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3ft Monty the royal won't eat

632 views 11 replies 5 participants last post by  Bigspud200 
#1 ·
Hello people,
A little help now its time to feed monty the python for the first time in my care he had trouble feeding from the previous owner and would eat nothing but live rats...I can't get my hand on any live rats as its illegal it was last thursday he last had something to eat iv just tried feeding him and he turned he nose,

Any advice for me i want him to be happy and not starving all the time.
 
#2 ·
Basic list.

Warm the rat's head with a hairdryer/warm water.
Brain the rat (I.E, slit it's skull open. It's nasty, but it sometimes does the trick)
Scent the rat with a chick or tinned tuna.

If he's a healthy weight just now, he'll likely just eat when he's hungry. Snakes can go for months without food (I've seen one on this forum go for over a year) so don't get yourself all worried.
Try those methods in that order, leaving a week between each method.
 
#3 ·
Ok can't help being stressed he is quite thick and very lively.
Will it be ok to leave him for another week and just take him to my local snake expert?
 
#4 ·
No need for that yet. Rest assured in the fact that he's perfectly fine.

He can go for MONTHS without food. Weeks will be fine.

Leave him for now, and try him again in a week - using the first of the methods I posted.
 
#5 ·
I was gonna say you can leave them a while and not worry too much. My female Boa Lola didn't eat for nearly 9 months and she was fine.

If all else fails and live feeding is the only way you may have to breed your own rats?? Depends how strong a stomach you have got.

Good luck, non-feeding is probably one of the most common problems with snakes and from my experience Royals are notoriously fussy eaters.
 
#7 ·
If its in the snakes best interest then you may have no choice. Just don't name them!!! Its hard to watch 'Roger' get eaten by your snake!!!! :lol2:
 
#8 ·
Unfortunately, there isn't a quick fix solution either.
When you try all of the above methods, you could try nudging his nose with the food.
Sometimes, if the agitation is enough to make him strike, nature will take it's course and he'll eat.
 
#9 ·
Yeah i tried nudging his nose he just kept sticking his head into the substrate and i wont need to name them i hate rats.
 
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#10 ·
Royals are pretty known to sometimes go off food for weeks or months, especially during this time as he'll have girls on his mind

Keep offering them once a week as normal, try a few different methods while doing so but it isn't anything to worry about unless he starts losing a big amount of weight which won't happen for months.

Try feeding a chick may be helpful. My royal turns his nose up at them (yet he's a dustbin on rats, he'd take them every day if I let him) but a few of my other snakes can't resist them and I've used them to get none feeders back on food more than once
 
#11 ·
Wont Eat

Do Not Panic!!!!
One of my male royals last ate 31st October. He is fine, as previously noted when girls are around they tend to have one thing on their mind.
Weigh him to get a baseline.
Weigh him once a month, it is quite normal to lose 10% body weight when either fasting or breeding. Make sure he has access to fresh water and he will be ok.
As for nudging the rat under his nose, this could cause him to go off food even more.
Try leaving a thawed rodent in with him overnight, sometimes a shy or predominantly live feeder may just surprise you. If this doesn't work then a fresh kill approach may be needed before a full convert to defrost. Occasionally a live feeder will not convert and then you have to accept that live feeding is the way ahead.
 
#12 ·
Right then thanks everyone for all your advice you all have been amazing i will get some scales monday and keep everything noted next week i will leave a rat in over night under the heat lamp to keep it warm.
 
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