desperate .. new owner in need of help

[Lauren]

Hi everyone... i am fairly new to the snake world. So i'll give you a little intro then tell you the problem
I got two hatchling ball pythons about a month and a half ago, Butterscotch and Caramel. They seem to be the exact opposites. Butterscotch is very healthy and eats on a regular basis, but Caramel has been treated for worms and a mild RI. I assume that butterscotch is the older of the two simply by a size comparison... she was considerable larger than Caramel when i bought them. I followed the directions for enclosure heat and humidity.
Caramel is currently being treated for an RI with injectable antibiotics and has been force fed three times (which is not great, i know) ... but she is still not showing interest in eating on her own... but she is drinking and staying hydrated... I've tried putting her in a paper bag with the food and even the chicken broth trick... neither worked. She is now around two months old and should be eating on her own. I know its a common problem with balls but i was just wondering if anyone had any further suggestions or could tell me if there is a point where i should just give up (which i dread doing).
Thanks,
Lauren
Butterscotch is the larger one, caramel (the problem child) is the smaller one

[4theSNAKElady]

I loove Caramel!!!! she is a beautiful snake. My advice is this.....I would not give up on continually offering food. Forcefeeding is VERY stressful on a snake, and if perhaps you are to quick to start forcefeeding, then the process of getting them to eat on their own will take even longer. I know you are worried, but it looks like Caramel has good body wieght, and snakes can go without food for a lot longer than you think. I had a lil bugger outta the egg who took four months to start eating on his own!!! I had to forcefeed him three meals, only cause he was losing weight. My advice to you? Keep trying, offer a small live prey item every 10 days, don't handle her at all(I know it's hard), and get a gram scale to keep an eye on her wieght. (available at Walmart) Eventually, she'll come around.....they always do. Good luck and to the forum too! Enjoy you're stay!!

[elevatethis]

Are they housed together or seperately?

[rabernet]

Are they housed together or seperately?

Took the words right out of my mouth!

[elevatethis]

My money is on "together", we'll wait for them to respond though!

[rabernet]

That was my supposition as well!

[Lauren]

... yeah they are together. i dont exactly have the space to house them separately... do you think i should make an effort to get them separated? I feed them separately... but they are indeed housed together

[elevatethis]

Sorry guys... yeah they are together.

Thats the problem right there. The larger one has established dominance and the resulting stress on the little one is why its health is ailing.

If the smaller one has contracted RI, it is highly contagious and will eventually infect the other one.

i dont exactly have the space to house them separately... do you think i should make an effort to get them separated?

You will need to make the space or re-home one of them. In your case, it's truely a matter of life and death for both of them.

[4theSNAKElady]

That could be the problem.......what kind of caging do you have them in right now????

[Lauren]

They are in a 10 gallon tank... yikes i had no idea that it would be that detrimental to their health to be housed together :/