Is one small rat enough for 2 year old ball python

[Jibler]

Tonight is our 4th feeding since we got out just about two year old female ball python Jupiter or as my wife calls her Snakey snake. she has been eating great on f/t small rats. But tonight she ate her rat great and now is acting like she still wants to eat. She has had her head out of her hide in a strike pose and if you are by the enclosure she will fallow you back and forth with her head just wondering if I should start feeding more she has been getting fed every 10 days

[Stewart_Reptiles]

It's not about age it's about size.

Also feeding mode and cruising for food can start hours before feeding and can last hours after feeding, does not always mean the animal should be fed more

[Jibler]

Thank you very much we are new to this have done lots of reading months before we got her but still always feel a little unsure lol feels like being a new parent all over again lol

[Stewart_Reptiles]

Best thing to do is to feed according to those guidelines https://ball-pythons.net/forums/show...ing-Guidelines

While BP are opportunistic and could eat 2,3,4 rats at once they are also notorious when it comes to fasting so finding the right balance that allows your animal to eat with more consistency will help the animal and yourself, because when they go of feed it becomes very frustrating and often worrysome for new owners.

[redpandakitty]

You should be feeding your snake a rat that is approx. as big around as the widest part of your snake's body. I feed all of my ball pythons every 7 days. Every snake will be different, of course, but my recommendation is to start there and adjust as needed. This is basically the same as the feeding guidelines already posted, but if you can't measure in grams you can at least measure by visually comparing size. It doesn't have to be perfect - some BPs will even take prey that is slightly larger, some prefer a smaller prey item. Or you could get really lucky like me and have one that likes a large rat one one week and a medium one the next. (She's very picky.)

[Bogertophis]

I agree it's all about the size of the snake & they can be hard to measure (or weigh, if you don't have a good gram scale), so I also judge their prey size by the
size of their unfed mid-body, feeding prey that is slightly narrower than the snake. Keep in mind that slight underfeeding is healthier for them than slight over-
feeding, & also that many snakes being fed on the large side are more likely to be picky eaters & want to skip some meals, which tends to frustrate & annoy most
keepers.

Feeding every 10 days sounds pretty reasonable to me, but as previously mentioned, many snakes stay in "feed mode" for hours or few days, especially in warm
weather; also, that young adult female BPs tend to have more appetite than male BPs, instinctivly to size up for breeding, so if this continues you might want to
feed meals slightly closer together, or slightly larger in size. But it's certainly not an "emergency", & whatever you do, don't give in & feed another prey item on
top of a meal that's partly digested...unless you want to see your snake regurgitate & waste both items & then have to with-hold food for a few weeks while they
replenish their digestive enzymes adequately (so that another regurge doesn't occur).

Short answer: don't worry about it

[Stewart_Reptiles]

You should be feeding your snake a rat that is approx. as big around as the widest part of your snake's body

Not the best advice considering that you do not know the size of the snake in question and no feeding a prey equal the girth size of a snake is not the same as the guideline provided above.

If you had a 4000 grams snakes which I assume you do not have you would based on your advise feed a 300/350 grams rat which is way too big and will only make the animal sluggish and more inconsitant when it comes to feeding.

[Jibler]

Thanks for all the advice guys this has to be the most helpful forum I have been on for anything so glad I found it

[redpandakitty]

Not the best advice...

Feeding a prey item approximately as large as the widest part of your snake is pretty standard advice, given by both hobbyists and large breeders. I have many snakes that I also use this rule of thumb with and mine are all healthy, their weights are good for their length, and all eat on regular schedules.

I was merely trying to offer some advice to someone who sounded new to ball pythons and probably didn't have a gram scale where they could weigh both their snake and their prey item to make sure they get the prey sized up exactly right. This is not an exact science and all snakes are different, which I already said.

I'm curious as to why you chose to single out my comment regarding size when someone else posted the same advice?

[Stewart_Reptiles]

Feeding a prey item approximately as large as the widest part of your snake is pretty standard advice, given by both hobbyists and large breeders. I have many snakes that I also use this rule of thumb with and mine are all healthy, their weights are good for their length, and all eat on regular schedules.

I was merely trying to offer some advice to someone who sounded new to ball pythons and probably didn't have a gram scale where they could weigh both their snake and their prey item to make sure they get the prey sized up exactly right. This is not an exact science and all snakes are different, which I already said.

I'm curious as to why you chose to single out my comment regarding size when someone else posted the same advice?

It is a bad advice this is recommended for hatchlings not animals that are two years old the animal could be 2000 grams for all you know so that would be overfeeding the animal. (Which means fast, possible fatty liver issue etc)

Same thing people will recommend 10% or 15% rule yet again you can only go by that for hatchlings, animals grow, metabolism changes etc.

So yes it is an advice that is often given but in certain cases only it does not apply to all which is why it cannot be repeated in all circumtances either.