I am a first time corn snake owner, and have done alot of research before I purchased my sunglow cs. My hatchling is approximately 3 months old, 18 inches long and as thick as a pencil. I have him in a 10 gallon tank with aspen substrate, UTH located beneath the hut. I use a 60 watt daylight (blue) buld and a 40 watt nighttime (red) bulb. The ambient air is monitored around 75-83F while the substrate temp is 79-85F.

Attached is a pic of my setup:


My concern is that my sunglow refuses to eat. He nearly dodges the pinky and curls in the corner of his feeding tank. The last time he has eaten was August 23 (current date Sept 4). I've had my corn snake for just over a week and am assuming he is still getting use to his new surroundings, which may be the reason for his weak appetite. Does anyone have any suggestions? I've talk to the reptile store which I bought him, and they suggested not touching or playing with him for 3-5days allowing him to settle in. I will be attempting to feed him again on Thursday (2 weeks from the last time he ate).

My second concern is that he hides beneath the drift wood 24hours a day or at lease I have never seen him while awake, and I tend to stay up until 2-3am (summer break). I searched and found that being nocturnal cs come out at night, but I do not even see my snake then. Should he be hiding that much and is it healthy for him, since he's not receiving any exercise?

here's a pic of my cornsnake Pyro:


thanks in advance for any info/advice

Snakes are secretive creatures and he's in a new home. This is snake 101 they're not social creatures.
When did you try to feed him? Constand feeding attempts will do nothing but stress the snake out more.
If he's going to be on an every 5 day feeding schedule then wait 5 days before each attempt.

Next time try leaving your snake alone with the pinkie over night, and wrap something around the feeding container to keep it dark and secure.

After that the next efforts are:
Braining or slitting the pinkie to release aromas.
Washing the pinkie in soap and drying before giving to the snake.
Scenting with reptiles or tuna.

Given that this snake has already eatten it's very likely that you will never have to exhaust any of these other options.
Just let the baby settle in.

Edit: Also nice set up but my question is, not the substrate tempature but what is the tempature on the actual glass? As you've already seen snakes are secretive and often they will burrow, knowing the highest temp on the glass is what's most important. And if your snake has any acess to climbing up higher to make sure you move the lamp off of the screen, I guarentee you it's hotter and it could burn the snake. You'd be amazed how they manage to shimmy themselves up there.

I attempted to feed him on Aug 29, Aug 30 followed by Sept 2. I wasn't aware that attempting to feed a cornsnake would stress them out even more. I have since opened my aquarium besides changing the water, misting the tank and checking the temperature. The next time I will attempt to feed him will be Aug 6 exactly 2 weeks from his last meal and 5 days from the last time I have taken him out of his tank.

Certainly hold off on handling him untill he starts eatting normally.
Also I would invest in some screen clips, you'd be suprised what they manage to escape out of.

Oops I just now noticed that it was lifted off of the screen, kudos for you bad on me sorry.

I house my 3 month old blizzard phase corn, Storm, in a 10 gallon with reptibark. I don't have anyscreen clips; I'll get some eventually. I stacks some book son the lid. I have nothing but a UTH heating the enlosure. The stick on glass thermometer at substrate level always reads about 86-82 F. Storm spends most of her time on the cool side and sometimesclimbs to the top and sits between the lip of the tank and the screen lid! I don't think it's to warfor her, Ithink she just wants to escape! Don't worry about you snake hiding. Storm constantly buries herself in the reptibark. Also, they come out at night primarily to feed. If your snake knows it's in a tank and doesn't smell food,it probably has no reason to venture out from cover. Smallsnakes get to be big snakes in the wild by staying hidden. I've only seen mine out atnight twice in the 3weeks that i'vehad her. Good luck on Thursday!

I would just like to point out that stick on thermometers are known for being wildly inaccurate and you should also look into investing for a good digital thermometer just like pictured in the first post

You have nothing to be worrying about, that is completely normal for a new baby snake to do, and especially if you just got him. Just hold off, don't stress him out and wait a bit, then start to offer food slowly.

the stick on liquid crystal thermometer is just there for a rough estimate. My g/f bought it for me without knowing whether it was good or not. The yellow thermometer right above is a zoomed digital thermometer with temperature probe. I've been using the probe to recieve all of my temperature data. I'm debating on whether to use the nightime (red) bulb during the evening. As I have the UTH on all the time and since I am sleeping I can't monitor the temp. Does anyone use the nighttime buld, or do you just turn off all lights. I did a test yesterday without the nighttime bulb and the ambient air was 73.4F in the morning (keep in mind the heat pad is always on). I'm just afraid my snake is too afraid to venture out of his hiding spot even if he is cold.

**sorry for so many noob questions**

Edit: oops don't mind my thermometer rant lol, I was not aware that the comment was NOT directed towards me.

lol s'ok The ambient temp without the bulb is perfectly fine, if it's getting much hotter than that your ambient temp is actually too high then.
Whether or not you see them use it they need that cool side just a much as they need that warm side.

thanks for the info. My CS doesn't seem to have moved in the pass 4 days ,as I tend to check to see if he is infact still in the aquarium and he remains in the exact same position (head, body, and tail). I will be attempting to feed him tomorrow, wish me luck. I'll keep everyone updated. I'll try and leave him in the feeding tank overnight with the pinky with a nightbulb.

