TINY ball python!

Hello all,
Well my bf's snake came today, she is half the weight that was advertised and seems very weak and skinny. She weighs 35g! The seller insists that she ate last Sunday and that she has never passed up a meal, but I do not believe him! She is TINY. I seriously wonder if she has ever eaten anything at all! So I need advice for helping to get her to eat. She only came today and I put a mouse pinkie in with her but she hid from it. A hopper seems way too big. I understand she might be stressed from traveling and that could be causing her to not want to eat, but I don't know... I think she doesn't eat!

I usually wait at least a week before offering food, especially for a newborn. How old is it? The size may be okay if it doesn't look emaciated. For now, I would just make sure it's hydrated and leave it be with proper temps for a week, then offer food. After that, you'll know if it is eating or if you're going to need to do something to help it.

What do you mean "she seems very weak," is she not active at all?

Also, I'd keep all your conversations with the person you bought it from. And ask for any feeding, birth, and weight records from the seller.

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Originally Posted by bioteacher

What do you mean "she seems very weak," is she not active at all?

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She is active. What I mean by that is she looks like she has no muscle mass. Her skin is somewhat loose, and the photos we were sent had her looking much more plump

35 grams is pretty small for being a snake that "never passes up a meal". For reference, our 3 albino/het hatchlings that are so new they haven't had their first shed or an opportunity for a first meal, weigh 67, 68, and 70 grams. Our smallest hatchlings have been between 40 and 50 grams. To add... each of our hatchlings that become strong feeders, double in size very very quickly.

My assumption, as obviously I don't know, is that the snake you purchased was either a tiny runty record settingly small hatchling and it has been eating fine to get to where it is now, or more likely, the person who sold it has not been entirely honest about her age / feeding habits.

I second what was said above however. Make sure your husbandry is spot on, plenty of humidity for that age, and give her a week to settle in before feeding or even attempting to touch her.

Can you post pictures on here so we can see her?

Not sure who you bought this animal from however this animal should have not been up for sale to start with. BP generally hatch at 60/70 grams and even than an animal that is not an established feeded could be a nightmare for a new owner so you can imagine when it's a runt that is not well established.

I would personally return the animal.

If you decide to keep this snake it is very important that the animal is house in nothing larger than a 6 quarts tub with aspen as bedding.

Wait 2 to 3 days (NO HANDLING) and place your snake in a brown paper bag and place a live fuzzy (not pinkie) mouse in the bag with the snake.

Leave the two of them together for several hours (simply place the closed bag back in the 6 quarts tub)

I don't know about ball pythons. But 35 grams is small for an adult -mouse- here, so i can imagine that poor thing is very underweight. :(

I hope she does okay!

I am considering returning her, but if I can get her to eat for me I'd rather keep her, if only because she is adorable and I don't think she deserves to be with that seller!

I'll try and get some pics for you guys in a few hours. I want to let her chill for a now since we were messing with her earlier.

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Originally Posted by Deborah

If you decide to keep this snake it is very important that the animal is house in nothing larger than a 6 quarts tub with aspen as bedding.

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May I ask why aspen? At the moment she's in a 15qt tub with coconut chunk bedding. I do have some aspen on hand but I was switching away from it because my other snake gets it in his mouth when eating.

^ I would personally ditch the coco and bypass the aspen and put her on paper towels as substrate and try the live fuzzy with her on that.