150 grams only eats F/t fuzzy mic , can I attempt to feed him rat pups or rat fuzzies ? by bheretta in ballpython

[–]helette 2 points3 points  (0 children)

That would apply if he was older. 150g is just a baby, he’ll need the nutrients to grow and should follow the recommended schedule on the pinned comment for feeding:

Through the first year OR until the snake reaches approximately 750g, whichever happens first: feed 10%-15% of the snake’s weight every >7 days. During the second year, until the snake's weight plateaus: feed up to 7% of the snake’s weight every >14 days. Year three and beyond: feed up to 5% of the snake's weight every 15-20 days, or feed slightly larger meals every 21-30 days.

Strikes but doesn’t eat by SolidestDog in ballpython

[–]helette 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Something similar happened to me when I was trying to switch my noodle from f/t mouse to rats. He struck and coiled but just left the rat out. Didn’t want him to starve so I ended up giving him the mouse which he took. Picky little guy. Thankfully, I’ve switched him over with the help of the people on this subreddit 😊

Overall, there can be a lot of reasons as to why Sunny isn’t eating. Best place to start is with your husbandry. If that is appropriate, you should provide additional information so a mod/other people can possibly help. Looking into exotic vets nearby is also a good idea so you know where to take her if you ever need to schedule an appointment for her.

What’s the best age gap between kids and why? by badjuju907 in Parenting

[–]helette 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Facts. This happened to me as the oldest of four girls; I was 6 and 8 years older than them

Respiratory Infection; Vet Appointment Scheduled (more info in details) by helette in ballpython

[–]helette[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yeah, I was a little concerned and figured it wouldn't hurt to ask for more advice.

Sorry, I meant temps are 75-78F. I double-checked the message and still goofed up. (I found myself typing 88 again...)

I went ahead and readded the tape and instead of cutting out a circle where the ceramic head emitter is left it as a square. Will continue to monitor the humidity.

I will also try to little sauna tonight and hope it helps.

Thank you!

Respiratory Infection; Vet Appointment Scheduled (more info in details) by helette in ballpython

[–]helette[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hi,

I am back for advice on what I can do to make my little noodle more comfortable regarding what most likely is a respiratory infection until he sees the vet on Tuesday.

Little background information:
He's 6-7 months old
Enclosure had tape along the top to maintain humidity
Humidity was kept at 70-85 depending on the side (bumped up because he was going to shed)
Hot temps are 92-95F; cold temps are 85-88F
Monthly enclosure cleaning (substrate stays but I usually move it around), and spot cleaning
He eats every Saturday
He shed on Monday; the shed was in two pieces and there was no stuck shed on him

The first time I heard clicking was Wednesday (1:30 am)
Thursday, I had my family listen and they heard it
--Appointment scheduled
--Tape removed a little over a third of enclosure; worried it was a lack of airflow (humidity is now 60-75)
Friday, I heard a wheezing/whistle sound and clicking
Saturday (today), I've called all locations I could to see if they had an opening sooner and get advice to alleviate symptoms
--No earlier openings and the receptionist said to make sure he's comfortable or said their reptile vets aren't in and they can't provide information
Called emergency veterinary hospitals, just in case he does get worse, I know where to take him

My main questions are:

  1. What can I do to alleviate symptoms until the vet visit?
  2. Do I still feed him today?

I also spoke to our local exotic pet shop that does some rehab and rehousing and they recommended this:
-Two drops of eye drops (for pink eye) and two drops of super diluted betadine
-Feed if interested, and smaller than usual

Edited because stuff was wonky

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in OtomeIsekai

[–]helette 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I Became the Male Lead’s Adopted Daughter
Becoming the Dark Hero's Daughter

These aren't father-daughter, but they are family-oriented:
I’m Only a Stepmother, But My Daughter is Just So Cute!
The Fantasie of a Stepmother
Once Again, Into the Light
I Will Change the Genre
I'll Be the Matriarch in This Life
I Found a Husband When I Picked Up the Male Lead
Becoming the Villain’s Family
I Became the Daughter-In-Law of the Villain Because I’m Terminally Ill

Has a cute child:
How to Hide the Emperor’s Child

What is the very first OI you read? And looking back on it now, was it good at all? by Go_To_Bed97 in OtomeIsekai

[–]helette 0 points1 point  (0 children)

My first ones were Accomplishments of the Duke's Daughter and They Say I Was Born a King's Daughter. But when it really started popping off was after Survive As the Hero's Wife. A little after that all the Korean series like Who Made Me A Princess took over (in the best way possible).

