BP help, new withs ball pythons and looking for advice

I've had snakes my whole life, corns, bloods, bloods, they've all been the main snakes I've kept and they've always been healthy and great snakes but I finally decided to purchase a bp on Sunday the 9th of July and today is the 13th and I figured last night he should be acclimated enough to eat so I left the same size frozen thawed rodent in the tank overnight and I woke up to find that it wasn't ate so I took it out and continued with my day, and I got home this evening and thought to try handling and this bp was the calmest and coolest snake I've ever owned, within seconds he was just wrapped around my fingers going hand to hand, and this went on for two minutes when I put him back and I thought to maybe try feeding now with tongs and this snake had an instant mood swing when it saw the dangling rodent, his breathing deepened a very noticeable amount and he curled up into a striking stance but never struck just watched my hands and not even the rodent and I thought maybe I'm stressing him out way too much and I left the rodent in the cooler side just in case he decides to eat,(he hasn't ate since the sixth the seller said) and I went to change water and the whole time I was changing water he struck at me at least five times. I'm not used to this behavior with any of my past animals and I was just wondering if anyone could help, thank you to anyone who takes time to notice, read, or respond to this

a beep will not eat if their husbandry is not correct. husbandry is a huge part of owning a beep.
a striking beep means he's hungry or stressed.
you do not feed a new beep for at least 5 days and you absolutely do NOT handle a new beep until they have successfully eaten a few times.
tell us about your enclosure because this sounds like a husbandry issue: all temp readings, heat sources and thermostats, hides and enclosure sizes.

You should avoid handling on feeding day, especially with a new BP. They're settling in and stressed.

That said, if you haven't sanitized your hands, he is probably smelling the rodent on them. I've found this happens when the rat is not heated in the head above human body temp, they definitely rely on their heat pits to sense prey.

So, if the rodent hasn't been in there for long, this is what I'd recommend:

• Wash your hands.
• Reach in, remove the rodent.
• Take a hair dryer and warm the rodent, focusing specifically on the head. Do this in the same room as the snake and watch their enclosure. They WILL show interest upon heating, if hungry.
• Make sure the head is slightly warm to your fingers, not baked.
• Wash your hands again.
• Offer the rodent in tongs.
• Observe your snake. This is the most important stage, since every snake has different preferences and inclinations toward eating. Yours seems not to be a "leave them alone with it" feeder, so you can try zombie walking the rodent by grasping it behind the neck and making it move like its walking. If this doesn't get a response, dangle it in front of them by the legs, swinging it very slowly. Some need it very gently tapped against their nose.
• As long as the snake is interested and not retreating, just wait for it. (Mine takes a while.)
• If none of the above works and the snake still seems interested in eating...
• Carefully brain the mouse by inserting a thumbtack into its skull.
• This is the go-to to get a BP taking its food if you can't figure out it's feeding preferences just yet. A brained mouse is like candy to a toddler.

After this, please observe your snake and feed them in the method they prefer. Assure your husbandry is spot on. Let them settle in for a week, no handling, before more food.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by hollowlaughter

You should avoid handling on feeding day, especially with a new BP. They're settling in and stressed.

That said, if you haven't sanitized your hands, he is probably smelling the rodent on them. I've found this happens when the rat is not heated in the head above human body temp, they definitely rely on their heat pits to sense prey.

So, if the rodent hasn't been in there for long, this is what I'd recommend:

• Wash your hands.
• Reach in, remove the rodent.
• Take a hair dryer and warm the rodent, focusing specifically on the head. Do this in the same room as the snake and watch their enclosure. They WILL show interest upon heating, if hungry.
• Make sure the head is slightly warm to your fingers, not baked.
• Wash your hands again.
• Offer the rodent in tongs.
• Observe your snake. This is the most important stage, since every snake has different preferences and inclinations toward eating. Yours seems not to be a "leave them alone with it" feeder, so you can try zombie walking the rodent by grasping it behind the neck and making it move like its walking. If this doesn't get a response, dangle it in front of them by the legs, swinging it very slowly. Some need it very gently tapped against their nose.
• As long as the snake is interested and not retreating, just wait for it. (Mine takes a while.)
• If none of the above works and the snake still seems interested in eating...
• Carefully brain the mouse by inserting a thumbtack into its skull.
• This is the go-to to get a BP taking its food if you can't figure out it's feeding preferences just yet. A brained mouse is like candy to a toddler.

After this, please observe your snake and feed them in the method they prefer. Assure your husbandry is spot on. Let them settle in for a week, no handling, before more food.

---

I'd use tongs to take the rodent out and remember to remove the thumbtack. :P

Quote:

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Originally Posted by tttaylorrr

a beep will not eat if their husbandry is not correct. husbandry is a huge part of owning a beep.
a striking beep means he's hungry or stressed.
you do not feed a new beep for at least 5 days and you absolutely do NOT handle a new beep until they have successfully eaten a few times.
tell us about your enclosure because this sounds like a husbandry issue: all temp readings, heat sources and thermostats, hides and enclosure sizes.

---

He's in a 36"x24" enclosure with heat lamp on left side at about 92 and heat pad in the middle that keeps the hide about 88 and then on the cool side on the right it stays around 80-82 it seems. I have three hides left middle and right, all of which he has plenty of space.

Ive always fed new snakes about the forth day in and it's normally an instant hit with them. But like I've said I'm not experienced with bps but what you've said has helped and an update is, I left a new rodent in over night and it was gone when I woke up this morning so I guess he finally was up to it

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by hollowlaughter

You should avoid handling on feeding day, especially with a new BP. They're settling in and stressed.

