Super shy male BP

[Kaskadian]

Hey all,

I've recently acquired three young ball pythons. I have two girls and one boy; the girls are active as ever, and always interested in everything going on around them. They will even leave their hides to explore and move about. The girls ate as soon as food was introduced; whereas the male has been a bit unsure.

I'll start off with the basics; temps are 92/82 F, hides are available. I've tried feeding both F/T (what I normally try to do); made the dead mouse dance in front of him; and even tried introducing a live mouse (under close supervision). None of this has been successful so far. The only assumption I can come to is he is still adjusting to his surroundings and will eat soon. I attempted to give his this last mouse twice, and we're coming up on two weeks without him eating. Being that he is so young, that makes me nervous. When I introduced the live mouse, he followed it around for a while without striking, and when then mouse came close to him, he turned and buried himself in his substrate. The girls on the other hand also refused F/T food, but struck at the live mice almost immediately. This is my first experience with ball pythons; having kept Burmese pythons before, I'm used to my snakes eating whenever food is introduced without question.

I'd love some advice; I'm new to ball pythons and I want to give them the very best life possible.

Cheers,
Kas

[Slim]

BPs can be finicky eaters sometimes, but when juveniles don't eat, there is usually a husbandry or security problem. If you are happy with your husbandry, try leaving him completely alone for another week or so before you try feeding again. Give him more time to settle in.

[NH93]

I'd also suggest trying a rat, especially if that is what the previous owner/breeder had fed him! Give about a week between offerings as well.

Best of luck! Try not to stress too much. Seems to be a very common/popular issue on the forum lately

[Kaskadian]

BPs can be finicky eaters sometimes, but when juveniles don't eat, there is usually a husbandry or security problem. If you are happy with your husbandry, try leaving him completely alone for another week or so before you try feeding again. Give him more time to settle in.

As far as husbandry is concerned, he has the right temps/humidity/hides/etc. He is housed alone (as are all my snakes), he isn't harassed or bothered often (except for occasional handling; not around feeding time). The thing that makes me wonder is; he follows the food around his enclosure. He will look all over the place and follow the mouse, but he never strikes.

I'd also suggest trying a rat, especially if that is what the previous owner/breeder had fed him! Give about a week between offerings as well.

Best of luck! Try not to stress too much. Seems to be a very common/popular issue on the forum lately

I'll give rats a try next! I got these snakes from Brian/Lori at BHB, and they all came in beautiful and healthy as ever. If he won't eat this time, I'll give him more time alone. I just hope he eats soon.

[J.P.]

I have some feeding problems too. With all things equal in the entire collection, there are still those that do not eat as good as their rack mates. I guess this all boils down to an individual snake's personality. Some are just shy from the start, with luck they snap out of it in a few weeks to months, but sometimes it goes on for a long time. I have a 3 year old male that looks like a young snake because it seldom eats. It has the right proportions, not skinny, just small. If i did not know it's age, i'd say it's a healthy yearling.

[Kaskadian]

I have some feeding problems too. With all things equal in the entire collection, there are still those that do not eat as good as their rack mates. I guess this all boils down to an individual snake's personality. Some are just shy from the start, with luck they snap out of it in a few weeks to months, but sometimes it goes on for a long time. I have a 3 year old male that looks like a young snake because it seldom eats. It has the right proportions, not skinny, just small. If i did not know it's age, i'd say it's a healthy yearling.

I hear ya. I hope this male doesn't prove to be such a pain to feed. He finally ate today.. his first mouse since he arrived. The females have already gobbled down two mice in the time it's taken him to eat this one. I'll keep my fingers crossed that he needed to settle in. I hope he starts eating regularly.

Thanks for the comments, it helps ease my worries a bit.

[blk02ssmonte]

If the females eat that quick try getting rat fuzzies or rat crawlers for them. Rats are better food for them than mice.