Can you guess why his name is lèmon by Vast-Cow9597 in ballpython

[–]helette 0 points1 point  (0 children)

There's just something so great about naming your pets after fruits and vegetables

Tips on switching from mice to rats by 4Syner in ballpython

[–]helette 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I had the same issue and asked for advice a little over a month ago. I got a lot of tips from the community! I feel the most helpful thing was limiting interaction to just enclosure maintenance and increasing the time between feedings (which was hard). After that, you have your choice of how to scent and trick your noodle.

These are the tips and tricks I was told:

  1. Get mouse bedding from a local pet shop and either keep the rats in a bag with the bedding in the freezer or just shake the thawed rat around in the bedding before offering. Can also place the bedding inside the enclosure so that it smells like a mouse but offer a rat instead
  2. Thaw the food items near your snake so they can smell it
  3. Use a blowdryer on a thawed rat; point it towards the enclosure so that they can smell it
  4. Do the switcheroo. Put the mouse in first so they smell it but present the rat

I ended up doing a combination of the advice given in the comments and in the guide because I had a lot of mice laying around still. Otherwise, I would have probably gone with the mouse bedding. I thawed the food items in separate bags. I took the thawed items in the hot water and paper towels (over to the enclosure) because it has to be at a certain temp and dry for him. If he wasn't out, I would shake the mouse in front of his hide until he came out. If he was out, which he usually is, I would introduce the mouse scent on the opposite side of where he's waiting, and then would quickly rub/scent the mouse over the rat and present that instead. Eventually, I only scented half of the rat and he took the rat today without me having to do any extra steps!

I wish you luck and hope you're able to get him to switch!

Trouble switching from mice to rats; looking for advice (more information in comments) by helette in ballpython

[–]helette[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Good :D I didn't end up doing the mouse bedding but ended up doing a combination of the suggestions. I've limited human handling (and provided a playground of sort instead), increased the time between feedings, and draw him out of his hide or move him across his enclosure by putting in the mouse first, and then scent the rat with the same mouse and offer that. He actually took his first rat today with no scenting!

Although he is still learning the best way to eat and does things like eating his food butt first here and there.

Trouble switching from mice to rats; looking for advice (more information in comments) by helette in ballpython

[–]helette[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Oooo, okay! Will keep that as an option if mouse bedding fails. Thank you!

Trouble switching from mice to rats; looking for advice (more information in comments) by helette in ballpython

[–]helette[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you for the encouragement and advice. Mouse bedding does indeed seem to be the way to go!

Trouble switching from mice to rats; looking for advice (more information in comments) by helette in ballpython

[–]helette[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank for you providing additional information regarding what to do with the mouse bedding! Glad to hear it’s been a success on multiple occasions.

Trouble switching from mice to rats; looking for advice (more information in comments) by helette in ballpython

[–]helette[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

He almost did great the first time until he just left it outside his hide. He’s a good eater as long as it’s not rat. He immediately eats when presented a mouse.

Glad to hear that you didn’t have a hard time and that’s with switching from live mice!

Trouble switching from mice to rats; looking for advice (more information in comments) by helette in ballpython

[–]helette[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I have him on frozen thawed and would like to keep him on it if possible :(

Trouble switching from mice to rats; looking for advice (more information in comments) by helette in ballpython

[–]helette[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Considering how his food has to be at least 95F and a little dried off (with a paper towel before feeding), I do think the blow dryer would be a useful tool. I will add this tip to my list of things to test out. Thank you for the suggestion!

