supposed to be a ball python

im going to be feeding a rabbit every 2 to 3 weeks correct me if you think this to not enough or to much

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Originally Posted by Pythonfriend

its one of these snakes that get large enough that you seriously should consider putting it on a limited food scedule to keep it from growing too fast.

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Careful with your words. A lot of people who follow this advice end up starving their snakes and neglecting them out of hoping their snake doesn't grow big. What you should do is feed it normally at weekly or biweekly intervals. If you don't want a snake that gets huge, then go and get a ball python or boa constrictor, but if you have a Burm, don't expect anything short of giant.

OP, I hope you know about all the laws (federal and local) in regards to Burms.

im no expert, i mean, i know about ball pythons, not about the really big ones.

whats the current weight? judging from the pictures i would guesstimate you can use large or jumbo frozen thawed rats for quite a while. and if one rat is getting too small, you can feed one, wait 5-10 minutes, and follow up with a second. you can chain several rats together into one meal this way.

as long as thats still possible i would do it. just common sense really, it still looks small for a rabbit. also rabbits are much harder to get and much more expensive and if one rabbit is too much right now, you might get her to grow like a weed.

you really need to make a thread over in the "giant python" section. the formulas and rules of thumb that work for BPs dont work here, and i have no clue how to set up a feed scedule for a giant snake that leads to a happy and healthy snake that grows slowly. BPs just arent giant snakes and you never need more than rats, you need to get people with giant snake experience.

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Originally Posted by pythonminion

Careful with your words. A lot of people who follow this advice end up starving their snakes and neglecting them out of hoping their snake doesn't grow big. What you should do is feed it normally at weekly or biweekly intervals. If you don't want a snake that gets huge, then go and get a ball python or boa constrictor, but if you have a Burm, don't expect anything short of giant.

OP, I hope you know about all the laws (federal and local) in regards to Burms.

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yeah, true, such a scedule really needs to be set up properly by people with real giant snake experience.

i just know its being done successfully by keepers and breeders of retics and burms, breeders even discuss how to make the scedule so that the snake will produce heavy clutches without getting a heavy body too fast. on http://www.youtube.com/user/prehistoricpetstv they talked about it several times when it comes to retics.

EDIT: yes, weekly or biweekly, the question is: how large should the meal be, what weight proportions. maybe 1 big rat a week is fine for now, maybe it already needs 2 per feeding, maybe it will soon require 5, i have no clue. or when to make the switch to rabbits.

alright thanks for ur help ill make section about it

Up until the Lacey Act, my collection was set to revolve around large constrictors...Burms and Boas particularly. I had chosen those two species because I was extremely experienced in the latter due to them being the main species I cared for at the exotic pet store I spent almost 8 years working at. I chose Burms because they interested me and there were many breeders that came to our store who I learned a lot from when they all gathered in a group and started chatting every Wednesday or so. In addition to this, in the past year I have moved to working with Python reticulatus as well. So, with all that in the open, I have to say that one of the main things I was imparted to was that gradual growth came rather naturally with the species, of course that is very subjective...to a Retic owner, seeing a burm jump from around 1.5ft to 7ft in about 10 months time is not much compared to some retics that will flirt with the 10ft mark after month 12; however, a long term gtp keeper would see that and almost $hit a gold brick. The good thing about burms is their heavy feeding response will let you know if you're feeding too little, I also recommend you go ahead and begin hook training the little guy, it'll pay off in the long run. Meal frequency & size? I never got around to asking any of the breeders this, but I will tell you with retics larger meals in weekly frequency seem to produce faster growth, whereas frequent every 5-6 day offerings of moderately sized prey will produce the trade mark length-with-hints-of-muscle beginning to come in that characterizes many young retics as they grow. I always try to learn the animal as an individual and just use the accepted guidelines of husbandry as guidelines not hard facts so do not forget your instincts in the process. He looks like he could take a small rabbit, but some colossal rats should do the job too for awhile too. Good luck, I miss the big guy I had a few years ago.

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Originally Posted by Pythonfriend

i just know its being done successfully by keepers and breeders of retics and burms, breeders even discuss how to make the scedule so that the snake will produce heavy clutches without getting a heavy body too fast. on http://www.youtube.com/user/prehistoricpetstv they talked about it several times when it comes to retics.

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Anyone can stunt their snake's growth if they neglect them enough. You can try the same on a BP and it won't get longer than 3 ft. Retics in specific are programmed to grow if given the chance- they're a prime examples of opportunistic feeders. What they talk about is how to avoid power feeding them so you don't get 20+ foot snakes, but by no means should you feed miniscule amounts expecting to have a small snake. Nonetheless, the snakes they talk about are retics. Retics have a higher metabolism than Burms, which the OP has. When fed too much, Burms will grow extra big and obese, while Retics put more into general and faster growth. (It isn't impossible to make a fat retic though.)

Not rocket science with big snakes. Feed em a meal big enough to leave a bulge but don't stretch scales. For babies once a week, juvies can be pushed to 10 days, sub adults 2 weeks, really large or inactive snakes can be fed every 3 weeks. I wouldn't push much more past that.

The whole "managing a burm/retic/anaconda size" thing is nonsense. Feed them appropriately sized meals when you are supposed to. If you don't want a big snake, don't get one. Dot try to make a chihuahua out of a Great Dane.

Personally I'm not a fan of "power feeding" or "managing the size" methods out there.


I like my Dubstep to go Wop Wop Wop Wop

I have two burmese around 10ft each. We feed them a large rabbit biweekly or so, but it really depends on their behavior. You definitely shouldnt feed it a rabbit a week, IMO thats too much.
Then again, im talking about large rabbits, not bunnies. Theres not an exact science behind it to me, i just base it on observations and it has worked well so far.
I love burmese, but you have to know what youre getting into. Mine are MAYBE 2 and a half to 3 years old. That time will fly by as well. The snake will easily push 15ft, and might get into the early 20's.

Yikes.

I encourage LOTS of research, and talking to breeders or experienced handlers!!

My snakes are still little... I think the corn has hit the 2 ft mark, and the ball is getting close... but that's it. I couldn't imagine going to pick up a ball python, only to find out it's definitely not, and will get MUCH larger!

Best of luck to you!