Anery Radix Update

[Martinz21]

Today was my first feeding day since I got my baby radix. I really wanted to get him on pinkie mice and took it without scenting at all. I have decided to name him Ziggy so that is what I will refer to him as from now on. I appreciate all the help that I have received from all the wonderful people on this site. I will update with pictures soon.

[guidofatherof5]

Glad to hear the pinky feed went well.
Looking forward to the photos.

[Sonya610]

Ziggy Stardust?

Sorry I couldn't help it!

Pix please.

[Martinz21]

Just gave Ziggy his second meal since being with me. He downed a few more pinky parts unscented and I figured I would hand feed since I am trying to get him to like me and trust my hands. Took everything I offered without hesitation. I am going to continue hand feeding till I feel he is comfortable with me. Another little funny thing; a little bit of the pinky juice got on the paper towel and he took a go at trying to eat it. I am going to take that as a good thing. Oh and more pictures :D
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[guidofatherof5]

Just gave Ziggy his second meal since being with me. He downed a few more pinky parts unscented and I figured I would hand feed since I am trying to get him to like me and trust my hands. Took everything I offered without hesitation. I am going to continue hand feeding till I feel he is comfortable with me. Another little funny thing; a little bit of the pinky juice got on the paper towel and he took a go at trying to eat it. I am going to take that as a good thing. Oh and more pictures :D
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Waste not, want not. That's a good radix.

[Foxrun402]

Lol he is so tiny... they are so awesome when they are that young haha! They are sooooooo curious and watch everything that moves! Good to see him on Pinky parts, you doing this has made my decision to try some with Xena sooner then I thought.

[Martinz21]

Good luck! He took to them faster than I expected... Not that I am complaining :D

[Martinz21]

First shed I found while cleaning out his cage... and it is complete:D
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[guidofatherof5]

Great. Let the growing begin.

[Martinz21]

So I was feeding Ziggy today and he accidentally nipped my thumb. After I put him back in his cage he was following my fingers. Either he is finally getting used to me feeding him by hand and knows I am the one who feeds him or he thinks my fingers are food. I hope it isn't the latter of the two. What do you guys think?

[guidofatherof5]

Feeding nips are normal. Are you using hemostats?

[Martinz21]

Not right now I have them though I am doing it all by hand currently

[guidofatherof5]

The nips will normal stop when using hemostats unless they over-shoot the target. I have young aggressive feeders that know the food comes from the end of the hemostats so they leave my hand alone.

[jwolfe152]

i have been using the hemostats for feeding and Ekoh is getting used to them and bites much closer to the end of them now, he will still take stuff from my fingers but not open handed. when feeding him worm i use 3 fingers to hold it and he has not bit once yet(knock on wood)

[Martinz21]

What is a good age/size to start feeding full pinkies? I am currently feeding him thirds but he downs them pretty easy

[guidofatherof5]

I've heard that you shouldn't feed anything wider then 1.5 the head width.
I like my snakes to have a comfortable swallowing meal.

[Martinz21]

Ok thank you

[chris-uk]

What is a good age/size to start feeding full pinkies? I am currently feeding him thirds but he downs them pretty easy

I'd rather feed more pieces of food that are swallowed quickly and easily, than a single item that they take longer to swallow.
My reasoning is that I feed most of mine in their vivs (I take out my slow feeding cyrtopsis because the checkereds she lives with would take any food before she realised it was there, and I feed my infernalis individually because if I don't they will eat each other) so two things influence the size of the food pieces I feed - I don't want them dragging food off around the viv where it can pick up substrate or get dropped if it's too big to swallow, and I want them to swallow quickly so that there is less chance of a vivmate trying to steal the food from another's mouth.

[jwolfe152]

see i have been feeding pieces of cut up worm to Ekoh because it seems like you say a hell of a lot less likely to pick up the substrate(i use reptibark) in the first week i tried laying down paper towels but he just backed off of them and ended up with small pieces of the bark on the worm. if you have ever tried to clean a worm that is half swallowed by a WC you know its not easy to get the bark off without them running from you and picking up more. i cant feed him in a separate tank either he gets stressed and runs around until i put him back and then he readily takes his food. after the first time he swallowed substrate its easier, safer, less stress on Ekoh and me(worrying)

[Martinz21]

Last really simple question. How long does a typical opaque stage last? He has shed for me once before but when I was on vacation for a week and I just noticed today that he has gone opaque.

[guidofatherof5]

I would say a week to a few weeks. It varies between snakes.

[Light of Dae]

Some shed very quick, some seem to take forever. You'll see the eyes go clear normally a day or three before the shed actually is ready to come off. :) If by chance you notice a missing tail tip or some stuck shed I use a warm wet paper towel for easy removal. Plus on the white paper towel you can see the shed on it verses if you use a hand towel or something.

[Martinz21]

Thanks... He obviously isn't close to shedding because he just downed half a pinky (cut to smaller pieces).

[guidofatherof5]

Thanks... He obviously isn't close to shedding because he just downed half a pinky (cut to smaller pieces).

That means nothing to many of my snakes. They don't care what you call them, just don't call the late for dinner.:D

[chris-uk]

Thanks... He obviously isn't close to shedding because he just downed half a pinky (cut to smaller pieces).

Out of my 15, I have two that always stop eating the feed or two before a shed. A couple more refuse food when their eyes are blue. But the majority will take food even when their eyes are blue, they tend to be more cautious and slower to feed but they feed. So until you know how your snake behaves around shed time the feeding isn't a good indication of an impending shed.

[Martinz21]

So I went down to check on him today not really expecting to find anything. But in the back of the cage he left an amazing 100% complete shed tail eye caps and everything. I did a measurement on the shed from nose to vent he is roughly 9.5 inches and total length is just over 1 foot. He is growing like a weed. Also, you were right Steve he doesn't care if he shedding he likes to eat as much as he can :D
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The piece of paper that the shed is on is 9 inches to give it some reference.

[guidofatherof5]

Keep in mind sheds are not very reliable as a true snake measurement.
Sheds are usually longer then the actual length and can be shorter.

[Martinz21]

So I fed Ziggy today and I just left my hand around in with him so he would get used to me I've been doing this everytime I feed him. This time he actually tried to "eat" my finger. Does this means he thinks my finger is food and will try and bite me whenever I try to handle him or is it just a feeding response?

[guidofatherof5]

Probably just a feeding response. Is this the same hand you prepared the food with?:rolleyes:

[Martinz21]

Yeah but I always wash before.

[guidofatherof5]

Then I would say it was just a feeding response. Try putting your hand in the next day.