What size rat

Ginger is enjoying a live small rat every week. She is 48" long and weighs about 1400 grams. She's was hatched Sept. 2014.

When do I raise her up to medium? They look so large when compared to her..... It's hard for me to judge when I compare the width of the rat to her width.

Also, can I feed her twice a week, or should I adhere to the one rat per week plan? She looks thin to me...




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She's not thin at all. I am surprised you even have a late 2014 female at 1400g. That is big for her age.

Rule of thumb is to feed your snake prey roughly around the same size of the fastest part of your snake's girth. If a medium rat is too big, and a small rat is too small, try to find an in between if at all possible. Or continue to feed her once a week on small rats.

Wow yeah, dang that's a big girl! My babies are late September and October hatches and they're at about 400 and 350 respectively. Never missed a meal even!

You could totally stick with the small rat a week if she seems full and happy that way. Ball pythons are more consistent feeders when fed smaller meals more often. If you do bump her up to mediums, dropping the feeding to ever 10-14 days would probably be a good idea.

My bad, I'm so stupid.......it was 2013, not 2014. She'll be 2 this September


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Originally Posted by pbyeerts

My bad, I'm so stupid.......it was 2013, not 2014. She'll be 2 this September


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That is still big... my biggest 2 year old female (may 2013) is only 1011g. I know all ball pythons grow differently, but I still think that may be a bit big. I would still stick to the small rat or what ever you can get that is the size of her girth.

That girl can go up a size. Live rodents "shrink" a bit when they aren't physiologically active anymore. Best to get the largest meals possible into her while you can, just in case she goes off feed for a bit sometime.

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Originally Posted by JoshSloane

That girl can go up a size. Live rodents "shrink" a bit when they aren't physiologically active anymore. Best to get the largest meals possible into her while you can, just in case she goes off feed for a bit sometime.

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I have to disagree with this. Feeding them consistently is one of the best ways to keep them from going off of feed.

To OP: Your girl looks perfectly fine to me. Not in the least bit skinny. You got nothin to worry about. No need to feed her more than once a week, for sure.