Snake cooling period?

[Love to Foxtrot]

On September 28th, I was given an adult male Trans-Pecos Rat Snake that was in good weight and was supposedly eating well. When I received him, he was in shed so understandibly he did not eat for a week. He has not eaten at all since I have had him and has only begun to lose weight over the last week or so. I am beginning to worry about him because he is becoming thin and starting to feel "squishy", for lack of a better descriptive. He acts like he has absolutely no desire to eat the f/t mice that I offer him on tongs and by simply leaving them in the tank. I think that he would show nearly the same amount of interest in a rock if it was offered to him! I have even exposed the brains, and he simply sniffs it and moves on. He tends to hide for most of the day and night, usually I will only see him out once daily. I was told to keep him at approx. 76-78 degrees which is the average temp in the room that he is in, but I think that I should purchase for him a heat pad in the early spring. I recently spoke with his previous owner and he said that I should give him a short cooling period. I would like to hear from some of you on this issue because his previous owner is not terribly knowledgeable about snakes. Since he is already becoming thin, I am concerned about cooling him, but if it would be the right course of action, then I would like to know exactly how cool he should be kept, where to keep him during this time, and what the minimal amount of time he has to be kept cool is. Also, my California Kingsnake (desert phase) has decreased his activity and did not eat his mouse today, so I suppose that he knows it is winter too! These are certainly not the only snakes that I have and have kept, but I have never had to cool any of my snakes before, so I would certainly appreciate some advice on what I should do!

Aubrey

 

[Phillip]

I don't think I would cool an underweight snake as it can be a cause of major stress on their system. As far as cooling north american colubrids goes they are usually brought down to the low 60s to high 50s by around 5 degrees per week till the desired temp is reached. They are kept there for two months to three months depending on who you ask. Two months is fine and 3 doesn't hurt them it is simply a matter of personal prefference.
Also the snake needs to have gone without food for around 5 to 6 weeks to insure that it isn't cooled with any food in it's system.

If the trans pecos is already showing signs of losing weight and becoming squishy as you put it I would give serious thought to force feeding a small meal or two until you get some weight back on it. I would not cool it at this time. If you choose to force feed keep in mind that the idea is to get some food in and keep it down meaning don't give a lot of food at a time. For example if the snake usually eats two fullsize mice give only one or maybe even a couple of fuzzies just to keep it from regurging. The reason I suggest force feeding is that while stressful on the snake Many folks wait until it is too far gone to be able to handle it and they lose the snake. Once you notice weight loss it is time to address the issue.

Another thing to try before forcing is to offer a small food item and see if it takes it on it's own. I have had many snakes that would only take large meals when they were quite hungry but would accept small ones on a more regular basis.

I hope this helps and feel free to PM or e-mail me if you have any more questions or simply post them here and i'll keep an eye out on this thread. I hope it comes back around for ya and puts some weight on.

Phil

 

[Michael Jacobi]

Phil's answer was both thorough and accurate, but I will add a few things:

DO NOT cool a snake that is not in perfect health. Your Trans-Pecos needs to be warmed up for feeding attempts to be successful or for proper digestion of any "assist fed" or "forced fed" meals. You need heat tape under one end of its cage now and to find an experienced person or vet help you with any force feeding IF NECESSARY.

If your Cal king has suddenly become disinterested in food and is in good health and condition then you should follow Phil's recommendations for cooling. Ensure that it has not eaten for at least 30 days and then gradually cool it. I recommend getting it down to 55F if possible for 60 days and then gradually warming it up. It should be "hibernated" in a cool dark place and only disturbed very occasionally (maybe twice a month) to make sure it has clean water in a bowl. I typically use opaque Rubbermaid boxes and fill half way with aspen and place a heavy crock with fresh water inside.

Note: I generally do not cool colubrids their first winter if they continue to feed, but always cool them during successive winters. This is very important for both successful breeding and, in many cases, long term health. If you are working with a temperate climate species that naturally hibernates (even for a short time) than that natural process should be replicated in captivity.

 

[Phillip]

Good job adding the comment about warming the trans pecos up. I was thinking it but not typing it. It was after I had drank a few rum and cokes when I replied.

The only thing I would disagree with would be the neccessity of hibernation after the 1st year for successful breeding and overall health. This has been the way of thinking in the past with the herp community but the need for hibernation in many species has been decided to not be that great at all. In fact many top breeders either don't hibernate or simply do it for the time off rather than the actual need of doing so. Now this isn't to say that it doesn't up the percentage of viable sperm in the males and also make some individuals more likely to mate in the 1st place but it is greatly over eggagerated much as the humidity issue with Ts has been.

Phil

 

[Love to Foxtrot]

Thank you both for the great information!
I bought an appropriately sized Cobra heating pad tonight, and I will turn it on for him tomorrow morning. I will feed him again in a few days to see if the warmth alone will incite him to eat, but if that does not work, how do I go about force feeding him? I have had to force feed nearly everything except snakes, so I would appreciate some instructions in case this is necessary. He is a little over three and a half feet long and was supposedly eating adult mice. I really appreciate your help!

Aubrey

 

[Phillip]

Pretty much you just restrain the snake and gently ease an appropriate sized mouse into it's mouth. Once you get it deep enough to be past the snakes head you massage it down the body a bit till it is near the stomache. This is better done with help as it can be a chore getting some of them to open up and putting the mouse in and the extra set of hands restraining the snake can come in quite handy. A blount instrument can also aid in getting the mouth open such as some rounded off tweezers. Be careful though as the teeth are delicate as is the inside of the mouth. Wetting the mouse can help as well since it somewhat lubricates them.

With a baby snake the easiest way is a pinkie pump. Very nasty to watch but very effective as well.

Phil