Longest time it took for your BP to begin eating?

Question out of curiosity... and also out of personally needing these statistics to gauge whether both my BP are just super slow.

Welp, both Cake and Blackout apparently do this thing where they would strike, coil, and then let go. And take about 320940932 years sniffing it and roaming around the tub to decide whether they want to even eat it or lose interest. Translation: 20 minutes to an hour.

What's the longest time it took for your ball python to START eating after the rat/mouse has been placed in the tub or after striking and coiling?

I don't have that issue (yet, knock on wood...), but I have read several people ok here say they have to leave the mouse/rat in the enclousure overnight. So it seems pretty normal for BP to take a while to eat. As long as they are eating at all I think you're good :)

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Yeah. My personal snakes eat immediately, luckily but, some of my brothers breeders that I help care for, they do the same. With 11 other mouths to feed, I can't sit there and make sure they eat. Just leave it with them for a little while. If they don't eat it in 2-3 hours, get rid of it. Well, that's what I do. NEVER LEAVE A SNAKE WITH LIVE MICE OR RATS.

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I had a few that would do that and I would usually leave them alone for up to an hour or so then remove it if uneaten. On occasion I would immediately remove the rat/mouse and reheat it with a hair dryer and try again, this worked quite often. Now that most of mine are bigger my issue is getting the rat in the tub fast enough and not having the snake come half out of the tub to get the rat! Sunday night I fed 9 of mine in under 10 minutes.

My 2008 Bumblebee has gone 11 months this year(for her year off too, to build up size) she ended up laying 6 eggs, i believe from withheld sperm as i didn't pair her, and now finally slamming rats down again, and that was with her showing intresting coiling, striking, but usually over night if not gone i toss out after 3-4 hours latest in morning

I've had some that give the same experience as the OP, some that need to be partially picked up and put back in the tub, and one or two who will refuse at the slightest disturbance. One will actually spit out the meal and refuse if I open her tub too soon.

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Originally Posted by Darkbird

I've had some that give the same experience as the OP, some that need to be partially picked up and put back in the tub, and one or two who will refuse at the slightest disturbance. One will actually spit out the meal and refuse if I open her tub too soon.

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Spit out the meal? Oh dear.. And that's just unfortunate that there are some super sensitive/shy BP like this! It makes it difficult when I want to watch them eat. :rolleyes:

But really though, Cake and Blackout alternately have some sort of problem occur every week during feeding time. Cake just struck and coiled a mouse yesterday, making it bleed... and then decided that he didn't want to eat it anymore. .___. Oh these snakes.

So I ended up offering the bloody mouse to a hungry Blackout, who ate it in a minute.

Hi I need help... I bought a juvenile ball python about 11 days ago and it refuses to eat!! I know it was raised on frozen mice... Should I offer it a live rodent?? I make sure that the mouse is completely unfrozen etc... And I read that the animal could be stressed due to the change etc.. It's a very social snake... But I'm getting nervous because its not eating these thawed mice..

except for her first 2 feeds, my baby bp has had no problems. she strikes her prey in less than 10 seconds of food reaching her feeding tub. :gj: