Corn Snake Poop

g'em

I got my first Corn Snake three weeks ago, he's a yearling and feeding brilliantly, but I've yet to see him poop. I presume the poop is very obvious when you see it or is there any way I could have missed it (I check his tank every day for signs, he's got wood chips)?

I was under the impression that a once-weekly movement was normal?

SCI

A corns poo looks something like a birds and they should do it as often as
they feed really.What size is the snake and what size of prey are you feeding it?

g'em

SCI wrote: »

A corns poo looks something like a birds and they should do it as often as
they feed really.What size is the snake and what size of prey are you feeding it?

He's just under 2 ft and he gets a pinkie every 4 days. I haven't been rooting around the bark and he tends to bury himself a lot so perhaps I'm missing it?

SCI

A pinkie sounds a little small for a corn that size/age,does a pinkie
leave a lump in the snake? My yearling corns here are eating sm
adult mice,that likely the problem,he's not pooing because
he's not eating enough.

g'em

I was wondering about that too, although the pinkie is about the same size width wise as the widest part of the snake, if not a bit bigger? When he eats there isn't a massive bump, but it's noticeable enough, as in you'd know he'd just eaten.

Vinnie K

Any chance you can get a pic of the corn, put something in the photo so we can gauge the size of it. Oh and congrats on your first snake, be warned, there addictive!!

g'em

Vinnie K wrote: »

Any chance you can get a pic of the corn, put something in the photo so we can gauge the size of it. Oh and congrats on your first snake, be warned, there addictive!!

Thanks and I know exactly what you mean, he's fantastic I went for a corn snake as my first because they're notoriously good eaters, and he's definitely living up that reputation. I think it would break my heart to have a picky snake who wouldn't eat for me

Good idea re: the photo, I'll try and get something this evening and post it up. Is there any decent size markers to use? Or will it be enough to gauge his size against my hand?

Edit: on second thought, I fed him last night, so it'll be tomorrow before I'll be handling him again!!

SCI

g'em wrote: »

Thanks and I know exactly what you mean, he's fantastic I went for a corn snake as my first because they're notoriously good eaters, and he's definitely living up that reputation. I think it would break my heart to have a picky snake who wouldn't eat for me

Good idea re: the photo, I'll try and get something this evening and post it up. Is there any decent size markers to use? Or will it be enough to gauge his size against my hand?

Edit: on second thought, I fed him last night, so it'll be tomorrow before I'll be handling him again!!

Any thing will do mate,an AA battery,euro coin

Vinnie K

g'em wrote: »

Thanks and I know exactly what you mean, he's fantastic I went for a corn snake as my first because they're notoriously good eaters, and he's definitely living up that reputation. I think it would break my heart to have a picky snake who wouldn't eat for me

Good idea re: the photo, I'll try and get something this evening and post it up. Is there any decent size markers to use? Or will it be enough to gauge his size against my hand?

Edit: on second thought, I fed him last night, so it'll be tomorrow before I'll be handling him again!!

As sci said, anything will do. I've never kept corn's, more into boas and pythons, but a pinky does sound small for one that age. Where did you buy it?

g'em

Vinnie K wrote: »

I've never kept corn's, more into boas and pythons, but a pinky does sound small for one that age. Where did you buy it?

I got him in Fishantics in Dun Laoghaire. I went in over the course of a few weeks and spoke to the guys there before I got him and they've been great help so far. My housemate went in there yesterday to talk to them about the poop problem and they told us to try AviPro, the probiotic in his water. My hm has had success with it in the past with the birds he used to breed so we're going to see how that works.

I tried to take a photo last night but he was very agitated when I tried to handle him and I didn't keep him out for long for fear I'd stress him out a lot. At his thickest part he's the same width as an adult human finger though.

Vinnie K

Ive never tried avipro, so cant comment. Giving snakes a warm bath is always good to help them go, or if hes anything like my boa all you have to do is clean and disinfect the tank and put him back in and wham heres another clean up for you, little fecker.

