Is there such thing as overfeeding your ball pythons?

If overfeeding hurts them then wouldn't the opposite hurt them too, (not eating)? They seem fine after fasting for months on end lol.

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Originally Posted by Mike41793

Comparing snakes to horses, dogs and people, is like comparing lollipops to bath tubs. If you wanna take that stance, then i'll counter with: well people have different metabolisms, why can't snakes? Same goes for dogs. Not every GSD/retriever/apbt grows EXACTLY the same. My hypo is almost twice the size of my lesser even tho i got them at the same time. Shes not fat by any means and my lesser isn't skinny by any means. We're talking about only bp's here, other species are different.

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You misunderstand.

I'm not saying that all snakes should eat the same I'm saying stick to the proper size for that snake. Sure a larger faster growing snake will need a larger meal than its smaller sibling but it does not require a double meal.

I bring up the horses, dogs, and people because they can all suffer ill effects from over eating. A horse can founder, a dog can bloat. While the ball isn't going to have those issues it could regurg and over time become obese and have liver issues among other things.

I stand by a snake can be overfed.

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Originally Posted by Mike41793

If overfeeding hurts them then wouldn't the opposite hurt them too, (not eating)? They seem fine after fasting for months on end lol.

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Giving either situation enough time they both can cause death.

I don't see the issue in feeding her two if shell take them.

It'd be different if you're shoving them down her throat.

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Originally Posted by KMG

You misunderstand.

I'm not saying that all snakes should eat the same I'm saying stick to the proper size for that snake. Sure a larger faster growing snake will need a larger meal than its smaller sibling but it does not require a double meal.

I bring up the horses, dogs, and people because they can all suffer ill effects from over eating. A horse can founder, a dog can bloat. While the ball isn't going to have those issues it could regurg and over time become obese and have liver issues among other things.

I stand by a snake can be overfed.

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Any examples of a ball regurging because of overfeeding?

You keep saying "snake". I agree, you can over feed snakes. I do not believe its possible (in 99% of cases) to over feed a ball python.

Do you have any examples of breeding size ball pythons starving themselves to death? Or any examples of a snake eating itself to death?

You give an example of feeding only once a week as an appropriate schedule. When it comes to balls, schedules are only for the keepers, imo.

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Originally Posted by Mike41793

Any examples of a ball regurging because of overfeeding?

You keep saying "snake". I agree, you can over feed snakes. I do not believe its possible (in 99% of cases) to over feed a ball python.

Do you have any examples of breeding size ball pythons starving themselves to death? Or any examples of a snake eating itself to death?

You give an example of feeding only once a week as an appropriate schedule. When it comes to balls, schedules are only for the keepers, imo.

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Why you think you can over feed a snake but not a ball is confusing.

I do not have any examples. It is fact that if a living creature does not eat it will eventually die. Then on the flip side overeating which leads to obesity and other health issues will cause a earlier death than a healthy specimen of the same age. The time this may take could be a long time but the cause of death is still food related.

I'm not saying is common or a growing problem. I'm just saying it is possible.

Trying to get a mature ball alittle heavy for breeding is very different than trying to get a immature ball big enough to breed before they should.

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Originally Posted by KMG

Why you think you can over feed a snake but not a ball is confusing.

I do not have any examples. It is fact that if a living creature does not eat it will eventually die. Then on the flip side overeating which leads to obesity and other health issues will cause a earlier death than a healthy specimen of the same age. The time this may take could be a long time but the cause of death is still food related.

I'm not saying is common or a growing problem. I'm just saying it is possible.

Trying to get a mature ball alittle heavy for breeding is very different than trying to get a immature ball big enough to breed before they should.

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They all have different metabolisms. You mentioned a gtp before. Most people only feed them like every 3 weeks, right? Then you have cody talking retics, saying they get a medium rat every 4 days lol. Balls, respectively, have their own metabolisms too. And with the category of ball pythons, they all have their own individual metabolisms.

Well yea... Eventually the monkey will type out romeo and juliet... If you don't have any examples then its safe to assume it barely ever happens. Maybe its never happened if there aren't any examples?

Ok, "possible". It's also "possible" i could hook up with Kate Upton. Both situations have such a minuscule chance of happening that the point is moot, imo. Why bother mentioning it if you can't even prove its ever happened? Like i said, maybe it hasn't.

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Originally Posted by Mike41793

They all have different metabolisms. You mentioned a gtp before. Most people only feed them like every 3 weeks, right? Then you have cody talking retics, saying they get a medium rat every 4 days lol. Balls, respectively, have their own metabolisms too. And with the category of ball pythons, they all have their own individual metabolisms.

Well yea... Eventually the monkey will type out romeo and juliet... If you don't have any examples then its safe to assume it barely ever happens. Maybe its never happened if there aren't any examples?

Ok, "possible". It's also "possible" i could hook up with Kate Upton. Both situations have such a minuscule chance of happening that the point is moot, imo. Why bother mentioning it if you can't even prove its ever happened? Like i said, maybe it hasn't.

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Prove it wrong. Feed your ball any time it will take food and offer as many as it will take each time. Let's see what happens.

I don't know of any examples but I also am not wasting my time looking. Do you know of anybody that has been feeding a ball to much that is living a long healthy life?

Anything can be over fed. It does not matter how big the meal has to be or how often its given, there is always a point that is to much.

Well i would, but i don't think it'd be fair to start with snakes that aren't babies. If you think it would work still, let me know though. I'm willing to try it for awhile. Should i try it with my most aggressive eater or my least aggressive eater? My cinny female hasn't eaten since March 25th, when do you think she'll starve to death?

I think our definitions of "too much" just differ lol. I'm not saying offer your snake food everyday. I'm saying if you feed once a week, or every 5 days, then offering as many rats as the ball will take in that feeding won't hurt it. I'm more than willing to try this if you can think of a way for it to be done.

I'm not trying to tell you you're wrong with any of this, i hope its not coming across like that lol. I'm just opinionated and disagree with you. Just debating here, not a personal attack or anything. :gj: