My ball eats like a hog..--any suggestions?

[maniac]

My ball just got over RI and hadnt eaten for a good month and half.. he recently just ate his first live mouse 2 days ago. I fed him a prekilled yesturday and offered him one today. He accepted it and is eating ti as we speak. Its common to feed balls once a week but mine has been at it for 3 days now.. Is this normal ?

Why are you offering your snake food every 2-3 days? Thats far too often....once a week is perfect. If you feed your snake too often you will cause it to have health problems. Please only feed him on a normal schedule.

[maniac]

I already thawed a mouse for my red tail..he wasnt interested so I just through it in with the ball.. He nipped at it.. It was obviously dead when he checked it out and just put its mouth on his head and started to eat.. i'll wait a week next time I feed but alot of people told em that if they dont wanna eat they simply wont.. I figured He was just hungry

The issue isn't whether the food item was dead or not, but that you are offering food at a highly unhealthy rate. Snakes are opportunists in the wild and because they are never guaranteed another meal, their instincts tell them to eat as much as possible.....people often equate this with being "hungry" when that is not the case. Your snake is merely acting on its natural programming.....its YOUR responsibility as a keeper to make sure it gets the best care possible. Feeding it every 2 days is not going in line with your responsibilities.

[maniac]

It was never like that before... I strictly used to eat every 1 week and never was interested in a mouse anytime before that. But I will wait next time to feed him. Thanks for giving me your herp enlightment

No problem....I hope you understand that I'm not ragging on you or trying to make you sound stupid. I just want to help you be able to care for your animals as best as you can. If you do that, we all win.

[maniac]

Yeah I know I dont take offense when somebody tells me what im doing is wrong because I dont consider my self to be that expeirenced... I'll get there though

Great attitude man! Keep up the good work.

[Marla]

Just to add a little info to what David was telling you, their digestive systems fare best with some recovery time between meals, so it's not just about growth rate or hunger.

[maniac]

Well I'll be sure to give him some time before feeding him again.. Thank you both for replying to my problem :}