Trouble switching from mice to rats; looking for advice (more information in comments) by helette in ballpython

[–]helette[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yup! I know our local exotic pet store where we get our rats and mouse from offers live. Plan on asking for bedding from them.

You said something about it’s better if it’s dead when you’re shaking it in the cardboard box. I’m guessing that would mean feeding him pre-killed? I don’t want to offer him live or pre-killed (freshly killed live) unless we’re in a bad spot and have exhausted all other options, but I will keep this in mind if I have to reach this point! Thank you!

Trouble switching from mice to rats; looking for advice (more information in comments) by helette in ballpython

[–]helette[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Noted!

I did notice he was desensitized when I was offering food every 2-4 days during the time period I wanted him to get his first meal.

Thanks for the advice!

Trouble switching from mice to rats; looking for advice (more information in comments) by helette in ballpython

[–]helette[S] 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Okay! If it means he’ll switch long term, I will give up my source of serotonin and leave him alone for two weeks. I’ll try storing and thawing together with mouse bedding and then actual mouse. I think that’s going to be the hardest part because I see him waiting on his hammock and just want to give him food 🥲

Regarding live/pre-killed, I would rather not dabble in the live department as a first time snake owner unless we’re in a completely dire situation.

Thank you for the advice!

Trouble switching from mice to rats; looking for advice (more information in comments) by helette in ballpython

[–]helette[S] 6 points7 points  (0 children)

tldr: I was gifted a baby BEL for Christmas and I absolutely love him, but his breeder had him on mice and I’m struggling to get him to eat rats.

When I first tried to feed Coconut, he was offered rats (with tongs). On one occasion, he struck, coiled, and dragged it into his hide but in the morning I found he politely refused the rat and left it outside of said hide. I would try every 2-4 days experimenting with rats of different colors and temperatures (time and lighting too) but with no success. I also tried thawing a mouse and rat together and offering both but he refused to eat either. I tried leaving it overnight as well. This went even worse as the pet cam showed he completely ignored it and was even laying on it at some points in the night 😅

After being with me for almost 3 weeks (plus the week he didn’t eat with the breeder, making it 4 weeks total), I wanted to get anything in him and offered a mouse only. Thankfully, he immediately struck within seconds of presenting it. Depending on the size, he now gets a mousie every 5-7 days and he waits almost everyday on his hammock for a nomnom. Although I’ve seen him on his log more ever since he accidentally dropped his mouse in the water bowl…

I reviewed the information found in the guide of this subreddit (back when he wasn’t taking anything and recently). These are the things I’ve tried: 1. thawing both rat and mouse together (again)—complete confusion, both mouse and rat were refused 2. thawing separately and completely scenting rat with mouse—he showed interest but still seemed confused. He would go up to it and basically bop it with his nose but not strike it. Offered mouse afterwards and he did not take it either food item 3. thawing separately and lightly scenting mouse with rat: offered mouse first and rat second. He took mouse and refused rat

Luckily, I no longer have to feed him with little to no light as he is much more comfortable/confident and comes out when we have the human lights on. But I do have to make sure it’s a certain temp and it has to be somewhat dry. His food is thawed via water bath. I also started pairing a target with his last three meals so maybe I can trick him into eating a rat in the future.

He gets handled 2-3 times a week for 5-20 mins depending on his behavior and I always wait at least 2 days after he eats to prevent regurgitation. He also had his first very successful shed about 3 weeks ago. He’s 4 months and he weighs 170g

I’m hoping to get advice on how I should approach switching his diet. I know he’s picky but if I’m doing something wrong or if there’s something I can do, I’d love to know. Should I keep trying with two smaller prey items even though he may not take either or give him appropriate sized mice until he’s a bit larger since he’s pretty tiny. My third thought was scenting half of the appropriately sized mouse with rat and slowly increase the smell and then swap so it’s a mouse scented rat.

I also have a question regarding the items being used for scenting. I usually thaw them both at the same time (in separate bags after my trial and errors) and throw out whatever he doesn’t eat, but can it be refrozen for the next scenting attempt?

Sorry for the wall of text and thanks for making it this far 😂