Just keep in mind for the most part they are nocturnal so untill your corn settles in and becomes braver you will likely only be seeing it at weird hours of the night.

And good lucky!

UPDATE: I actually saw Pyro out of his hiding spot today after school. He was curled up by his water bowl which suggest it was too hot for him. I turned off his daylight and immediately he went into hiding. I feel alot better knowing he does in fact venture out of his hiding spot, even when I'm not around. I decided to hold off on feeding him until Saturday since it has only been 4 days since the last time I attempted to feed him. I also had some spare time and did a little progect. I cut some black fabric and attached velcrow strips allowing me to wrap it around his tank during the evening and another strip for his feeding tank providing him with privacy.

i don't think you need the uth and the bulb. thats just me though

i agree, i think its overkill

i'm monitoring the substrate and it ranges between 78-86F. The ambient air is always slightly cooler ranging from 75-82F. Would you suggest removing the UTH or just eliminating the lights all together. I don't really want to change anything just yet as my corn seems to finally be settling in.

Just to be an overly correct dork, cornsnakes are actually crepuscular, not nocturnal. Of course that's neither here nor there....

To answer some of your questions,

Firstly, I would kill the bulbs. With a UTH there's really no need to have bulbs going 24/7 unless your room is in the 50's or something crazy. Also, that daylight bulb being on from something like 8am-8pm can be rather stressful.

The petstore actually told you right. It's best with hatchlings to leave them completely be for a week or so after a purchase/shipping. They were just uprooted from their 'known' surrounding into something completely new, and it stresses them out. They're still unsure if they are going to be eaten, so they're not about to eat right off the bat. Two weeks is nothing---relax.

How are you attempting to feed him? In a separate container? Inside the viv? How are you heating the mouse? Are you heating the pink up enough? Was the pet store feeding live or frozen thawed?

Finally, corns don't 'exercise'. They're not like fat people who need to go out and run to lose weight. Constant moving around requires energy, and that requires more food. Food for cornsnakes in the wild isn't an every week at 8pm thing, and even your lil hatchling still has those instincts. So they're not always on the move 24/7, and many a times will stay curled up under a log all day until they start to become more active around dusk. Nothing abnormal going on with yours, just be patient.

I tried feeding him again today. It has been 6 days since my previous attempt and I left him alone for those days. Only opening the cover to change his water and misting the tank. Today he seemed interested in the pinky but once again did not take it. I will try leaving him in his feeding tank over night with a nightbul and towel covering the tank for privacy. He is currently hiding in a hide I put in there for him. The pinky remains on the other end of the feeding tank.

To answer your question: I feed him in a seperate tank. I tried taunting Pyro with the pinky slitting it to realse aromas. I heat the pink by placing it in a bag and putting the bag in hot water until the pinky is unthawed. The pet store was feeding him frozed mice as well.

UPDATE: I left him in the feeding tank for 2 hours with the pinky and still no luck. He also left a discharge that i'm not sure what it was. It was somewhat creamy with little chunks in it. Did he regurgitate or was that feces mixed with urine? On the bright side once I put him back in the viv he drank lots of water.

Anyone have any suggestions? I plan on leaving him alone once again and trying to feed him in another 5 days.

I tried once again to feed Pyro, and for the 4th time he refused to eat. I even brained the mouse and he turned it away. This is now exactly 3 weeks from the last time he ate. I tried following everyones suggestions but nothing has worked. I'm going to take him to the reptile shop so they can force feed him. If that doesn't work i'll throw him in the snow....no, not really but damn am I ever getting frustrated.

3 weeks is nothing...relax.

There is no need to force feed. In fact, doing so is going to cause more harm than good. I say this because the snake ate for the petstore---so you are doing something wrong.

Snakes just don't decide they dislike mice, and then stop eating. Something is either not correct with it's setup, or with the way you're attempting to feed it.

Where are you getting your mice from? That same pet store? When you're heating the pinky up--you're doing so in a bag. Is that what the pet store did? Have you tried heating it directly in water? Are you making sure that the pinky is very warm to the touch? Remember that mice are warm blooded---and snakes know this. Many hatchlings won't eat cold pinkies.

You said that you are removing the snake from it's viv to another container to feed. I can almost guarantee you that the pet store did NOT do that. Try thawing the pinky out and placing it on a paper plate and putting that into the viv.

Also, there are MANY more tricks available BEFORE you go force feeding the snake. There is NO reason to be force feeding a hatchling that has not eaten in 3 weeks. They can go 3 months without eating---and probably commonly do in the wild---some even go into brumation before having a single meal, so just relax.

You want to try a soap washed pinky, tuna dipped, chicken broth dipped, lizard scented and live BEFORE you even think of force feeding the snake.

Calascorn, thank you for your suggestions. I prepare my pinkies exactly the same way the store had been feeding it; by placing the mouse in a bag and putting the bag in warm water. I have also tried the soap and water method and that didn't work. I brought my corn to the store so they can try and feed him. They attempted to place the pinky in his mouth to begin the process of eating with no luck. They told me they didn't want to fully force him yet, which I agreed and left. It's nice to know corns can go 3 months without eating...hopefully it won't take that much longer before my corn eats.

I definately agree that there is something wrong with my setup which is why he is not eating. I find myself becoming obsessed with checking the temperature of my viv. I was thinking the only other possible cause of his feeding problem could be noise/vibrations. Because my corn is in my bedroo, I often have the television on when I'm home, also my house has hardwood floors which produces vibrations when you walk on it. I searched this is and found that corns are generally tolerable with this since it is not too loud.

Either way, I'll keep everyone posted with my dilema, and thank everyone for contributing suugestions, comments, and strategies.

I just put my frozen pinkie in a small cup of warm water until it is thawed (I feel it for any cold spots), then just before I feed I dip him in VERY hot water for maybe 15 seconds. I use tongs to pick it up, then gently tap it near the snake. Mine grab it almost immediately. You might try taking the pinkie out of the bag and dipping it directly in hot water (pat dry briefly). My hatchlings are great eaters, but some can be quite stubborn. Good luck!

i too am having the same problem. my hatchling last fed on first of september but since day one has tried every which way possible to escape his viv.all attempts to feed result in him going over under or around the pinky.he pays no attention to the pinky at all. he seems a content snake and allways pops his head out of his home at our tea time and spends about 2 hours going back and forth on the glass and climbing up a vine

No worries,
this is completly normal. Although it is a bit weird that your snake didnt eat after the first week. But it isnt something to flip out about and go and force feed your corn. There are plenty more options before going to that extent.
I do know how you feel though, it took my very first cs a month before it grew used to its home and began accepting pinkies.

When I first got Ender, he already hadn't eaten for 3 weeks. He had shed prior to shipment, which was part of that. Then, after he was all set up, he still didn't eat for another 3 weeks. Granted, he was already 2 years old, but still, he needed to scope out his new habitat before settling in. This was much to my chagrin, as I had purchased a live mouse to feed him. I had to keep that mouse in the garage. Then, a few months later, in January, he refused to eat for 6 weeks again! Turns out, it was snaky mating season and he was looking for a non-existent girlfriend! That time, I had to keep the lousy mouse inside. Stinky little buggers...and Ender refuses to eat F/T.

I only use a UTH with no external lights - save for the ambient lighting during the day. I use aspen substrate, with one hide on the warm side and one hide on the other side, huge water bowl in the center. My UTH takes up about 1/3 of the bottom of the tank. And I hardly ever see him. He chills on the cool side most of the time in his cave. And burrows...a lot.

Please do keep us updated! I'd like to know when your corn finally decides to eat.

thanks everyone for you support. Im going to try again tonight, i'm doing the tupperware method in which I put the snake and pinky in a tupperware container overnight or until the snake has eaten. If this attempt fails, for the best interest of my snake i'm going to allow the reptile shop to take care of him for several days and see if they can possibly get him to eat.

I have one quick question, do snakes get stressed if I rearrange the viv. I purchased a new hide cave and will be replacing the half log. Will this cause my corn to have to readapt to the environments?

You need to overcome this obstacle with your snake. Are you going to keep bringing it back to the reptile store if you cannot get it to eat?

The snake is going to get stressed about being moved back to the reptile store, away from what it has become accustomed to the past few weeks.

Before you bring the snake back to the store, you need to try a few things. That would start with feeding the snake INSIDE it's viv. If the snake is stressed out to begin with, removing it from it's viv to attempt to feed in a tupperware isn't doing any good. If that doesn't work, and if you've tried the other tricks (scented, soap washed, etc), then you need to try live.

UPDATE: I used the tupperware method last night and my little guy ATE. He finally took his first meal with me, it took him only about 30seconds after I had left him in the tupperware before he was smelling his food and finally devoured it. I would like to thank everyone for their advice, concern and support. This definately has been a stressful 4 weeks for both my corn and myself. I will try and maintain a feeding regiment of 5 days becuase I want my little guy to grow up nice and strong.

Congrats buddy! It's always such a relief when they do finally eat. I worry after a week and a half! I usually put my little girl in a deli cup or rubbermaid, but today I just held her in my hand while she swallowed the pinkie whole, from behind while it was alive!! It was actually kind of funny to se this little pinkie head disappear down her mouth, squeaking all the while(i did feel kind of guilty, but hey, we all gotta eat, right?) It was also funny because she downed the pinkie backwards faster than I'd ever seen her do it forwards!

Wait....you fed your snake while it was in your hand???

That's ok, the lesson will be learnt when he gets bit and wonders why

Really though, it is a bad habit to get into, and it's asking to get tagged if I ever saw it, you reek of mouse scent and in the feeding frenzy there's nothing to say the snake won't haul off and not let go next time.