Reply To: Hognose not eating

[Zoodulcis]

As I suspected, so virtually no chance of parasites. In that case, I think it may be digestion. After surveying some other forums, I noticed that other keepers have had trouble feeding fuzzies. The problems went away when they returned to feeding pinkies. The consensus seemed to be that since these snakes evolved eating hairless prey such as amphibians and small lizards, that hair is really troublesome for them. Yet some owners reported no problems. It seems to be very individual. But hair is exceedingly hard for animals to digest, which is why cats and owls barf it back up. I do not have any further suggestions other than a vet check, and offering only pinkies to see if you can get him to take those. However, if he has a hairball he may not feel like eating. Snakes can vomit up a hairball, but you would know because the smell would make you want to vomit. But they can also, eventually, eliminate the hair a little at a time in feces mixed with more solid matter. Occasionally, one may even eliminate one solid hairball that is only that and no regular excrement at all.

Given what you have described, my guess is that he has retained hair internally. I do not know what course of treatment a vet would prescribe for this to ease the substance through the digestive system and out the back end. If he doesn’t eat in the next 30 days, you may have to take him to the vet to see if there is some sort of safe oil or other lubricant that can be used in this instance.