Feeding ball python for the first time, refused?

Exactly 7 days ago I got my little girl. 6 months old. She’s adjusted well, in fact she hides almost all the time lol. I offered her a small mouse for the first time tonight, she showed no interest and actually stayed in her hide. I was wondering if it’s okay to leave the mouse outside the hide for an hour or so to see if she’ll take it. I’d also be worried she may ingest some of the cypress mulch substrate. Any suggestions on this? Ive warmed the mouse up and I’d hate to waste it. Come to think of it I think she was fed on rats before I got her, so I’m wondering if that’s my issue. Her temps and humidity are perfect also. (Although she’s almost always in her hide on the cooler side)
thanks! :)

It would be perfectly fine to leave the mouse out for an hour. If she doesn't eat it you should throw it away though... Some ball pythons like being left alone to eat. It's okay if she eats a little bit of substrate, but if you're concerned you can put the mouse on something like a paper towel or piece of plastic inside the enclosure.

It should be okay to leave overnight. Some BPs don't eat when you're watching.

I believe she will be okay if she ingests a little cypress mulch. If you're really worried, you can but it down on a paper plate or towel, although she might just drag it off.

If she was fed on rats before, I would stick with rats honestly lol.
I just had hard time switching from mouse to rat so if she will take rats, go for it!

Don't leave prey items on paper towels...it takes very little moisture for a paper towel to stick to the rodent, & then be ingested by the snake. That can result in
a health issue (serious blockage) as snakes cannot digest paper towels. It's best they don't swallow any substrate: even though a little may not hurt, & probably
happens in the wild, it's easy to avoid with our pets by putting prey on something that functions safely as a "plate", such as a paper plate, a plastic food container
lid, even a piece of cardboard.

Mice & rats smell & presumably taste quite different. Some snakes automatically like both, but others take some persuading to switch from one to the other. That's
likely what your problem was.

Some snakes need more than a week of settling in before they'll feed also. Do you know when she ate last, Shadowy? She might even be going into a shed.
(I assume you know not to handle a new snake until it's feeding reliably -preferably 3 times- at normal intervals.) Just be patient & try not to worry.
And by the way...:welcome:

They can eat a little substrate, no need to worry. They can digest almost anything, and swallow objects larger than their own girth. No need to worry about that.


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Quote:

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Originally Posted by Bogertophis

Don't leave prey items on paper towels...it takes very little moisture for a paper towel to stick to the rodent, & then be ingested by the snake. That can result in
a health issue (serious blockage) as snakes cannot digest paper towels.
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Nice catch! You beat me to it!

Leaving prey on paper towels = no
Leaving prey on cardboard, paper plate, plastic lid, etc... = ok

Quote:

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Originally Posted by craigafrechette

Nice catch! You beat me to it!

Leaving prey on paper towels = no
Leaving prey on cardboard, paper plate, plastic lid, etc... = ok

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Hey, hey, we're a team here. :cool:

Need to stick with rats if that is what she was feeding on before. Just wondering why you'd change to mice?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by MR Snakes

Need to stick with rats if that is what she was feeding on before. Just wondering why you'd change to mice?

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I honestly didn’t even think about it when I ordered from the supplier. I’ll probably order rats and resell the frozen mice I already have. I was not able to successfully get her to take the mouse last night.