Not good.

[trendkill]

My little (though he should be like 6'+ by now) albino Burm has now refused food for 3 1/2 months straight. He's loosing weight by the day it seems.. he's not doing well. His spine is showing.. his skin is loose.

I've had issues with this guy since I bought him. He's always been a picky eater, and he's never eaten very often. Sometimes I would offer him a rat, and he would refuse to eat it. Or he'd constrict it, then leave it sit forever until I'd take it away. But then I'd offer him a mouse or two, and those he would eat. Next time it would be the opposite.. he'd refuse mice and only eat rats. Sometimes he'll go 3, 4, 5 weeks between meals. For no reason, that I can see anyway.

He's been to the vet a few times. He's had a blood test and an x-ray. I've had his fecals tested a few times as well. He's always been deemed healthy.. his stools always parasite free.

I've tried everything in the book... fresh killed rodents, different rodents (newborn bunnies, gerbils, hampsters) different rodent sources, feeding at night, feeding during the day, any time in between. Feeding outside of the cage, feeding in a hide box inside of the cage. I've changed his cage around, I've changed his temps. His humidity. I've tried glass tanks and rubbermaids. I always have changed things slightly and gradually, so as not to cause any stress.

He's always been friendly. Never aggressive, never shows any signs of stress. He's always had a feeding response (comes flying out of his hide as soon as he sees or feels something move in or around his cage), but he rarely acts on it. He all too often loses interest right away... or he constricts but does not eat. I've left the rat/mouse in with him overnight... I've taken it away right away and tried again the next day... everything. Everything I can think of.

And now he hasn't eaten for a LOOOONG time, and I'm afraid he's going to die. He's not looking good. He's too small (3' maybe, and 2 months shy of 1 yr old!!!) to go this long without food.

I'm going to have a friend of mine force-feed him a pinky rat tomorrow. This guy knows what he's doing.. he's had to force-feed many difficult snakes. The force-feeding will continue until he eats on his own. If he doesn't eat on his own, he may have to be put down before starvation starts to cause him a lot of pain and suffering. :(

A local Burm and boa breeder has an opinion on this. He believes it's something neurological. Like his instincts are not wired properly.. he's not eating, he's not surviving. He doesn't feel hunger. This guy has seen this before with 4 or 5 of his offspring over the years.. at least 3 of them were albinos that he can remember.

So I contacted the Baldogos (big retic breeders.. they were big into burms in the past).. and they said the same thing. It happens, though it's rare.. the pythons just don't eat. It happened to an ALBINO retic they recently sold.. it slowly stopped eating, the owner tried everything.. but it ended up dying.

This sucks. Sorry for the loooong post - I don't think anyone can really help.. except maybe God.. and he knows I've tried everything - but I just had to vent. :crying:

[Texas Rattlesnake]

This kind of thing is tough. Sounds like you have a good support network. Hang in there.

[Johnny Utah]

I really hope that force feeding does the trick. :crying:
Albinos and some morphs strike me as sick animals. It's hard for me to look at a morph and think it looks cool when it seems like some many problems accompany the genetic mutations.

[ssjsmits]

I hope all goes well for you Nicole.
I lost my mind when my BP didn't eat for 6 months, but it all turned out ok.
Good luck, keep us posted!

	Ball Python

[angelboa]

I hope he gets better I know how hard it is to see your loved one go through that my dog got parvo and almost died a few years ago. best wishes I'll keep both of you in my thoughts and prayers.

[Stargazer]

I'm so sorry about this. Sounds like you have covered all bases. I wonder too if there is a connection with the albinism. It's just so hard to watch them starve themselves. I went through this a lot with my Guyanan boa for 5-6 weeks at a time. I hope the force feeding will stimulate his appetite again.

[danktat]

Force feeding is always a last resort but it looks like you are just about there. Good luck getting him back on track.

[Texas Rattlesnake]

Originally Posted by Johnny Utah

Albinos and some morphs strike me as sick animals. It's hard for me to look at a morph and think it looks cool when it seems like some many problems accompany the genetic mutations.

I felt the same way for years, but now I'd have to disagree. Don't let others influence you. Personal experience with an animal is the key to knowledge. You can have ethics and own morphs.

The only animals I have ever lost have been pure 100% BCC. This kind of thing can happen to anyone. Not all snakes are meant to survive, although we certainly hope Nicole's will pull through.

	Boa Constrictor Constrictor

[Johnny Utah]

Originally Posted by Texas Rattlesnake

I felt the same way for years, but now I'd have to disagree. Don't let others influence you. Personal experience with an animal is the key to knowledge. You can have ethics and own morphs.

The only animals I have ever lost have been pure 100% BCC. This kind of thing can happen to anyone. Not all snakes are meant to survive, although we certainly hope Nicole's will pull through.

That may be true, but even before I got into snakes, I thought morphs looked more wrong that right.

And I'm not saying all morphs have genetic problems, but it's obvious that some do.

Plus albinism is classified as a genetic disorder. So why would breeders go out of there way to produce snakes with a disorder? $$$$

[Critter]

My albino burm, Corona, is the same way. He is a pita to feed.

He used to almost always take chicks.. then he would take rats coated in chick blood.. then that stopped..

then he went off food for a while.. then i picked up some quail from rodentpro, and he readily took one of those... then never again..

I swear I thaw 3 different types of food each time I try to feed him. I end up throwing most of it away.. :(

I am surprised he still sheds since he eats so little..