Reptile Forum, Reptile Classifieds - CaptiveBred

[stargazerlily7]

Some of you have seen me post about Athena, my king snake who thinks her tail is a yummy treat. Well she was biting her tail again a few weeks ago, and then she stopped. But she's had bloody diarrhea since this started. We did a 5 day course of metronidazole (flagyl) and that helped, but it came back a couple days after we stopped. Next we're trying panacur, but she's about to shed so I'm not going to start that course til after she sheds (dont want to handle her so roughly right now... she fights oral meds tooth and nail). I fed her two fairly large mice (more than a normal meal) two weeks ago, and I just weighed her today and she's lost 40 grams in two weeks (down to 480 from 520 two weeks ago, and down from 580 in march when she first bit herself). So I fed her tonite, and she ate... less enthusiastically than she normally does but well enough. How often should I feed her to help her get some weight back? The last feeding didnt seem to do much, since she lost 40 grams in the two weeks after she was fed. Her normal feeding schedule is every two weeks but I'd like to feed her every few days if thats ok... I just dont know... What do you think?

I know, I ramble a lot. But she's my baby and I'm worried. And she's been so good throughout all this. Never tried to bite thru all the xrays and antibiotic injections and all the oral meds... What a good kid.

[coachwhip]

First thing.. I'm fairly sure you can put the panacur into the food then feed the snake, with a king it won't matter at all if she feeds during shed. The only reason snakes don't tend to feed during shed is that in the wild they would be more vulnerable as they have reduced vision. And who cares if the shed comes off in pieces , as long as it all comes off then it's fine.

For putting on weight, how about chicks? i haven't seen the size of her but if she could take them then chicks would be fairly good, as they tend to really like eating them and they are quite fatty. They are commonly used to put weight back on females that have just laid, obviously you wouldn't want a permanent diet of them but short temp should be fine.

I tend to feed my kings every week, apart form my female Florida who is quite chunky so I have to watch her weight a little more closely.

Mike

[sidnake]

Only problem i can think of with Chicks is i believe they can get hooked on, and their not very nutritious.

Alex

[mark67123]

I used to have a king that got pretty much hooked on chicks - he'd take the odd rat pup/small mouse but only if they'd been defrosted for enough time for them to start to smell - strange...

I'm no expert, but for putting on weight I'd suggest feeding as many decent-sized rat pups as she'll eat, a couple of times a week. I say rat pups, not mice, as they'll probably be easier on her digestive system due to the lack of fur.

[Dan]

If you feed only one item on a constant basis then the animal will take this over other items.

Offer a varied diet at ALL times........
_________________
TFA

The future is bright, the future is a net like pattern.................

I'm NOT an expert, so if you don't want to know my opinion don't ask!!

[mark67123]

Under normal circumstances, maybe, but with a snake that is losing weight and is possibly ill it's more a matter of feeding what the snake can handle and what will help it to recover.
Then once it's healthy, by all means vary the diet.

[Dan]

Not going to argue with you Mark. Your experience/knowledge wins. Don't feed the animal a varied diet, therefore not feeding higher vitamin concentrations in different items. Mark thinks it better to load the animal with one food item so go with what he has suggested.

Me, i'd offer a varied diet which gives the animal access to varied nutrition that is likely to benefit any animal, healthy or sick.
Offering one single prey items has many downfalls, the desire of the predator to stay on that item and the increase in the same area of nutrition compared to others are particularily applicable here.
_________________
TFA

The future is bright, the future is a net like pattern.................

I'm NOT an expert, so if you don't want to know my opinion don't ask!!

[goldenburm]

if the snake is eating ok I would offer a slightly smaller than usual p[rey item but on an increased feed schedule if u feed say a large mouse every 14 days, perhaps a medium mouse every 7-10 days. also as dan said if your snake will do it offer a rat fluff, or a rabbit pink, try to stay of the birds if your snakes has difgestive issues though!


Peter
_________________
1.0 striped supersalmon DEAD
0.1 salmon poss TH moonglow DEAD
0.1 Orangasm DH ghost DEAD
1.0 pastel motley DEAD
2.0 sunglows 1.0 LIVING
1.1 pastel het snow 0.1 LIVING
2.2 albino boas DEAD
0.2 albino ara's DEAD
0.4 boa constrictors 0.2 LIVING

[mark67123]

Dan - I wasn't saying you were wrong and I'm certainly not looking for an argument or a "who's got the most experience" contest.
All I'm saying is, for the meantime, surely it's better to offer the snake, with a possible digestive problem, food items that it's system can handle.
In this case the snake has had diarrhea, so personally the last thing I'd be giving it would be chicks.
Also, the snake has been losing weight, so I'd offer food more often, but smaller items so as not to overload it with a meal that may be too large.
Vitamin supplements could be added to the food or the water while the snake is recovering.

Regards,

Mark.

[Dan]

The attached file shows the varying amounts of different traits i was talking about.

Obviously the two that need to be aimed for here are energy and fat.
_________________
TFA

The future is bright, the future is a net like pattern.................

I'm NOT an expert, so if you don't want to know my opinion don't ask!!