That said, if you haven't sanitized your hands, he is probably smelling the rodent on them. I've found this happens when the rat is not heated in the head above human body temp, they definitely rely on their heat pits to sense prey.

So, if the rodent hasn't been in there for long, this is what I'd recommend:

• Wash your hands.
• Reach in, remove the rodent.
• Take a hair dryer and warm the rodent, focusing specifically on the head. Do this in the same room as the snake and watch their enclosure. They WILL show interest upon heating, if hungry.
• Make sure the head is slightly warm to your fingers, not baked.
• Wash your hands again.
• Offer the rodent in tongs.
• Observe your snake. This is the most important stage, since every snake has different preferences and inclinations toward eating. Yours seems not to be a "leave them alone with it" feeder, so you can try zombie walking the rodent by grasping it behind the neck and making it move like its walking. If this doesn't get a response, dangle it in front of them by the legs, swinging it very slowly. Some need it very gently tapped against their nose.
• As long as the snake is interested and not retreating, just wait for it. (Mine takes a while.)
• If none of the above works and the snake still seems interested in eating...
• Carefully brain the mouse by inserting a thumbtack into its skull.
• This is the go-to to get a BP taking its food if you can't figure out it's feeding preferences just yet. A brained mouse is like candy to a toddler.

After this, please observe your snake and feed them in the method they prefer. Assure your husbandry is spot on. Let them settle in for a week, no handling, before more food.

---

Mall of your info is brand new to me, most of it anyways and I've never heard of the braining thing but an update, I left a new smaller rodent in over night and it was gone when I woke up, I'm happy about that, but I will definitely remember your recommendations and not just with bp's

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by hollowlaughter

You should avoid handling on feeding day, especially with a new BP. They're settling in and stressed.

That said, if you haven't sanitized your hands, he is probably smelling the rodent on them. I've found this happens when the rat is not heated in the head above human body temp, they definitely rely on their heat pits to sense prey.

So, if the rodent hasn't been in there for long, this is what I'd recommend:

• Wash your hands.
• Reach in, remove the rodent.
• Take a hair dryer and warm the rodent, focusing specifically on the head. Do this in the same room as the snake and watch their enclosure. They WILL show interest upon heating, if hungry.
• Make sure the head is slightly warm to your fingers, not baked.
• Wash your hands again.
• Offer the rodent in tongs.
• Observe your snake. This is the most important stage, since every snake has different preferences and inclinations toward eating. Yours seems not to be a "leave them alone with it" feeder, so you can try zombie walking the rodent by grasping it behind the neck and making it move like its walking. If this doesn't get a response, dangle it in front of them by the legs, swinging it very slowly. Some need it very gently tapped against their nose.
• As long as the snake is interested and not retreating, just wait for it. (Mine takes a while.)
• If none of the above works and the snake still seems interested in eating...
• Carefully brain the mouse by inserting a thumbtack into its skull.
• This is the go-to to get a BP taking its food if you can't figure out it's feeding preferences just yet. A brained mouse is like candy to a toddler.

After this, please observe your snake and feed them in the method they prefer. Assure your husbandry is spot on. Let them settle in for a week, no handling, before more food.

---

all of your info is brand new to me, most of it anyways and I've never heard of the braining thing but an update, I left a new smaller rodent in over night and it was gone when I woke up, I'm happy about that, but I will definitely remember your recommendations and not just with bp's

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Bronson2019

He's in a 36"x24" enclosure with heat lamp on left side at about 92 and heat pad in the middle that keeps the hide about 88 and then on the cool side on the right it stays around 80-82 it seems. I have three hides left middle and right, all of which he has plenty of space.

Ive always fed new snakes about the forth day in and it's normally an instant hit with them. But like I've said I'm not experienced with bps but what you've said has helped and an update is, I left a new rodent in over night and it was gone when I woke up this morning so I guess he finally was up to it

---

awesome! it never hurts to double-check your husbandry, and with beeps you have to check daily at minimum. always make sure to heat up the prey to 100°+ with a focus on the head. the feeding tips outlined above are spot-on, too. one more tip: let the rat thaw in the same room as the snake. they'll smell the rat and get into feed mode and will be more than eager to eat.

my Yellow is a shy feeder: almost 3 years old and he hasn't struck at a rat in over a year, but waits for me to leave it and walk away. they're all different. :)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Bronson2019

all of your info is brand new to me, most of it anyways and I've never heard of the braining thing but an update, I left a new smaller rodent in over night and it was gone when I woke up, I'm happy about that, but I will definitely remember your recommendations and not just with bp's

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Just my experience with BPs, my own and friends and babysat ones. I may not have a ton of snakes since I wanted to be absolutely sure I could ensure care for this animal for 30 yrs, but I have had some experience with a wide variety of other types.

Good, looks like he might be a leave-it-and-go eater for you! Mine refuses to do that so I have to wait it out until he feels like striking since he shows all the "hungry" posture and behavior on feed day but then gets into a staring match with his meal.

Point being, each snake is different. Usually, if you don't know what it takes to get a snake to feed (aka the usual routine for the animal) braining has proven to be a good way in my experience to get them to scoop it right up and be more receptive for you the next time as you try to figure out what works for your specific snake. Don't know if other species go as bonkers as BPs over brained mice, but it helps with them since some of them are champs about eating and some need a... lot of uh, special care at mealtime lol.