Wanting to put some weight on my girl

[xFenrir]

I've got a 2 year old girl who when I got her in January weighed about 500g! The vet didn't comment on it at all but I really don't think that's where she should be. I've only managed to put 100-200g tops on her (I don't have a scale so I'm guesstimating) and she just doesn't look as plump and round as most of the BP's I see on here. I've tried going from feeding her every week to every 5 days but she'll refuse and won't budge off that week schedule. We think she might still have a minor RI and are going to take her into the vet soon, didn't know if that's affecting her weight. I dunno what else to do to get some girth on her, she's about 3 feet and looks so skinny.

[jbean7916]

What are you feeding?

sent from my EVO

[Skittles1101]

If she is eating every week and still losing weight, that can be a sign of a parasite. Have you ever had a fecal test done on her? Also all of my bps are '10s, but all under 400 grams, even a little female at 105 grams. They all grow differently, and I think as long as she's eating well, maintaining/gaining weight, and has a negative fecal there's no need to worry about power feeding her.

[KingPythons]

An RI will most def slow your BP down. You have to be 100% sure it's gone though or not starting. I don't think that's the case if the BP is eating every week. Taking your ball to the vet is never a bad thing. Once your done at the vet I'll let you know how to get that snake big and strong.

[TheWinWizard]

I heard rats tend to plump them faster then mice. Any truth?

[reptile65]

I heard rats tend to plump them faster then mice. Any truth?

Yes. From what I understand, rats have a higher fat content than mice. When I rescued my ball python, he was being fed adult mice. I've switched him to rats and he's putting on weight like crazy.

[KingPythons]

Agree. I find it to be a hassle when you have to get three mice to feed your adult ball.

[snakesRkewl]

Rats and mice are close to the same fat content
I have 2 female asf eaters that eat 25 gram asf's 2-3 times a week most weeks and are both about 1500 grams at 2 years old.
Mice and asf eaters can achieve the same weight gain as rat eaters but the key is husbandry and feeding often or multiple meals.
Given the proper husbandry most ball pythons will eat well and gain weight well no matter what prey type you feed them.

[pinkeye714]

Rats have more protein not fat. which is why they are said to be better then mice when feeding. that protein will turn to muscle not fats.

[xFenrir]

When we got her, the expo we got her at was all sold out of F/T rats so we had to get the largest mice they had. But she'll only eat one; I've tried offering more but she has no interest after the first one.

We're just waiting for her to poop so we can take that in to the vet with us for a fecal test. She went in about a month and a half ago and was diagnosed with a mild RI, but we got the oral Baytril instead of the shots. Looking back I kinda wish I had gotten the shots, I heard that the oral meds are pretty much useless.

She's not losing weight, she's just gaining weight VERY VERY slowly, if at all.