Baby snake died feeding...

[Shazu]

Two weeks ago, my girlfriend found baby balls for sale, and bought two. She hid one from me and gave it to me as a graduation present two days ago. They where not taking to eating fuzzies so I suggested feeding baby mice. I fed her snake, which I believe was female. She hit and devoured the mouse within about fifteen minutes. She seemed fine as I returned her to her tank, the next evening we found her dead. She was about seven to nine inches long, and I fed her the smallest mouse I could find. Although her brother, whom remains fine, is slightly longer, I am afraid to feed him a live mouse, and will continue trying with fuzzies. I am really baffled by her death, and am seeking answers. I feel perhaps I was undereducated to the care of the Royal Pythons. I cannot seem to find any information on babies dying from feeding. Can anyone offer any information or suggestions? Was I wrong to feed her a live mouse so young?

[joepythons]

Could you please change your word size.I am unable to read it without my eyes crossing.Would like to help you out ,just unable to read what is going on.

[Nate]

Ditto what joe said...only i was barely able to read it.

I would suggest taking both snakes to a vet. It may cost money, but pets do that some times. Have the vet do whatever procedure necessary to determine the cause of death, and then have him do a check up on the one that appears to be OK. Just because he appears to be OK does not mean he is.

If he dies too then you need to get in touch with the people who sold them to you and let them know the situation.

[Shazu]

I actually buried her last night, but I suppose I could retrieve her. It would seem to me there is a direct correlation of her death and feeding. Is it possible that the mouse was too big and caused internal damage? The mouse was not much bigger than a fuzzy, but she seemed to be perfectly healthy. Is this a common occurrence or has anyone heard of something like this before?

[wolfy-hound]

I would bet it has nothing to do with the feeding. What setup are you keeping them in?
Wolfy

[JLC]

It's extremely likely the little one would have died anyhow, whether you fed it or not. Ball pythons found in pet stores are usually imported from Africa and have been exposed to who-knows-whatall parasites...as well as the tremendous stress of being shipped overseas with hundreds of others...tossed into a petstore holding tank...and then taken home to yet another new place to live. And what conditions was it being kept in while it was "hidden?"


There's just so many reasons it could have died, and if it ate the mouse, then I doubt it was too big.

I would highly recommend taking the other bp to a vet to have tests run for parasites or possible infections....and read our caresheet here to make sure its set up in an optimum environment...

http://www.ball-pythons.net/modules....warticle&id=52

Good luck with it. Sorry about the wee one!

[Freakie_frog]

It's extremely likely the little one would have died anyhow, whether you fed it or not. Ball pythons found in pet stores are usually imported from Africa and have been exposed to who-knows-whatall parasites...as well as the tremendous stress of being shipped overseas with hundreds of others...tossed into a petstore holding tank...and then taken home to yet another new place to live. And what conditions was it being kept in while it was "hidden?"


There's just so many reasons it could have died, and if it ate the mouse, then I doubt it was too big.

I would highly recommend taking the other bp to a vet to have tests run for parasites or possible infections....and read our caresheet here to make sure its set up in an optimum environment...

http://www.ball-pythons.net/modules....warticle&id=52

Good luck with it. Sorry about the wee one!

Agreed the snake was more than likely ill to start with and the stress of moving and eating and everything could have just pushed it over the edge.

i am sorry to hear that you lost one of your friends and wish you the best of luck on the other.

Quick word of advice check out the Care sheet on this sight it will be of great help on your other snake. Also I would take your current snake to the vet to make sure that that little guys is on the up and up also

[Shazu]

I am not sure the exact tank size, as I bought it several years ago and I'm not that familiar with tank sizes. Id swear it is a thirty gallon, but girly says it’s about eight. Its approximately a foot tall by a foot deep, and three feet long. It’s a reptile tank with a slide screen top. I believe the substrate is crushed walnut. There is a large pool, one small half log Hide, a large climbing type apparatus that resembles a hand with its fingers bent. There is an under tank heater, and a reptile light above.

[Sapphire7]

Two weeks ago, my girlfriend found baby balls for sale, and bought two. She hid one from me and gave it to me as a graduation present two days ago. They where not taking to eating fuzzies so I suggested feeding baby mice. I fed her snake, which I believe was female. She hit and devoured the mouse within about fifteen minutes. She seemed fine as I returned her to her tank, the next evening we found her dead. She was about seven to nine inches long, and I fed her the smallest mouse I could find. Although her brother, whom remains fine, is slightly longer, I am afraid to feed him a live mouse, and will continue trying with fuzzies. I am really baffled by her death, and am seeking answers. I feel perhaps I was undereducated to the care of the Royal Pythons. I cannot seem to find any information on babies dying from feeding. Can anyone offer any information or suggestions? Was I wrong to feed her a live mouse so young?

7-9 inches long?!?!?! That must've been a dwarf Bp because I've never seen them that small. around 14-16 inches but never 7!!!:eek: Im so sorry about her death. Maybe its stress? And you probably ask why. Well when housing snakes, you should always house them alone. Or it will stress them out. Specially if you feed them together. And for newborn Bp's moving them out of their tub/tank can cause stress. I fed my Snakey inside his tub when he was littl ebut as he grew (around 20-30 inches, I fed outside his tank. So dont house them together, plz! Also another thing is, some babies just dont make it in the wild, thats why they will make food for other animals to eat.

[jglass38]

Please stop using crushed walnut. It is known to cause problems when ingested and if you fed the snake in the enclosure, it could definitely have ingested some during feeding. It has sharp little edges that can cause internal lacerations and impaction. Sorry you had to go through this and since parasites are still a very real possibility with the other one, I suggest you get it to a vet immediately.

Best of luck!