| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| matildasmum |
Posted - 03/07/2013 : 00:39:49
im looking for a wee bit of advice, the only way I can get matilda to eat is if I assist feed her, obviously this is not ideal but I had no choice as she is looking awful, any advice on how to get her feeding on her own again, ive tried all the usual methids with no results.
any advice will be much appreciated |
| 20 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| hodgie |
Posted - 14/07/2013 : 11:57:55
Got to say i agree 100% with Lotobob, and the other post appear to be from newish owners (not that that's a bad thing) but have they experienced a fasting Royal yet?
As in my previous post thaw out you rat for your other snake next to your Royals enclosure, you'll see when she starts to become interested. |
| Lotabob |
Posted - 13/07/2013 : 00:42:02
At the over 1kg mark most Royals will fast, it's not anything you need to worry about, there is nothing at all you need to do but monitor weight loss, continue offering food (I only offer once a month while they are fasting) and providing the right environment. Fussing is just going to stress you out and cost you money you need not spend on the more expensive foods.
Once they take a monthly offering you then offer again in a fortnight and so on u til a regular feeding pattern emerges but even when fasting they may snack and just take one meal every now and again. |
| Leucistic |
Posted - 12/07/2013 : 14:49:23
Multis are usually a royals fav, but its a pain in the bum getting them back off them and onto rats |
| matildasmum |
Posted - 12/07/2013 : 14:12:19
Thank you very much, I have been thinking about trying baby rabbits, gerbils etc so I will give it a go. Thanks for the advice. |
| jonnyc1988 |
Posted - 11/07/2013 : 05:23:15
I would say try a different prey item too. If mice dont work go for gerbils or multi's. mine wont touch rats or mice, but loves gerbils and multi's. |
| Derek FRS |
Posted - 10/07/2013 : 03:41:06
Sorry to jump on this thread but if she was on rats have you tried her with mice my male pastel was on rats for aslong as ive had him and then 1 day decided not to bother eating them anymore he was on small rats then we tried large weaners then went down to small weaners but still he showed no interest in the rats he was fasting (if u can call it a fast) for around 9 or 10 weeks in total (id need to check the snake diaryto be sure) and he showed no intrest in rats what so ever then 1 night my corn refused to eat his mouse and my royal was out looking as if he was going to eat so i offered the mouse and bang took it straight away :) then the following week i offered a small weaner rat with no luck then th week after that i offered a jumbo mouse and bang straight away agian :) now i know its not ideal an adult royal only eating mice but he gats 2 jumbo mice per week now and i just feel its better than him eating nothing i have only offered a rat once since he started on the mice with no joy :( so that was just something that worked for me that might be worth a try if you havent allready tried :) |
| matildasmum |
Posted - 08/07/2013 : 12:39:24
Yeah, for sure this is how they teach us, its going to be great learning more about their nature.
My boa just hammers down the rats without fail so just need to get used to the way royals behave.
I am looking forward to getting a male royal to breed with matilda once she has reached her 3rd year, would love to get a albino, that should make for a nice mix Mojave x albino, we shall just have to wait and see :) |
| hodgie |
Posted - 08/07/2013 : 11:38:09
quote:
Originally posted by matildasmum
Gosh, I don't know how you coped, I would've been pulling my hair out by that point, my wee royal is my baby lol, she is just so gorgeous and placid I cant bear it when she shows interest in food but then buggers off the other way lol, I shall do what you have suggested and hope she gets the taste for food again soon.
many thanks :)
Don't worry if she takes a couple of months she's gained a lot of weight and this will be the 1 st of her many fasting periods, it has been slightly easier for me as I have more Royals so the learning curve is must faster, but i worried as an caring owner would.
