My ball python isn't eating

I got him on february and he only weighed 198 grams and he was 6 months old which i found to be underweight ( not an expert though so am not sure). As a result i started feeding him one mice every five days the first week and then 2 19 grams adult mice after. He is now 319 grams but hasnt eaten in 11 days. I also feed him a small rat that last time i feed him. It was the first time he ate a rat but he took it within 10 minutes. My humidity is good and so are my temperatures. The only thing i dont have is 2 identical hides. I have 2 hides but not identical. I also covered some of his tub with duck tape so he cannot see me and get stressed. I know he is hungry because he roams around at night exactly like he did previously on his feeding days. I have tried offering both mice and rat and he literally passes right by them. But he looks hungry. What can i do?

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Originally Posted by Fernando Fernandez

I got him on february and he only weighed 198 grams and he was 6 months old which i found to be underweight ( not an expert though so am not sure). As a result i started feeding him one mice every five days the first week and then 2 19 grams adult mice after. He is now 319 grams but hasnt eaten in 11 days. I also feed him a small rat that last time i feed him. It was the first time he ate a rat but he took it within 10 minutes. My humidity is good and so are my temperatures. The only thing i dont have is 2 identical hides. I have 2 hides but not identical. I also covered some of his tub with duck tape so he cannot see me and get stressed. I know he is hungry because he roams around at night exactly like he did previously on his feeding days. I have tried offering both mice and rat and he literally passes right by them. But he looks hungry. What can i do?

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This question is asked here 5 times or more per week.

I'm not at all concerned about a 300+ gram snake not eating for 11 days.

You do realize that depending on when you got him in February he has gained 125 ish grams or over 50% of his body weight in 6-10 weeks depending on when you got him.

Skip the feeding and just try again next time.

My never fail trick is that I wait for 3 consecutive nights of roaming around and hunting. Every night it will start earlier and end later, so if you note what time they give up the hunt on the second night, I try to feed mine an hour ahead of that as he is normally out quite early on day 3.

Snakes in captivity are over fed, snakes in captivity are obese. So, you're doing just fine.

Same thing I say to everyone. Don't be upset when the snake doesn't eat on your schedule.

Thanks!! I know the question is asked a lot is just that i didn't think i woud happen to me. I was just getting a little stressed because he lasted hours out roaming at night. Especially yesterday. But I'll see if your trick works. Thanks again.

Wait another week and try again and then wait another week then try again. Its way to early to be worrying a lot. Dont try feeding every day. If refuses wait until next feeding day. I also wouldnt keep switching back and forth between rats and mice. Have you tried rats any of the times he has refused? If not then maybe he is refusing the mice bc he wants rats. My male would only eat once every 2-3 weeks. Now he has ate the last 3 feeding days. I always use to feed at night when he was out and someone suggested I try feeding during the day. So it was somewhere between .noon and 2 and I shut off his light and thawed mouse and heated it up with his cage door open blowing the rat smell in there and then I would poke the rats head into his hide making sure I wasn't touching him and he ate them like that 2 times, this last time as I was heating the rat he came half way out of his hide and waited for his meal. If you feed at night try during the day just make sure you turn lights off and if you feed during the day try at night. Does your snake use both hot and cold hide? I didn't have matching hides and my snake only used cold hide but I bought matching hides from reptile basics and he uses both. Something you may want to look into.

I tried using rats and mice and he rejected both. My snake only uses the cold hide. But I am going to try to feed him on the afternoon.

11 days is nothing. Don't even worry. And don't offer food too often---this can put them off feed for some reason. Wait at least 3 days before offering again.