SCI

g'em wrote: »

I got him in Fishantics in Dun Laoghaire. I went in over the course of a few weeks and spoke to the guys there before I got him and they've been great help so far. My housemate went in there yesterday to talk to them about the poop problem and they told us to try AviPro, the probiotic in his water. My hm has had success with it in the past with the birds he used to breed so we're going to see how that works.

I tried to take a photo last night but he was very agitated when I tried to handle him and I didn't keep him out for long for fear I'd stress him out a lot. At his thickest part he's the same width as an adult human finger though.

I mate he way too small for a pinkie,you want to be feeding a corn 1 and a
half times the thickest part of it body. Try a fuzzy next, avipro is good stuff
but has nothing to do with the reason it not pooing.The snake not eating enough if
it that size.

Demonique

The two yearlings I bred last year aren't 2ft long yet and they're on small mice, a pinky is too small for your snake

g'em

Thanks guys. The avipro has soluble fibre in it which will (hopefully) help him, although there's nothing as yet. Hi skin has dulled up a lot and his eyes are going a bit milky so I guess he's getting ready to shed?

I have a dozen or so pinkies left so until I get some small mice can I give him two pinkies at a time?

SCI

g'em wrote: »

Thanks guys. The avipro has soluble fibre in it which will (hopefully) help him, although there's nothing as yet. Hi skin has dulled up a lot and his eyes are going a bit milky so I guess he's getting ready to shed?

I have a dozen or so pinkies left so until I get some small mice can I give him two pinkies at a time?

He doesn't need avipro!!! The snake needs fed the correct size of mouse,
those pinkie contain too little calcium for a snake of that size thats
why we move the up as they grow. Once he sheds feed the snake a mouse
1 and a half times the size of the widst part of it body. This is what avipro does and your snake not sick so doesn't need it..

This is a veterinary formulated complete probiotic combination of bacteria, enzymes, electrolytes and vitamins. It's high palatability means that in can be added to the drinking water. Avipro is particularly valuable when animals are undergoing stress or veterinary treatment and is useful as an appetite stimulant in reptiles. It can be used for oral rehydration. The live encapsulated bacteria colonise the animals gut for a short time and help in encouraging the right conditions to allow the animals natural gut flora to re-establish itself.AVIPRO is a probiotic combination of bacteria, enzymes, electrolytes and vitamins. Its high palatability means it can be added to the drinking water making its use simple for all species of reptiles. It is also ideal for use by stomach tube in rehydrating reptiles which have become dehydrated. AVIPRO contains: · Lactobacillus with Streptococcus faecium which live for a short time in the gut, helping to stabilise the pH. · Yeasts to provide a source of amino acids and vitamins. · lipase, amylase, protease and cellulase. · electrolytes to aid in maintaining adequate levels in reptiles with diarrhoea which lose electrolytes It is only necessary for probiotics to live a short time to establish the right conditions. By their combined action the ingredients of AVIPRO help to create and maintain slightly acidic conditions in the gut to provide the correct background for the reptiles own flora to re-stabilise. The gut flora of reptiles is poorly studied, whilst it appears dominated by gram-negative organisms gram-positive organisms are present (Cooper, J.E. & Jackson, O.F. 1981. Diseases of the Reptilia, Volume 165-167. It appears likely that gram-positive organisms are important in helping to maintain the correct gut conditions for the 'normal' bacteria much as they are in many animals, such as man. Even man has a predominantly gram-negative gut flora, yet probiotics are valuable in maintaining the gut environment and preventing overgrowth of potentially dangerous gram-negative bacteria which would normally be suppressed such as Salmonella, Pseudomonas etc. The importance of probiotics is not in the healthy animal, but in supporting the stressed or diseased animal where gut conditions may change dramatically. The electrolytes and dextrose incorporated in AVIPRO also contribute in a major way. A very important aspect of this is the use by the veterinary surgeon in reptiles which are under treatment with antibacterials where the normal flora may be unbalanced and a bloom of inappropriate bacteria may occur causing perhaps haemorrhagic enteritis. For support of stressed reptiles use 4g (one scoop) per 100ml of drinking water.
http://www.livefoods.co.uk/product_info.php?cPath=72&products_id=31