| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| madsjd |
Posted - 20/05/2011 : 22:31:04
Hi ppl having a few issues with my royal, firstly she has retained shed on her head (including eye caps) and has been like this for almost 3 weeks despite regular bathing and gentle cloth rubs, what else can i do to help remove this? (safely).
secondly ive had her 3 months and she has refused every feed despite me trying braining, heating up, leaving her overnight in a small box with food and live feeding what else can i do?
she is currently in a large faun with 2 hides and plastic plants as cover and is on a heat mat that fluctuates between 27.5 and 31.5 im unsure of her wieght at the mo as the digi scales are en route.
thanks in advance |
| 9 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| Lotabob |
Posted - 20/05/2011 : 23:58:21
Another thing to do during a fasting period is to reduce handling to a bare minimum. You'd be very surprised to know how long they can go without food with no il effect at all so don't worry too much, get your husbandry right and it will eat in its own time. |
| MrsA82 |
Posted - 20/05/2011 : 23:07:43
No worries about thermal blocking then :) |
| madsjd |
Posted - 20/05/2011 : 23:06:42
no
under the faun
|
| MrsA82 |
Posted - 20/05/2011 : 23:05:41
So the heat mats in the viv/rub? |
| madsjd |
Posted - 20/05/2011 : 23:04:28
lotabob she a wee bit small for thermal blocking at the mo! but the mat is under the faun any way i should of mentioned she a late cb10 thanks for the advice tho and thinking about it u rite about the temps so ive turned the stat up a degree or 2 |
| madsjd |
Posted - 20/05/2011 : 22:48:02
yup tried everything from rat pups to pinkys
like the pillow case idea i'll let you no how it goes |
| Lotabob |
Posted - 20/05/2011 : 22:47:33
Shedding issue> Bathing won't really help with shed retained on the head unless they dunk their head. You can buy shed ease, or (and I think this is your best bet) get a pillow case, dampen it with warm water, snake in, tie the top shut and leave for 20 minutes, then see if you can use the stil damp pillowcase to gently rub the retained shed. Whatever you do DON'T scrub at it, a gentle front to back motion. I have seen on a snakebyte tv video the use of a rubber finger (the type people use to turn pages and count money, not anything anne summers related) to very gently rub the eye cap again front to back only, the gentle friction will lift the eyecap when its moistened. the pillowcase method is very effective though, good luck.
FEEDING> A lot of royals are off food at this time of year, Royals in particular are very well known for fasting for long periods. The best bet is just monitor weight loss (they barely lose any weight at all normally) and keep offering food fortnightly to save food and cut waste. Feeding in a small box overnight will be very stressful for royals, they are shy snakes and most do well been fed in the same place they live overnight, just put down some paper towel, and leave the rat in overnight just before you go to bed, turn off al the lights and cross your fingers its gone by morning. Live feeding is one of the last resorts really, as once they get a taste for live its hard to switch back, its very expensive and poses a few risks.
SETUP> Your temperatures are verging on too cold, if you can get it between 30-35 instead then the desirable 32oC is somewhere in the middle. Royals need an ambient air temperature too, ideally at around the 24-26oC mark though that will be impossible to achieve in a faun without increasing room temperatures. I am sure you'll have your heat mat underneath the faun, the Royal should not be allowed in contact with the heat mat, they are for a better word fat (heavy bodied) snakes and their body weight and spread is enough to cause thermal blocking resulting in a nasty burn. Underneath is OK. |
| blackskull |
Posted - 20/05/2011 : 22:40:41
have you tried feeding on a smaller prey item |
| MrsA82 |
Posted - 20/05/2011 : 22:36:15
Try wetting a pillow case in luke warn water and letting her slither in the for 30 minutes
What size viv / rub is she in ?
Also if I was you I'd get a pulse stat keeps the temps spot on Your looked at about 32c / 90f
Rather than a mat stat |
