|
1-3 of 3 messages
|
Page 1 of 1
|
|
HELP! My Nothern Pacific Rattlesnake Stopped Feed
|
Reply
|
|
by eastbay_serpent on May 18, 2006
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
I've had a Crotalus viridis oreganus, Northern Pacific rattlesnake for almost a year now. Found him/her when it was only a few months old near Pismo Beach, CA. I live in the east bay area. To my surprise, he fed immediately on the first live pinkies I let in his cage and has thrived ever since. He went from about 13 inches to about 3 feet...shed about 6-7 times and went from pinkies to regular size live rats.
I normally feed him every 10 days or so, a few days after he defecates. |He usually goes after the prey right away. He hasn’t eaten for approximately a month now. He actually looks fine and I know that these snakes can go a long time without feeding…but given his normal behavior is to feed, I’m concerned. I’ve let two rats, and 3 small mice into his cage (not all at the same time obviously) The first rat he killed only because the rat walked right up to him. After that he became very inactive and I noticed his skin was dull…sure enough his eyes turned blue and shed a few days later. Problem solved..or so I thought. Usually he is very hungry after shedding. The second rat he seemed very interested in, almost snuggling with it…almost looked like mating behavior I’ve seen on TV. After observing for several hours I went to bed and the next morning the rat was dead in the cage. A few days later I let 3 mice go in the cage, as he normally will kill and eat all 3. Again he has been extremely interested in the mice, following the trio around and seemingly trying to join in their “reindeer games”. After a while, he even allowed allowed them to crawl over him. The next morning one of the mice was dead…the other two are still alive after 2 days and nights in the cage. I’ve read many of the responses given to similar posts, but unfortunately none of the suggestions seem to apply to my situation.
* Its May so the weather getting colder doesn’t apply
* Conditions in his habitat such as temp, light, and water are constant
* Food source is the same
* He excreted the last rat he ate after the usual 3-5 days, so constipation isn’t the obvious problem.
* He looks fine and his activity level is fine…seems as though he is simply just not hungry, but that just doesn’t add up
I hope its not parasites, if so, is there a way to diagnose and treat them? I’d greatly appreciate any feedback you can give me.
|
| |
|
RE: HELP! My Nothern Pacific Rattlesnake Stopped
|
Reply
|
|
by GREGLONGHURST on May 18, 2006
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
First off, I am not sure why your snake stopped feeding, but I do see a thing or two that you may want to change in the future if/when it gets back on feed. First, it's always better to get your snake to accept dead food, & is usually not that difficult to do. Second, NEVER put live rodents in a cage with a snake unattended. If you must feed live, you sit your butt down & you watch until the rodent is dead. Rodents will chew holes in snakes.
Parasites can be diagnosed by looking at a fecal sample under a microscope. Either buy a book & a scope so that you know what you are looking for, or take a fecal sample to a vet.
~~Greg~~
|
| |
|
Snakes stop eating when they don't feel right.
|
Reply
|
|
by Flaviceps on May 19, 2006
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
In addition to what Greg said (which is entirely correct), let me add...
It could be worms, could be temperature, it could be vibration or other stress, it could be mating season (a lot of males stop eating when they can smell receptive females), or whatever.
As long as your snake is not losing weight, it's not too big a deal, but if you can get a never-dried-out poop, checking for parasites would be a good idea. (Poop in the water bowl is ideal.) Long experience has taught me that ALL wild-caught snakes have parasites, and while indirect life cycle parasites can't propagate without the secondary hist, direct life cycle parasites get worse if a snake is confined to a small cage.
Any vet can look in the feces ($15-$20 is typical) and tell you roughly what's there. There are reptile-specific species, but any dog & cat vet can tell you if it's a Panacur thing or a Flagyl thing or an Albon thing or something strange, and whether it's a light or heavy infestation. Just wander in the door with the sample and ask. (You may be asked if it's a patient there, but they usually stop wanting to do a hands-on physical within three milliseconds of hearing the word "rattlesnake.)
Of course, since your snake is NOT eating, getting poop is a bit of a challenge. You can either force-feed something, or give it an enema. Either one is not something I relish trying to describe in e-mail.
|
| |
|
Email Subscription
You are not subscribed to this topic.
Subscribe!
My Subscriptions
Subscriptions Help
Check our help page for help using
, or send questions, comments, or suggestions to the
Manager.
|
