New BP not eating? Is that normal?

Hi! I got a BP a 4 days ago and based on the PetSmart feeding chart, it hasn't eaten for 26 days (ever since they had it). I tried feeding the BP yesterday and it did not eat the mice that I offered it (I even left it overnight but it didn't eat it /:). Is this normal? Also, the BP does not seem underweight, as it does not have a sharp spine and its body is not triangular-shaped yet. Any help will be appreciated!

You do not feed a BP within 4 days you let it settle for at least a week with no handling and make sure the needs are met before offering food, my advice if the animal is an hatchling and has not ate in 26 days, do this to a T https://ball-pythons.net/forums/show...-hatchling-101

Im fairly new to this and I'm sure some others will reply who have much more experience than me but........... When you first bring them home you should wait to feed them for a while until they get acclimated to there new environment. They get stressed out very easily. Also when you said you tried to feed a mouse and left it in overnight I hope it wasn't a live mouse. Never leave a live mouse in the enclosure unattended as they can hurt the snake. I am sure people are gonna ask you for the following. What type of enclosure? What are your temp? How are you heating? How are you regulating your heat?


See above post. I was to slow

Not eating right away is not abnormal, however follow the above advice and wait to feed/touch/change hides etc. Also, petsmart is not well known for their 'healthy' animals. Most are underfed, have parasites, are ill, and are highly stressed. I know that my local shops feed pinky mice, which the snake may not even realize is food. Once its settled in, get a weight so you know what size prey to buy. Also, if the refusal continues it could very easily be husbandry related, so a description of your set up will help.

Also is the same petsmart that sold you the very neurologic sick snake? I really hope you threw out everything possible and disinfected the rest thoroughly before getting this new one.

Deborah is quick and on top of things as always! :)
Follow that guide and you should be good. If the little one still doesn't eat for any reason, remember you have that 14 days. Please bring it back if it won't eat on day 13.


But Uggg.... I'm so frustrated that this store isn't doing anything right for you.
They should not have sold that snake to you, or the one before that. It's absolutely nothing that you have done. They are just not following the proper care for the animals there. I'd be tempted to contact the district manager or corporate office and make a complaint if I was in your shoes. Though they did give you a copy of the feeding chart so that's at least a plus. 9_9
Petsmart is supposed to move a snake that hasn't eaten for 14 days from the floor into an isolation room where it is left alone for the week. This means no opening of the cage, just eyeballing if the snake is well and topping off water. If it still won't eat, a vet visit should have happened.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by DPlant

Hi! I got a BP a 4 days ago and based on the PetSmart feeding chart, it hasn't eaten for 26 days (ever since they had it). I tried feeding the BP yesterday and it did not eat the mice that I offered it (I even left it overnight but it didn't eat it /:). Is this normal? Also, the BP does not seem underweight, as it does not have a sharp spine and its body is not triangular-shaped yet. Any help will be appreciated!

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You're a beginning snake-keeper, right? Besides the fact that the store should not have sold a snake that isn't eating, why on earth did you buy (or exchange for) one
that has no current record of successful feeding? This is sadly setting you up for failure, or at least a MUCH more difficult experience. :confusd:

Personally, I'd have insisted NOT on an exchange for the prior sick BP, but a full refund of my money, and I'd NOT have gotten another snake from that store for
at least a year IF their methods had improved significantly & probably not even then. I understand that you are eager to have a pet ball python, but you need a
healthy snake to start with, and you need to follow the care guidelines* given here by experienced folks who know what they're doing. Sadly, just because a store
SELLS snakes does NOT mean they know what they're doing. I'm not bashing pet stores, as some are excellent & we have members here that work in stores, but
you can't assume they'll all equally safe to buy from. Your previous BP from that location was seriously ill or injured, you'll never know which, & that means their
other snakes may be as well, and just not showing it yet.

