Will my new Ball grow much being 4yrs but underfed?

[IndySnake]

Hey everybody, I know quite a bit about BP's, being an owner of 3 for a little more than 2 yrs now but I have recently been stumped when thinking about my latest addition. Muffins is 4 yrs old and I took him from an owner that didn't properly care for him so he rarely ate and in turn is under weight and size. Since I have gotten him, I now have him in a proper inclosure with great temps, water and a hide and he has already taken 2 small rats for me in 2 weeks (the previous owner only got him to eat 5 times TOPS this year before I got him) I realize he should be full grown at 4 yrs old but my question is, if he keeps eating this good, is it still possible for him to grow more in length since? Thanks in advance

FYI: I don't have a scale but you should be able to tell from these pictures that he is really small for his age. Also....I know he is a normal, but he definitely has a distinct pattern. Any idea what he would be called?

[pbjtime8908]

he's got a nice reduced pattern on him. i had gotten a bp under similar circumstances, now idk if he's gained any length since he was pretty long but i know in a few short months he's gained over 500g's and is my best eater by far. doesnt matter what i put in front of him or how much, he'll eat it. hope yours turns out well.

[IndySnake]

he's got a nice reduced pattern on him. i had gotten a bp under similar circumstances, now idk if he's gained any length since he was pretty long but i know in a few short months he's gained over 500g's and is my best eater by far. doesnt matter what i put in front of him or how much, he'll eat it. hope yours turns out well.

Thanks! That's what I thought he was...a reduced pattern but I wasn't sure. I hope he continues to eat like yours has.

[RichL]

I would think that he would continue growing.. I'm not positive though.. I know that after two years of my female being on mice, when I swapped her to rats, she started growing like a weed..

I know 2 years is nowhere near 'full grown', but I would think you still have a good chance.. Time will tell I suppose..

GL !

[angllady2]

He may never achieve the size of a well fed ball of the same age, sometimes starvation will stunt them, but he should get a little rounder and probably longer.

Be patient with him, and be careful not to overfeed in your quest to get him bigger. Offer one appropriate size prey item once a week, and he'll do the rest.

Also, be aware this is breeding season, and if you have a female he can smell, he may go off feed for a while, don't panic.

I rescued an 8 month old ball who was being fed one pinky mouse a month, yes I said a month! He weighed a whopping 125 grams when we got him, the size of a hatchling. It took him a while to get going, he had no idea what to do with even a hopper mouse. Once he got started though, he ate regularly and gained weight like a sumo wrestler! When we adopted him out he'd gone from 125 grams to over 850 grams in about six months.

Gale

[KigerTiger]

If I may speak from personal experience, I obtained an underfed three-four year old female about a year ago. When I took her from the individual who was keeping her in a pantry with no heat or light source, and feeding her maybe once a month if he remembered to, she was very thin, food aggressive, and only about two feet long.

About a year later, after biweekly feedings on a set schedule, she has more than doubled in size. I have had to move her into a 75 gallon enclosure, 4'Lx18"Wx2'H, for her to be able to comfortably move. I haven't weighed her, but if I had to guess she's somewhere between 1800-2000g now.

I don't know if your new baby is as food aggressive as mine was (she bit when I placed her in her feeding tank one of the first times I fed her), but take caution when feeding until your new baby has gained some weight and gotten used to the new feeding regimen. Other than that, good luck!

[mattchibi]

Ive got a very similar situation and I think only time will tell.

My normal girl is 3 years old and 675 grams. Very small for her age, but I am hopeful that she will grow a bit more, definitely in girth, not so sure about length. She's is also my best eater Good luck with yours

[IndySnake]

Thanks for all of the replies everybody...it is MUCH appreciated! I knew I could get some great answers on this message board.

[spasticbeast]

I adopted an underfed 7 yr. old male about 6 months ago. He was being fed 1 small rat a month for pretty much his whole life. He has gone from 950 grams to about 1500 and gone from 43 in. to 46in.