Can you put weight on a snake too fast?

[Crowfingers]

I'm going to preface this by saying that I'm not having any issues with my ball python, he's great. Eats wonderfully, and that's where I came up with this question.

When I got Mashadar he was 172g (on 10/26/15 -empty weight). He has eaten a rat pup between 19 and 25 grams every 7 days. He urinated and defecated this morning, so I weighed him again. He is now 270g. He has not shed yet either, and I was wondering if ~100 gram weight gain in a month is too fast?

At his last feeding on Friday, he was striking at the top if his tank as soon as I opened it and took the rat immediately, like he was starving. At this weight, the pups are only around 10% of his body weight, so I was going to offer food again at day 5, unless them gaining weight this fast is a problem. He always starts getting into hunting mode around day 5-6, but I've been keeping him on the 7 day schedule since that what the breeder had done since he had reached 100 grams.

If it helps, he hatched on 7/16/15

[rlditmars]

I don't think they can put on weight too fast. They are opportunistic eaters so they will eat when food is available provided there are no other variables that might prevent it, i.e. shedding, already full, etc. It really depends on your plans for him. If you are trying to grow him up to size to breed quickly, you could have him on an every 5 day schedule until he reaches about 600 to 700 grams. Then go back to once a week. If he is just a pet and you don't care how fast he is growing then once a week is fine. Are you planning to pair him with a female and is she already approaching breeding size?

[Crowfingers]

I don't have any plans for breeding, he's just a pet - he's my only reptile. I just don't want to mess anything up. The longer he stays on feed, the longer I can push back the inevitable fasting period

[bcr229]

Yes, you can overfeed your snake to the point of it getting fat, and ball pythons do get hit by fatty liver disease. It's not as common as in boas, but it does happen.

Offering a feeder 10% of your snake's body weight every five days isn't overfeeding it. Once he's up to small rats you can offer weekly.

[Lizardlicks]

Short answer: yes

Long answer: as long as you're feeding your snake appropriately sized meals at regular intervals, and not attempting to power feed, you're not likely to run into problems.

for a little comparison: Strudel has been packing on about 80-100g a month regularly since I got her. Serket pokes along behind at 30-50g because she's persnickety and will refuse food if her everything isn't exactly right (little butt head) I've had them both since February and they've gone from the recorded arrival weights 157g to 1002g for Strudel, and 181g (I think) to 710g for Serket as of about a week ago. That's just two snakes. If you got a bunch of others in the same age range and put them all together, you'd see even more variation. Just keep doing what you're doing and observing and your snake should balance out fine.