update on my naughty snake

I am so excited
I just got Alvin to eat a 110 gram rat...he will be so settled and have a big grow...it will bring him into shed......this is excellent as he is smaller for his age so with eating so well he will be able to really catch up to where he needs to be

So worth the work and perserverence i have put into him....I just love him he has a lovely temperament and now he is eating properly i can be more relaxed and not worry so much

thanks to everyone for all your advice...ive just had to hang in there and keep trying with him

 

[Snakewoman]

I'm glad he decided to eat well this time I wish my mother's jungle had a good temperament, he's a total psychopath! He's much smaller than your snake though, so the bites aren't that bad. I managed to clean out his tub the other day without getting bitten... it was still interesting though, I got him out of the tub, and he wrapped around a kitchen chair and while I was trying to get him of there he kindly sprayed urine everywhere... great! Some of my snakes used to have trouble eating if they didn't grab the rats head, it can be very frustrating, but I'm glad you're persevering with him, he sounds like he's worth it. You should post more pics of him soon

 

[ShaunMorelia]

Another option for those who haven't had any sucess, is to feed them from below.
As that is a more natural method for carpet pythons to feed. (watch them in their hunting position, they are usually waiting for something to pass under them)
If they see something coming from above them they usually startle and this can turn them off their food imo.

 

[Fantazmic]

Hi the s word
yes the feeding from below is what I am now waiting for with him....i have noticed he feeds so much better when he is hunting...so I have to be patient with him and realise...he isnt a mammal he is a reptile and can go for ages without food...so if he misses one feed even two it isnt the end of the world. I guess I got anxious because when I got him he was small as the breeder was quite honest in telling me he hadnt had the time to persevere with him...now I feel confident if i can get one of these big rats into him every couple of weeks or so he is going to grow really well.

Talia I would persevere with your jungle, i havent had mine pee on me but Elvira was a bit of a bitch and tagged a lot and you know how those taggs bleed!!and now she has settled really well I just didnt take no for an answer and kept handling her.

I will take more piccies of Alvin...he is now my avatar but I did promise the breeder i would take some pics in the sun to show his colours...at the moment the dear little thing is sleeping off his dinner lol and I miss him terribly !!!!!!

 

[Snakewoman]

My Mum's jungle is 15 months old now, not sure that he'll settle... He bites everything that moves, he even had a go at his own tail 3 times because it was moving maybe I should spend a bit more time with him though... my mother would like to sell him because you can't get near him without him repeatedly biting. Getting him off your hand when putting him back in the tub is fun too, he squeezes tightly around your hand and won't let go. One day when I went to feed him, he was hiding under the newspaper as usual, but when I offered him the food he slithered up to it, and he was lying on his back underneath the paper! :lol: sometimes when I go to take him out of the tub he gets into the strike position, and follows your hand wherever it goes, and sometimes he'll lean so far back that his head ends up in his water bowl... I think he has mental issues! :lol:

 

[Fantazmic]

He sounds like a typical jungle.....I saw this temperament on the krauss line jungles at amazing amazon....there were four of them and I swear it was teamwork tagging when the guy went to get them out of the enclosure.

Mine arent like this at all......Alvin 13 months and Elvira 15 months are SXR line and I have just bought two hatchies Sabrina and Jasper from Roger Lester and both have beautiful temperaments.......they dont even tag. I didnt even get to see Rogers before I bought them I dont know...I guess i have just been lucky.

I do know some jungles are just like that and are look dont touch....such a shame as he would have a much nicer time if he could just calm down and be out with you...silly snake

 

[Snakewoman]

Funny you should say that, he's a Krauss line lol. I'm glad you were able to find nice jungles, it would be awesome to have ones that are like that We got my mum a Murray Darling for Christmas, and she's beautiful. In a few years we'd love to breed her with my male, he's 2 years old, and is my favourite snake. Its funny looking at the size difference between them, the female is only a year younger, but is less than half the girth. They'll have beautiful hatchies in a few years

 

[Fantazmic]

OMG hes done it again last night
another 110gram rat...I dont know where he put it !!

he was sssd up hunting and I thought...he cant be hungry and reached in to take him out and the little moonkey coiled me lol !!

He is full now though lol he cant MOVE lol
Now he is sleeping it off !!