I bought my snake a couple of months ago from a pet shop that was force feeding him. Iv been trying to feed him normaly and was wondering if it was possible that he could be scared of it? because every time I put it near him he runs away. I called my vet and he said to try crickets can he eat them?

never never never force feed a snake. This is one practice I am totally against...no matter what. There is always a reason a snake is not eating and can be rectified. But that was their mistake...

cool now what snake is it? Are you giving live prey that he is slithering away from? How big is the snake?

and as for the crickets...i know of snakes taking them but you want to get it onto rodents. Maybe try a reptile meal if avaliable(anole, house gecko, skink etc.)

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Don't be jealous the voices only speak to me...

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My first question is what kind of snake do you have? What have you been trying to feed it? Live or frozen thawed?

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Colleen

Is it a live pinky? I've heard of snakes being afraid of even a pinky if it's live and they're not used to live ones. If you're trying live, I'd switch to frozen/thawed, which is much better than live anyway, and see if he's still afraid of it. You can also try leaving the pinky in overnight to see if the snake will eat it once no one is watching. Sometimes they're just nervous and won't eat while there's an audience...

I would never force feed at all unless a reputable herp vet whom I trusted absolutely told me my snake was starving to death and would die without it. I think force feeding is generally a really bad idea...

I'd be reluctant to try crickets if I thought there was a chance of getting him to eat rodents (unless the situation was desperate), although Ken's link (see below) does state that the young sometimes eat crickets.

I believe he has a Trinket Snake, which is similar, I think, to a corn or a rat in dietary requirements. Ken posted a link a few months ago about it:

http://www.elaphe.it/trinket_snake.htm

Here are a couple of other links I found with some more information about its needs:

http://www.worldwidesnakes.com/az-sn...ke=86&letter=t


http://www.reptilia.org/care_sheets/...nk_trinket.htm

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~Juliane~

Depending on the snake and the season where you at that could be alot of it. If they were force feeding, they were probably doing it wrong. Then again never had to force feed anything.

Try braining the pinkie too

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lol I thought it was a trinket snake but the avatar threw me a bit.

if it is a trinket, check that all the keeping requirments are met. Now if they are...

here are a few ideas that have worked for me, i am covering different scenarios as I don't know too much about your situation.

ok... if you are feeding live try give pre killed prey. If feeding pre-killed try a live prey item(make sure it is a weaner rodent that can do no damage). To get it started you should also make the prey item a small.

You can also try leave the snake overnight in a container with the food.

You could try braining the pink as moogle advised or even scenting it with anole/gecko/skink lizard "juice".

umm I will wait for more info then carry on... when was the last time it ate? and has it ever eaten on its own?

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Don't be jealous the voices only speak to me...

www.herprecon.org

MMMMMM BRAINS

*this post was brought to you by the snake zombies*

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Sorry I forgot to mention that it is a ball python. Iv been trying to feed him frozen/thawed pinkies and fluffs, he has eaten once by himself. But it didnt look like he knew what he was doing, i was holding the pinkie with tongs and when he came up to it he opened his mouth but didnt strike at it. So I poped it in his mouth and he had trouble swallowing it. He is between 5-8 months old.

Oh! I've never heard of a ball python eating crickets...I don't think that would work at all...

...I do know balls can be finicky and go a while without eating...have you tried leaving him alone overnight with a frozen/thawed pinky to see if he'll eat it when no one is around?

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~Juliane~

yes but he just stays clear of it