Not eating :/

[Ditto]

I know there are hundreds of threads just like this, and by reading those threads I thought I might be prepared for when this happened to me, but here we are...
Today marks two weeks since my BP last ate, I know that's not very long for bps but I'm still concerned because he's starting to look a bit thin (not skinny yet, fortunately). He's around 5-6 months old & I've had him since the beginning of August, and up until now (excluding the first week or two when my husbandry was way off) he's been eating like a beast.
His temps are 89-91 on the hot side, 81-82 cold side, I've been having some small issues with humidity lately but it usually sits around 40-50%. He's not showing any signs of going into shed (and shedding has never stopped him before), and I believe he's too young to be fasting for breeding related reasons? (I'm not 100% sure how that whole thing works, but I think I've heard only breeding size BPs fast during the winter?)
I offered a small mouse last night because he has been cruising around the past few days looking for food, so I assumed he would be hungry enough to take the mouse, but he totally refused it. I used tongs to wiggle it around for him a bit because that usually works, but he was totally uninterested and instead kept trying to escape the enclosure onto my hand. After a while of trying I left the mouse in the enclosure over night and completely covered the exposed sides with a towel so it was completely dark inside. I woke up this morning only to find the mouse almost exactly where I left it but with a bite mark on it's belly.
I have no clue what could be causing this, even as I'm typing this he's cruising around the enclosure looking for food, if any of you have an idea your advice would be greatly appreciated!!

[Ditto]

Forgot to mention, he's been hiding all day in his cool hide, he came out around 30 mins ago

[Bogertophis]

It's true that it's more likely to be adult (breedable) BPs that fast in winter, but all snakes are aware of shorter day lengths (& sometimes cooler temperatures)
and that's another influence. Keep in mind that a snake's instincts are the result of natural selection...and snakes that eat when the weather turns too cold to
digest can die from food rotting in their G.I. tract during the winter (& therefore they do not live to reproduce). So be patient, I know it's frustrating. You might
try increasing the light in the room (or in his cage)...make sure his photo-period is equal to that in summer. Many days this time of year are gloomy with clouds,
besides just having a shorter day.

Another thing: best to offer food when a BP is IN their hide, & just peeking out. Also, offer at night. A snake that's cruising their cage will OFTEN refuse food as
they feel too exposed & vulnerable (to their own predators). Maybe you got away with ignoring these "rules" in summer but now it matters. BPs are ambush-
predators...they don't ordinarily chase down their prey, but grab it as it passes by them in their hiding place. When a snake pauses to constrict and eat, another
predator can nab THEM while they're preoccupied, so instinctively they're better off if they're not out in the open.

Have you been warming up his prey right before offering? If not, break out that blow-dryer! If it cools off too much when you first offer, re-heat & retry.

[Ditto]

It's true that it's more likely to be adult (breedable) BPs that fast in winter, but all snakes are aware of shorter day lengths (& sometimes cooler temperatures)
and that's another influence. Keep in mind that a snake's instincts are the result of natural selection...and snakes that eat when the weather turns too cold to
digest can die from food rotting in their G.I. tract during the winter (& therefore they do not live to reproduce). So be patient, I know it's frustrating. You might
try increasing the light in the room (or in his cage)...make sure his photo-period is equal to that in summer. Many days this time of year are gloomy with clouds,
besides just having a shorter day.

Another thing: best to offer food when a BP is IN their hide, & just peeking out. Also, offer at night. A snake that's cruising their cage will OFTEN refuse food as
they feel too exposed & vulnerable (to their own predators). Maybe you got away with ignoring these "rules" in summer but now it matters. BPs are ambush-
predators...they don't ordinarily chase down their prey, but grab it as it passes by them in their hiding place. When a snake pauses to constrict and eat, another
predator can nab THEM while they're preoccupied, so instinctively they're better off if they're not out in the open.

Have you been warming up his prey right before offering? If not, break out that blow-dryer! If it cools off too much when you first offer, re-heat & retry.

Thank you for the reply!!
I usually offer food while he's in his hide, but I wanted to get some food in him & I've seen other BPs eat while sorta out in the open so I figured I'd try it, though in hindsight it was definitely not the best idea. I feed him at night, I try to keep the light as low as possible while still being able to see what I'm doing. I've always warmed up his mice with a hair dryer to a little over 90f
I'll try increasing the light during the day and see if that helps, do you think there's anything else I could do to help him, or something I could be doing wrong?

[Bogertophis]

Nothing else I can think of...some snakes (especially BPs) can just be fussy at times. I have no such problems with my rat & corn snakes, or my Aussie Spotted
python, lol...but this time of year my desert rosy boa refuses 2 out of 3 offerings, and my Texas longnose snake will skip all meals for a couple months. I never
had trouble with the BCI I used to have either, nor with king, milk, gopher or bull snakes. But you "signed up for this" with a BP, sorry. I used to have a
group of ball pythons, I do sympathize, they can be so frustrating.

Some here have also mentioned lengthening the time between meals offered, so they might feel a little more hunger & pressure not to miss a meal? Maybe that
combined with more light? Let us know how it goes & what works for you?

[Ditto]

Nothing else I can think of...some snakes (especially BPs) can just be fussy at times. I have no such problems with my rat & corn snakes, or my Aussie Spotted
python, lol...but this time of year my desert rosy boa refuses 2 out of 3 offerings, and my Texas longnose snake will skip all meals for a couple months. I never
had trouble with the BCI I used to have either, nor with king, milk, gopher or bull snakes. But you "signed up for this" with a BP, sorry. I used to have a
group of ball pythons, I do sympathize, they can be so frustrating.

Some here have also mentioned lengthening the time between meals offered, so they might feel a little more hunger & pressure not to miss a meal? Maybe that
combined with more light? Let us know how it goes & what works for you?

hm.. I think I was getting too cocky for a bit, I was so excited about having a bp who hadn't skipped any meals
I'll definitely try adding more light and spacing out his meals to see if that helps and update here (and in the meantime try not to worry myself to death lol), thank you for advice <3

[Bogertophis]

Afterthought: in case you never noticed, avoid "approaching" the snake with the prey...you want to give it some subtle motion & wiggle to attract the snake's
attention, but deliberately go past, not "at" the snake. Rodents don't volunteer to be meals in the wild, & while that apparent boldness may delight some braver
snakes (like boas, rat snakes, Pituophis, etc) it's apt to backfire with a shy "ambush" hunter like a ball python. (use feeding tongs also, to keep your own scent
off the prey)

I think snakes have their own personalities when it comes to feeding too...pay attention to what works for yours. For example, many snakes will turn & snap
at a rodent that taps their neck, & may then proceed to coil & eat it, but others (like most BPs) would be "horrified" if that were to happen.

[RedRabbit]

hm.. I think I was getting too cocky for a bit, I was so excited about having a bp who hadn't skipped any meals
I'll definitely try adding more light and spacing out his meals to see if that helps and update here (and in the meantime try not to worry myself to death lol), thank you for advice <3

If it's any comfort, I was in the same boat of being overconfident just a couple days ago, haha. I'd also been pretty proud of my 4-month-old BP being easy to feed, since he was eating like clockwork every week, and made the switches from mouse to rat and from live to frozen/thawed with zero fuss. Then I overreached by hauling him over to the family home for the holidays, letting everyone hold and coo over him, and still expecting him to eat for me 2 days later, while still in this new setting. Surprise, surprise ... he refused. Thankfully, the solution was simple - I used a bath towel to "curtain" off his tub and gave him 2 days of zero handling and minimal disturbance. Offered him his rat today, and he grabbed it off the tongs almost immediately. I guess the moral of this story is, don't get too discouraged! You're making adjustments for his comfort, then just give him time, and he will eat.