| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| Sabriyyah |
Posted - 26/03/2012 : 17:24:25
I haven't been here for quite a while but I am in need of support and advice. Alice has not eaten anything since last June - yes really! She sheds every now and then and looks ok if a bit on the thin side but her skin is lovely and her eyes are bright. I moved country and can't get the mice she used to eat so have been buying hamsters - she takes one look and goes back to sleep. One pet stall owner suggested tinned chicken sausages - he says all the sellers feed them these. I am worried about the additives. I tried bantam eggs (we have those as well!) but no luck. I am getting really rather worried. Any ideas? |
| 20 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| ShadEO9 |
Posted - 04/04/2012 : 11:37:32
quote:
Originally posted by Keg
Has she eaten yet ?
Yeah i was just wondering the same... |
| Keg |
Posted - 04/04/2012 : 10:57:49
Has she eaten yet ? |
| ShadEO9 |
Posted - 04/04/2012 : 10:01:08
Sad fact is most pet stores do exactly the same with there mice,rats and everything in between.
I think if this hasn't botherd the Royal before hand it seems a little odd that this has all of a sudden become an issue for her. Maybe the move has affected her. |
| Sabriyyah |
Posted - 27/03/2012 : 22:33:58
well if you Google it you will find that quite a few people do. I'm not saying it's a good thing but I didn't invent it and don't do it out of malice. |
| Keg |
Posted - 27/03/2012 : 15:43:26
Still cant believe someone puts live rodents in the freezer :( |
| delterflier |
Posted - 27/03/2012 : 11:56:37
Def put the snake in a smaller viv, I moved drogo from a 3ft to a 2ft and he hasn't missed a feed since .
I also gave him smaller hides
Smaller pray might help to
John |
| Kelfezond |
Posted - 27/03/2012 : 08:27:26
I guarantee you the stress from freezing to the hamster is far greater than the snake |
| Sabriyyah |
Posted - 27/03/2012 : 07:08:16
interesting posts about the method I use to kill the hamsters. she ate frozen to death mice for six months at roughly 1 per week. I chose to freeze them because I'm not able to snap their necks. re feeding live I remember the debate in another post from last year about that. i opted against it due to the possibility of the prey fighting back and injuring Alice and also the abject fear that it would go through being trapped with a snake. I will take your advice se7ens1ins over the viv itself and then, if she doesn't respond, will try the live feeding method. thanks for all your input. |
| n/a |
Posted - 26/03/2012 : 21:46:08
quote:
a frozen to death hamster that will have released all sorts of hormones and chemicals dealing with slowly dying in a freezer.
I agree with lotabob Snakes senses are highly sophiscated and developed so they will pick up on these hormones and chemicals released it would be like us trying to eat rotten food we wouldnt eat so you can hardly expect snakey to eat.
Far better to feed live food |
| JanieW |
Posted - 26/03/2012 : 21:18:21
No Kelf she meant she freezes live rodents..check the "How mice and rats are killed thread
http://www.theroyalpython.co.uk/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=8403&whichpage=2 |
| Kelfezond |
Posted - 26/03/2012 : 20:38:09
Yeah I assumed she meant she killed them then froze them lol I hope that's what was meant xD |
| Se7enS1ns |
Posted - 26/03/2012 : 20:36:19
I chose to gloss over the the freezing bit - but Bob raises a valid point. I don't necessarily believe that the snake will be able to "take the Pepsi challenge" as to which mouse was killed by which methods - but I'm sure she'll prefer a live over a frozen/thawed any day of the week. I don't advocate live feeding in any way, but the snakes welfare comes first, so if needs must... |
| Lotabob |
Posted - 26/03/2012 : 20:17:47
quote:
Originally posted by Sabriyyah
I have always brained her food which I buy live and then freeze. I warm them up by putting them in a plastic cup in a bowl of hot water.
Cruel and pointless, feed live at least then the snake can make the kill quickly and a live fuzzy hamster will be a much better meal than a frozen to death hamster that will have released all sorts of hormones and chemicals dealing with slowly dying in a freezer. |
| n/a |
Posted - 26/03/2012 : 18:51:48
Yes, I would think of live feeding too in your situation. But if feeding a hamster, supervise every minute - they can give the snake a nasty bite, as can any rodent. Good idea to supervise even a chick. And if the prey item is being stressed, then best to remove. A snake in serious feeding mode won't hesitate and mercifully the prey won't know what's hit it. Don't worry if you hear a squeak as the breath leaves the body of the prey; this isn't a cry of pain, just the air driven from the body of the prey as the snake asphyxiates it, and you may see some twitching from the constricted prey; this is involuntary nerve movement after asphyxiation/death. I've never fed live but have killed my own rabbits/poultry and have observed this. Sorry to be so graphic but I know you're nervous of feeding live, and these things can be pretty unnerving unless you understand just what's causing them.
Hard to say about the fast period as you're in another part of the world; in the UK it's usually reckoned to take place any time between late autumn and spring, but even then there are exceptions. One of mine hasn't fasted at all but it wouldn't surprise me if he starts to fast just as the rest of my royals come back into feeding mode.
Good luck with her. |
| Se7enS1ns |
Posted - 26/03/2012 : 18:49:20
9 months is a long time! Her viv is a little large, but this can easily be remedied by adding more decor, a few branches, another hide, and some fake foliage would be good. It's also a little on the hot side and a little dry. Could do with dropping the temp 2 degrees, and moving the water bowl towards to hot end. What is the temperature at the cold end, out of interest? And does she have a hide at the cold end?
How much does she currently weigh - and what size/weight prey have you been offering her? As Kelf says, live feeding might be the answer here, especially as you are buying live anyway. I would be trying a few more things to remedy any housing problems first though. |
| Kelfezond |
Posted - 26/03/2012 : 18:32:05
Have you tried just straight up live feeding? Worked fantastic for my nonfeeder.
|
| Sabriyyah |
Posted - 26/03/2012 : 18:29:04
Thanks guys.
I have a 4ft viv with a warm end at 34, humidity around 30%, a cork hide (that she seems to love), a water bath and a basking log under the IR light. i haven't recorded her
weight at all - very remiss of me. I have always brained her food which I buy live and then freeze. I warm them up by putting them in a plastic cup in a bowl of hot water. She was feeding very well before we moved but nothing since. when does the fasting usually start and end? |
| n/a |
Posted - 26/03/2012 : 18:14:47
It can happen ...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x5Ux1elOKsM
A piece of raw chicken, say cut from the thigh, with some skin and fat and gristle, would be healthier than sausage, but hope Alice eats soon. |
| Kelfezond |
Posted - 26/03/2012 : 18:03:00
Chicken sausages? O.o |
| n/a |
Posted - 26/03/2012 : 17:34:46
Hi, she may be fasting, but even so I agree, nine months is a long time (though it's been known before with royals.)
I can't add much to what Chris said but just wondered, can you get chicks in Qatar? There's a bit of debate as to how nourishing these are, but if they could tempt her and kick start her appetite, it would be a start.
All the very best with her. |
