Quit Eating

[rtcphoto]

My Wandering garter up until 2 weeks ago never passed a fish or a mouse he didn't like. As a matter of fact there were times I'd classify him as obese! However in the last two weeks he has not had any apetite at all and the fish are still swimming and the mice are still playing (actually frozen).
Does anyone know if this is a reason for concern and/or why this may be happening?
Thank you,
Bob

[ssssnakeluvr]

well, it could be....if its a gravid female, she will quit eating before she gives birth. Is it an adult or juvenile? Adults can go for long periods of time without eating... I do have a few snakes that go off feed in the fall and I put them down for hibernation..but I don't think it's that time yet. It's hard to say why it isn't eating...

[GarterGuy]

Yeh, there could be a ton of reason, he actually just might be full. I had a similar situation with my first gater....many moon ago....that he ate like a pig and then just stopped. Turned out he just had enough food in him and really wasn't interested in any more. Also could be preparing for a shed or honestly could be tons of reasons. As long as he looks in good condition, I wouldn't sweat it, sometime they just do that.
Roy

[Snaky]

I concur that it's not bad is a snake passes dinner, as long as he seems ok and he behaves normal as he used to do.

There can indeed be tons of reasons, so the more details, the more can be ruled out. It's interesting to know if it's a juvenile/adult, how often and much do you give him, what did you all tried to give him to him these past weeks and at what ratio, is it a female/male, did you change the enclosure... but still they can just stop for no obvious reason.

There are some tricks to get them started again. For example you can try a variety of food items every 3 days, don't let the food to long in the enclosure so the food is not constantly smelled. Earthworms are most of the time appreciated. Put some live fish ( no goldfish ) in a dish with a very small amount of water, so the fish will splash. The movement of the fish normally attracts the snakes a lot.

[adamanteus]

Snakes often seem to do this in captivity. Especially if they have been well fed over a long period of time. Self-imposed fasting isn't rare.... as long as the snake appears otherwise healthy I wouldn't be too worried at this stage. Maybe it's a good idea to take the opportunity to check all the other environmental factors though, just to ensure that nothing has changed without you knowing about it.

[Cazador]

All good advise, above there, but I'd like to emphasize a few points. First, male garters often (not always) go off food during the mating season. Don't know when, or if, you brought it out of brumation, but this may be a factor. Second, I'd get the fish out of the enclosure. Constant presence makes their water a breeding ground for bacteria and fungus. Hopefully, you've been cleaning the water dish regularly before replacing the fish. Third, you might want to double-check on the temperature in the enclosre. If it's too high, the snake will be distressed, and if it's too low, it won't digest properly and will refuse to eat. Keep us posted on its progress, so we can tweak the recommendations to suit your unique situation. Best,

Rick