Feeding Question - Slow Striking/Missed Strikes

[Tipsy Llama]

Hello and thanks for your interest,

Some background first - I recently brought home my first snake on Saturday (Jan. 3) and got him all set up. As was expected he stayed apprehesive and kept out of site throughout the night. When I purchased him the shop owner told me he had been fed on the previous Wednesday and was used to eat two fuzzy mice. So when last night (a week from his last feeding) came around I left the scent of mice out for awhile and then dropped one in his tank (yes I know that for awhile the norm in the community has been to take him out for a feeding, which I tried and he did not come out). He did not move, and the mouse pretty much walked right up to him. He struck and constricted, fast and beautifully. Was able to swallow and everthying was fine until i put the second mouse in. Thats when Monty, the snake, started "hunting" him. He took his time and finally got him cornered, struck and then flipped upside down mouse ran to the other side. Monty got up and started hunting again but this time when he struck it was like he was slow. He missed. Then he cornered the mouse and didnt even get ready to strike until after the mouse ran off. So the hunting after that was like delayed, he was always just behind the mouse. But he was actively looking, tongue flickering. After 30-40 minutes I removed the mouse and just went to bed.

So can anyone tell me what that was all about? Did he get scared? If so why did it seem like he couldnt even sense the mouse after awhile even though he was definetly looking? Could the larger tank than what he is used to be causing him trouble with "smelling" out his prey? If you have any questions let me know.

Thanks,
Tipsy Llama

[Kaorte]

Might have just been a fluke. Can you define "fuzzy" mouse? Like, is this an adult mouse?

Have you thought of converting over to frozen/thawed rats instead? That way you only have to feed one.

You don't need to take him out of his home enclosure, but for next time maybe you can remove some of the cage furniture so the mouse has less places to hide and he can get a better strike the first time.

Oh,

[Tipsy Llama]

Thanks, and the store owner that sold me the mice picked the size and stated it had been what he was eating for a bit. They were definitely not adult mice, smaller than my two thumbs combined and Monty is 4 months old.

I will have to try to remove some furniture next time, that is a great idea.

Can you tell me how hard you think it would be for a 4 month old BP thats eaten live mice only to switch to f/t , and possibly some pros and cons for each? I would honestly feel more comfortable with that since there wuold be no risk of injury. But I do like to give the little guy some excitement and thrills in his otherwise mundane captivity. I suppose it's easier to make the switch while he's younger.

[Kaorte]

At 4 months old, you can probably feed him an adult mouse or a rat pup. Then you don't have to bother with the double feeding.

If he is feeding strong on live, chances are he will convert to f/t without any issues. You might have to hold out for a few weeks til he is really hungry, but I've never had any problems switching ball pythons of any age from live to f/t and sometimes back and forth. So if you wanted, you could offer him the occasional live meal.

I would give him live for his next couple meals just to make sure he is eating well with you, and then offer some F/T and see how it goes.