This is where Royals teach us what they want. |
| matildasmum |
Posted - 08/07/2013 : 11:09:38
I have apologised for my rudeness directly to hodgie and as far as I'm aware my apology was accepted. I meant no disrespect to hodgie, I was just in a particularly unpleasant mood and he/she received the brunt of it. I'm not sure that any more needs to be said on the matter now. Thankfully hodgie accepted my apology for which I am grateful. Thankyou however for your input, it's lovely to see people sticking up for others on the forum. |
| phlegmatical |
Posted - 08/07/2013 : 09:59:58
quote:
Originally posted by badwool
quote:
Originally posted by phlegmatical
[quote]I dont blame you for offering no more advice hodgie! That was the sort of snotty reply you see on rfuk lol
Hardly.
Surely |
| badwool |
Posted - 08/07/2013 : 09:49:53
quote:
Originally posted by phlegmatical
[quote]I dont blame you for offering no more advice hodgie! That was the sort of snotty reply you see on rfuk lol
Hardly.
|
| matildasmum |
Posted - 08/07/2013 : 09:34:07
Gosh, I don't know how you coped, I would've been pulling my hair out by that point, my wee royal is my baby lol, she is just so gorgeous and placid I cant bear it when she shows interest in food but then buggers off the other way lol, I shall do what you have suggested and hope she gets the taste for food again soon.
many thanks :) |
| hodgie |
Posted - 08/07/2013 : 08:02:27
Since you have another snake, I would personally thaw out that ones food next to your Royals viv, leave it there so she gets a good smell, if she shows no interest then leave her alone.
It's hard novice owners when they first do this. Last year my bumblebee went for 6 months, she was1450g. |
| matildasmum |
Posted - 08/07/2013 : 00:33:23
Oh yes I meant to ask, should I continue to offer good to Matilda and if so how often, or hero guy said to assist feed so we thought we were doing a good thing but should we offer good every week or every other week Tec...... |
| matildasmum |
Posted - 08/07/2013 : 00:31:12
Our boa Fergus on the other hand is growing like a mushroom, he came to us at 3kg and is now 5kg, he is chomping down jumbo rats on a weekly basis, the down side to this is 3ft poop........
Not pleasant...... |
| matildasmum |
Posted - 07/07/2013 : 23:22:27
Thank you hodgie for accepting my apology. And your right she will let me know when she is ready to eat. I weighed her last night and she was weighing in at 1160g so evidently isn't doing too badly. We aren't going to assist feed anymore and just let her decide. Thanks for all the advice. |
| hodgie |
Posted - 07/07/2013 : 13:53:08
Apology happily excepted.
No one is questioning your love for your pet and the worry that we all go through when we have that first experience of them going off their food. Your comments about her being very inactive and staying in the warm end are prime examples of a fasting Royal.
I don't know if you weigh her or not. Do it now and keep a record. If she is fasting as we believe then you'll know if she is ok because weight loss will be minimal. Don't forget though that she's had food so if she goes to the toilet don't use that loss in her overall weight.
Be brave and trust her, when she wants food you'll notice a change in her behaviour, she will become more active for starters.
The advice that I give is what I have personally experienced and hope I can help in what ever way I can. Enjoy the sunshine.
|
| Lotabob |
Posted - 07/07/2013 : 12:50:59
I'm sure stopping the assist feeding will be better for her. Not eating is something Royals excel at. Just keep a record of weight so you can track any weight loss.
Iwoould also cut handling to a minimum too but that's optional. |
| matildasmum |
Posted - 06/07/2013 : 22:15:59
We have decided to stop the assist feeding and not offer her any more food for a couple of weeks to give her a chance to recover from the stress that assist feeding can cause.
I apologise to any and all members who took offence to my post, it was wrong to act in that manner, I am not as experienced as the majority of you on here, I kept 4 legged reptiles before I got matilda and was used to there brumation period. I am not as experienced as you, I only know what I have read, been told, or observed. once again sorry |
| matildasmum |
Posted - 06/07/2013 : 21:46:28
I apologise for my rudeness, I took my bad temper out on you and that was wrong, its not your fault im having a bad day, I am truly sorry, I am just very worried about my baby. |
