Baby seems thin... Help! New ball python owner

[kittymeow]

Hello everyone!


I've been lurking in these forums for a while and I finally bought my first ball python from a local breeder. He has a great temperament.


Here is what I'm worried about: He only weighs 82g but he will be 2.5 months old tomorrow. I acquired him yesterday and the breeder told me that he feeds every friday but that he was also recently fed a f/t "medium mouse" just the day before. But it didn't look like he ate anything because there was no visible "bulge", although I should mention that he pooed on my bed while I was examining him. Today when I looked at him, he just doesn't look as rounded as other hatchlings in pictures. He looks quite thin and straight. Also I noticed that some parts of his skin seems slightly loose. I will also mention that I noticed the baby's mother is smaller than normal breeding size (she is about 1300g) so maybe that would explain his small size. Otherwise, he is quite alert and healthy looking. Since I got him, he's been cooped up in the warm hide.


Currently, he is being kept in a 15 qt Sterilite tub with a UTH. There are two RBI small hides - one on the warm end and one on the cool end. I have the warm hotspot at 90 F and the cool is 78 F and the humidity falls between 50-60%, though it goes up temporarily when I mist. There's also a water bowl and I used Repti-bark substrate.


Do you guys think he is too thin? When is the next time I should feed him? I know you're supposed to leave new ball pythons alone for a few days before feeding. How often should I feed him from now on to put more weight on him? (Twice a week or every 5 days?) What size should I be feeding him? I was thinking of switching to rats just because it would make more sense in the future when he gets larger.


I would love anyone who has any input on my situation! I'm a new owner so I'm just concerned about my little one!

The first picture is from the breeder. The second two are mine.

[200xth]

82g at 2.5 months seems okay to me. Maybe a bit on the small side, but nothing major in any way.

People usually feed their hatchlings anything from once every 3 days to once every 5 days. Probably 4 or 5 days would be good. For what it's worth, and this is subject to change or odd circumstances, I try to do 4 days to 200g, 5 days from 200g to 500g, and 7 days after 500g. Doesn't always work out that way, though. As long as you're feeding him regularly, and the correct size you're good to go.

If you have a scale and want to weigh your food, 10% to 15% of bodyweight is the normal guideline. This usually means mice until he's over 100g. If you have no scale, I would just do mice to 100 or 110 and switch to smaller rat pups at that point. You want something about as big around as the snake is wide at his widest point.

I usually feed my snakes the day I get them. I want to see their feeding response. Most people say wait a week. This is up to you. Nothing terrible will happen if you do either.

Basically, I don't think he's too thin, and if he is a little on the small side, a normal feeding regiment will get him back on track in no time at that young age.

[wycked]

X2 he doesn't look like he's starved to me either. And second on the feeding every 5 or 6 days as well

[Daybreaker]

X3 he looks fine to me: I'd stick him on a 5 day schedule with rat fuzzies/small pups and you can offer in a couple days or a week. I've offered some snakes the day of receiving them and most took it fine but if you want to give him some settle in time that's fine too.

[kittymeow]

82g at 2.5 months seems okay to me. Maybe a bit on the small side, but nothing major in any way.


People usually feed their hatchlings anything from once every 3 days to once every 5 days. Probably 4 or 5 days would be good. For what it's worth, and this is subject to change or odd circumstances, I try to do 4 days to 200g, 5 days from 200g to 500g, and 7 days after 500g. Doesn't always work out that way, though. As long as you're feeding him regularly, and the correct size you're good to go.


If you have a scale and want to weigh your food, 10% to 15% of bodyweight is the normal guideline. This usually means mice until he's over 100g. If you have no scale, I would just do mice to 100 or 110 and switch to smaller rat pups at that point. You want something about as big around as the snake is wide at his widest point.


I usually feed my snakes the day I get them. I want to see their feeding response. Most people say wait a week. This is up to you. Nothing terrible will happen if you do either.


Basically, I don't think he's too thin, and if he is a little on the small side, a normal feeding regiment will get him back on track in no time at that young age.

X2 he doesn't look like he's starved to me either. And second on the feeding every 5 or 6 days as well

X3 he looks fine to me: I'd stick him on a 5 day schedule with rat fuzzies/small pups and you can offer in a couple days or a week. I've offered some snakes the day of receiving them and most took it fine but if you want to give him some settle in time that's fine too.

Thanks so much guys! I really appreciate the super quick responses and great tips. This makes me feel really relieved. I'll go ahead and start feeding within the next couple days! :]

[Naom9Anne]

Below is a picture of my female albino who weighed 60g when I bought her (she has taken two feeds with me so far) with with 600g(ish) male. She eats well and is healthy. Just as a comparison for you. Your BP looks very healthy and as long as they eat and don't lose considerable weight you have nothing to worry about!

On a guess (as I really do not know the age) I think my albino is around 2 and a half months and is a lot lighter.

[steve_r34]

82 grams is fine for a hatch i got a male about a month and half ago he was 86 i think something in the 80's hes been feeding on a hopper every friday and since i got him and hes gotta be close to 200 i havent threw him on the scale since i got him but he looks around 200 they grow quick once feed regular .. good luck with him/her .. very nice looking bp

[kittymeow]

Below is a picture of my female albino who weighed 60g when I bought her (she has taken two feeds with me so far) with with 600g(ish) male. She eats well and is healthy. Just as a comparison for you. Your BP looks very healthy and as long as they eat and don't lose considerable weight you have nothing to worry about!


On a guess (as I really do not know the age) I think my albino is around 2 and a half months and is a lot lighter.

Thanks for the picture comparison! I'm just being a little paranoid because I've never had a snake before. It's such a change not having to feed your animal every single day but it's definitely something I could get used to haha. Is there a way to tell when a BP is hungry? Btw very beautiful BPs!

82 grams is fine for a hatch i got a male about a month and half ago he was 86 i think something in the 80's hes been feeding on a hopper every friday and since i got him and hes gotta be close to 200 i havent threw him on the scale since i got him but he looks around 200 they grow quick once feed regular .. good luck with him/her .. very nice looking bp

Wow they sure pack on the weight quickly. Is that a weight gain that I should be expecting in the month or two? And it's a boy! Thank you I'm so in love with him… just too adorable. I'm using every muscle of my body to stop myself from overhandling him lol.

[ViperSRT3g]

Is there a way to tell when a BP is hungry?

They usually become more active during their normal times (usually at night) and begin wandering around their tanks looking for anything to eat. My snake sometimes will roam around the feeding end of his tank hoping I notice so I can feed him. Most people will just feed their snake on a regular schedule. Depending on the snake's size, it can be as often as every 4 days to every 7-10 days. Since yours is a baby, I recommend feeding it more often.

[200xth]

Wow they sure pack on the weight quickly. Is that a weight gain that I should be expecting in the month or two?

They grow very quickly at that size when they're fed regularly.

Just as an example, here's a few of mine and their recorded weights after two or three months. Fed every 5 days most of the time (but not always).

2013-08-22 : 83
2013-10-21 : 230


2013-09-15 : 142
2013-11-16 : 287


2013-08-16 : 97
2013-11-17 : 295

You'll probably get about the same growth.