My ball python ate substrate | help!!

[Djdjfiencue]

​Ijust fed my ball python her first small rat tonight. It took her a while to swallow the prey in her hide but when I looked in the cage she had 3 or 4 pieces of small cypress mulch in her mouth. They looked like they might damage her and I got nervous. Am I just worried or should I take her to a vet?

[redshepherd]

It's not a problem! They digest it easily, as long as your temps and husbandry are on point.

Mine eat substrate every meal- I don't even watch them eat anymore LOL.

[Djdjfiencue]

Thanks for the help I can sleep with a clear conscience

[Zincubus]

This is a controversial topic .... Whe I started I was told to place card / cardboard down first and feed over the top of the card - just to avoid any swallowing / ingestion of the substrate as it can supposedly lead to impaction .
That's what I've done for years with no issues .

Maybe it depends on the type / size of the snake /substrate and how much they swallow . I've seen odd pieces occasionally stuck to the rat when they're munching on it and I've pulled the bark off with tongs .

It will be intersecting to see what the others think.

Some snakes will never see anything like apsen or bark chippings in the wild like sand boas maybe ...


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[MmmBanana]

Mine has eaten a few pieces of reptichip/coco fibers. Havent had any issues.

[PythonBabes]

Mine has ate a ton.....well I'm not gonna say a ton..a lot of aspen, back when I used it. Even though I would place the rat on a paper towel he always managed to eat a bit of the aspen. Now I use newspaper, so I don't worry about him eating bedding anymore.

Like redshepherd said, as long as your temps are good, your snake should have no problem passing it.

[vikingr]

Our guy likes to 'season' his rat with eco earth dragging it around before eating both... no issues.

[Craiga 01453]

Nothing to worry about. They digest bone and fur. Nobody cleans their food in the wild.

[Zincubus]

All above comments may well be true but I'd guess digesting bone maybe different to digesting wood chips !?

Can't see that many Sand boas , for example, will ever come across wood bark in the wild so why would their digestive system be able to cope with it ?!

Not being awkward here , just intrigued ..


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[EL-Ziggy]

My snakes will occasionally digest a bit of substrate when they eat and I've never had any issues.