Looking for any tips or tricks! My first clutch has been rather picky with FT rats and mice so far. Two ate, but then they refuse again. Others just hiss or coil up. I leave the rat or mouse in there until I’m done feeding my other 20 snakes, and only rarely will one eat and so far they’re a month old. I’d prefer not to do live food since I don’t have local sources, so any tips on getting them to eat ft continuously?
Temps are 75 cool and 88 hotspot, all have plants and places to hide and a decent water bowl, so I don’t think it’s environment? I also don’t hold them at all unless it’s to clean the bins!
It is best to get hatchlings started on live hopper mice. Frozen thawed should be tried once they feed solidly for around 2 months. Many other breeders like @t_h_wyman@saleengrinch@trnreptiles can give pointers as well, but live hopper mice is always what I hear people saying is best for them.
This is for sure the best way to get hatchlings starting feeding! Blacking out the entire tub will almost always get stubborn feeders to start eating as well.
Have you tried leaving a prey item in over night? Are you feeding prey with fur? Make sure it’s a decent size as well, they like bigger meals. Here is an example of how large a food item I start them on.
If I am correct, @t_h_wyman says not to leave live mouse hoppers in overnight so don’t do that when you manage to get some. Keep in mind too large a meal can scare them as well. I personally wouldn’t use something that big since it is nearly double the size of the widest part of them.
I’m using small rat pinkies currently since that’s what I have right this second. Gonna see if the local pet store has any frozen hopper mice (live if I can find them) so I can have some to try out
Rat pinks are definitely too small, you want a prey item that is as thick around as they are. Try looking on Craigslist for local breeders that have mice. That is about all Craigslist is good for lol. Mice usually trigger a better feeding response than rats as well. Also, did you research on keeping freshly hatched BPs before breeding? It is pretty commonly known that you need a source of live prey to make sure they thrive in their first few months.
In the UK it is illegal to feed live prey item unless it is absolutely necessary. So unless they just are not feeding at all, most breeders get their hatchlings started off on frozen thawed.
Some breeders will feed live to start with if they breed their own prey as they have access to them but most don’t and will feed frozen thawed from the very start.
The snake doesn’t know the country or the laws it is born in.
They are based in the U.S. so it being illegal doesn’t apply here. I would say making sure a hatchling eats ASAP counts as absolutely necessary as you don’t want to set it up for failure. I am glad I don’t live in the UK given this rather stupid law on a natural behavior though. If you don’t have a local source and you want to start breeding snakes, breeding your own feeders in a good plan however.
The point was that it is not commonly known that you NEED a source of live prey to get hatchlings started.
Yes it might work better, but I also know lots of breeders over here that have great success feeding frozen thawed straight off the bat.
The size of prey item here seems to be the issue … or it could just be one of those that needs a little more of a push to get started, we have them in the UK and that’s where feeding live comes into play. It’s not needed for all hatchling.
OP said he isn’t feeding live and you’ll notice I did not suggest leaving a live prey item in the tub. As far as size you’ll have to come explain that to the 100-150 hatchlings I produce each year. I’m speaking from years of personal experience, give them a respectable size meal and they’ll take it more readily.
I missed this before. They don’t like to wander around, that’s a stress reaction. Sometimes even adding hides won’t stop the cruising in really nervous hatchlings. Try blacking out the tub.
Also may be too hot. Mine wouldn’t eat till I got the temp down to 85 on the hot end. Then they took f/t no problem.
I thaw the f/t in the room in cool water, couple hours as I feed about a third of the collection at a time. The snakes can smell them so they know prey is around. I feed in the evening after they become active with the lights in the snake room dimmed. I warm the rats under a heat lamp which takes a few minutes and again they can smell the prey. By the time I’m opening tubs they are striking.
Also found it helps with babies to start with a smaller prey item so they aren’t intimidated. I start with rat pinkies, so I don’t have to change species later, they don’t seem to mind. Don’t chase them or bop them, just hold the prey item. If they don’t take it right off, I will move on and come back to them in a few minutes, oftentimes they will take the prey the second chance they get. It’s almost as though they have to think about it, like “hey, that was food, man I gotta get that if it wanders by again…”
If yours are wandering, then they may be too warm, may need a cool side hide, may need more cover, dont know what your set up looks like. Get them some fake plants, even in a dark tub they will feel better. They are ambush predators, don’t open the tub all the way, leave a hiding space and “creep” the prey item near the hide spot, they’ll often rush out, snatch it and haul it back like a trapdoor spider. Even my big adults prefer to ambush out of the tub, if I open it too much, they will either launch out or retreat back to the back and wait.
Maybe it looks crazy if you don’t feed a ton of these little buggers but that meal isn’t that big.