Stuck in feed mode & still hungry? And other concerns..

[Drako21]

This past Saturday I got my first snake(bumblebee ball python) at a reptile expo. He is 10 months old. Yesterday I fed him for the first time a frozen/thawed fuzzy rat since the breeder said that is what she has been feeding him recently. Thankfully he ate it with no problem since I've read numerous times ball pythons can be trouble when it comes to eating, especially newly acquired ones.

Anyway, ever since then(it's been about 20 hours since he's eaten), he has had his head stuck out of his hide like he is waiting for more to eat. He has never gone back in and curled up or attempted to sleep from what I have seen. Could he still be hungry and is it safe to feed him another one today?

Another thing is, he is staying in his cold side hide. He has been in that one ever since I brought him home. I caught him in the hot side once for a short time, but that is it. I thought they needed the hot side to help digest their food? I assume he knows what's best for himself, but I'm just going by what all I've read about their typical behavior.

The hot side is not too hot or anything either. I have a heat pad on the bottom with a thermostat probe attached to it and set to 93 degrees. A thermometer is on top under the substrate and reads about 91-93 the entire time. The cold side is regulated by an infrared red heat light since my room stays cool and I needed something to boost the temps up with. That side stays around 80-82 degrees.

[bcr229]

This past Saturday I got my first snake(bumblebee ball python) at a reptile expo. He is 10 months old. Yesterday I fed him for the first time a frozen/thawed fuzzy rat since the breeder said that is what she has been feeding him recently...

Get a kitchen scale, weigh your critter, and offer a feeder that is 10-15% of his body weight.

How big was the "fuzzy rat"? Fuzzies are the next size up from pinkies and that's the size my hatchlings started on. By 10 months old your BP should be eating larger feeders.

[Drako21]

How big was the "fuzzy rat"? Fuzzies are the next size up from pinkies and that's the size my hatchlings started on. By 10 months old your BP should be eating larger feeders.

It is about 3.5" long and 1" wide.

[brock lesser]

You could feed him again.
91- 93 might be too hot drop it to 88 and see if that helps.
Do you have pics of the bee and cage?
Are the hides tight enough?
Plus side he did eat, you can adjust food size as necessary.

[Drako21]

You could feed him again.
91- 93 might be too hot drop it to 88 and see if that helps.
Do you have pics of the bee and cage?
Are the hides tight enough?
Plus side he did eat, you can adjust food size as necessary.

Yeah I have a few pictures..

This is one of the tank overall, it's a 20 gallon. He's on mostly aspen with a little repti-bark up front that I was trying. I would say that the hides are tight enough. When he's curled up he touches the top of it. They are medium half-logs from Petsmart. It's covered with black construction paper for now on the back & sides to make him feel more secure.



This is the best one I have of him currently when he was out and about.



This is how he's been since I fed him yesterday.

[sho220]

He's a little skeeny...nothing to be alarmed about, but he could definitely use some bulking up. I would be hesitant to feed him again today just because he's poking his head out of his hide. I doubt it would hurt anything, but I would give it a few days (2-3) and then feed again. I would also bump him up to weaned rats every 5 days...

He's a pretty boy...