Ball python refusing food behavior?

Hello,
(Eating f/t rat)
My male ball python at 220g seems to have some pattern when refusing to eat.. When I offer when he is out of his hide, he does smell the rat and gets close to the rat but does not eat and just avoids it.
However, when he is in the hide and I offer the rat, he comes out and strikes it right away. When he does not eat, he just does not eat that day, even if I try later on when he is in his hide. Do you guys think that is his refusing pattern? I feed him at the same time of the day, same method. Anyone else's snake does this? I don't get his behavior at all..
From now, I will try to not feed when he is out but wait until he is in his hide doing nothing.. he ends up eating every 2 weeks when he should be eating every 1 week and gaining some weight lol.

Many snakes feel braver (to strike & grab prey) when in their hide...this is typical ambush behavior that occurs in the wild too. If he only wants to eat
every 2 weeks, I'd take his word for it & only offer every 2 weeks.

Well they can't talk so nobody knows for sure, but they are prone to ignoring, or what I perceive as ignoring. For all their amazing gifts, I don't believe vision is one of them. I kinda think my guy is virtually blind. I can't tell you how many times I
have run back into kitchen to reheat the meal. He almost always eventually takes it. I prefer it when he's in the hide but when he's out that signals he's "starving" and I best be ready for a flying BP. I'm guessing the are about 10 variables that make a perfect feed. And if you hit on 3 or 4 you'll have success. So to make a long story short, my answer is no clue. I just know when your BP refuses, your not meeting enough variables and that could be no fault of your own. Every 2 weeks is enough so no worries.

I've got a fussy gal at home myself. I may have finally figured out her quirks enough to get her consistant. Maybe.... :please:

As long as the weight is consistent and his body tone looks good I wouldn't worry about the two week schedule at all. With luck, once he builds up some confidence he'll start a weekly schedule for you and get a bit of a growth spurt going.

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Originally Posted by Bogertophis

Many snakes feel braver (to strike & grab prey) when in their hide...this is typical ambush behavior that occurs in the wild too. If he only wants to eat
every 2 weeks, I'd take his word for it & only offer every 2 weeks.

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Perfect post in my opinion !
Took the words out of my mouth :)
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To the other guy .. Royals are nocturnal like many other snakes so ONLY offer food in the evenings , ideally in dim lighting .

Wait until he's 'settled' under his hide and dangle the WARM mouse at the hide entrance - he will grab and eat it in the hide . You warm the mouse with a hairdryer and offer it IMMEDIATELY whilst it's still warm .

Also if it won't eat every week as two of mine won't .. offer every 10 days ..


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Originally Posted by Zincubus

Perfect post in my opinion !
Took the words out of my mouth :)
~~~<<<

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"Great minds think alike..." :rofl:

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Originally Posted by SMTHook

... For all their amazing gifts, I don't believe vision is one of them. I kinda think my guy is virtually blind....

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You are correct, or at least partly: some kinds of snakes do have better visual skills than others, but many of our pets do NOT rely on vision for anything beyond
getting their attention. Movement to them = prey, they don't identify beyond that, and new keepers that don't understand that are put off (to say the least) when
their snake chases their own motion thru the glass/plexi as if THEY themselves are on the menu. But it's normal...snakes use scent & even touch to make accurate
assessments, and some "lucky ones" have heat-sensing pits too. It's our job (assuming we want to be successful keepers) to communicate with our pets in THEIR
terms, not ours. In other words, use their best senses to our advantage. (Example- "hook training" uses their sense of touch, so we don't get bit) When we do that,
not only is it easier to deal with our snakes, but they also are less stressed- with the right signals, they can understand what's going on.