*such as allowing enough time for a new snake to settle in before trying to feed.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by cfd701

Im fairly new to this and I'm sure some others will reply who have much more experience than me but........... When you first bring them home you should wait to feed them for a while until they get acclimated to there new environment. They get stressed out very easily. Also when you said you tried to feed a mouse and left it in overnight I hope it wasn't a live mouse. Never leave a live mouse in the enclosure unattended as they can hurt the snake. I am sure people are gonna ask you for the following. What type of enclosure? What are your temp? How are you heating? How are you regulating your heat?


See above post. I was to slow

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Yup I fed the BP a F/T mouse. I put the BP in a 10 gallon glass aquarium tank. Also, I use a heat mat, regulated by a thermostat (set to 90 degrees), to heat up the warm side of the cage.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Crowfingers

Not eating right away is not abnormal, however follow the above advice and wait to feed/touch/change hides etc. Also, petsmart is not well known for their 'healthy' animals. Most are underfed, have parasites, are ill, and are highly stressed. I know that my local shops feed pinky mice, which the snake may not even realize is food. Once its settled in, get a weight so you know what size prey to buy. Also, if the refusal continues it could very easily be husbandry related, so a description of your set up will help.

Also is the same petsmart that sold you the very neurologic sick snake? I really hope you threw out everything possible and disinfected the rest thoroughly before getting this new one.

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The BP came from the PetSmart that had the sick snake. I threw out everything that I used for the sick snake and thoroughly disinfected the cage.

Also, here's a description of the setup!
- 10 gallon glass aquarium tank
- water dish big enough for BP to go in, if needed
- heating mat (with thermostat set to 90 degrees F)
- hide
- rocks for climbing
- aspen bedding

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Armiyana

Deborah is quick and on top of things as always! :)
Follow that guide and you should be good. If the little one still doesn't eat for any reason, remember you have that 14 days. Please bring it back if it won't eat on day 13.


But Uggg.... I'm so frustrated that this store isn't doing anything right for you.
They should not have sold that snake to you, or the one before that. It's absolutely nothing that you have done. They are just not following the proper care for the animals there. I'd be tempted to contact the district manager or corporate office and make a complaint if I was in your shoes. Though they did give you a copy of the feeding chart so that's at least a plus. 9_9
Petsmart is supposed to move a snake that hasn't eaten for 14 days from the floor into an isolation room where it is left alone for the week. This means no opening of the cage, just eyeballing if the snake is well and topping off water. If it still won't eat, a vet visit should have happened.

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Thanks! I'll be sure to read through the guide that Deborah has provided. The BP looks very healthy and is acting normally (no head twists or symptoms of neurological damage). I will make sure to leave it alone for a week.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Bogertophis

You're a beginning snake-keeper, right? Besides the fact that the store should not have sold a snake that isn't eating, why on earth did you buy (or exchange for) one
that has no current record of successful feeding? This is sadly setting you up for failure, or at least a MUCH more difficult experience. :confusd:

Personally, I'd have insisted NOT on an exchange for the prior sick BP, but a full refund of my money, and I'd NOT have gotten another snake from that store for
at least a year IF their methods had improved significantly & probably not even then. I understand that you are eager to have a pet ball python, but you need a
healthy snake to start with, and you need to follow the care guidelines* given here by experienced folks who know what they're doing. Sadly, just because a store
SELLS snakes does NOT mean they know what they're doing. I'm not bashing pet stores, as some are excellent & we have members here that work in stores, but
you can't assume they'll all equally safe to buy from. Your previous BP from that location was seriously ill or injured, you'll never know which, & that means their
other snakes may be as well, and just not showing it yet.

*such as allowing enough time for a new snake to settle in before trying to feed.

---

Yes, I am a beginning snake-keeper as this is my first ball python. I'll be sure to leave the snake alone for a week so that it can acclimate to its new environment. Also, I'll bring it back to PetSmart or the vet if the snake continues to not eat or shows signs of sickness. Thank you!