Older ball pythons. General question

Thanks for the responses.

I think at this point I'll definitely keep him on small rats. He's always been good with mediums, but the last 6 months he has turned his nose up to more than a few. The smalls go down easy for him. I may move him to a twice a month feed too (instead of every 7 days). He doesn't poop nearly as often these days, so stretching out his meals will give his digestion a break. I do monitor his weight monthly. He's just off of a 7 week fast, and still growing and gaining a little weight, so... A diet won't hurt for sure :)

Thanks for the tips and compliments. He's an awesome snake, docile, easy going...a wonderful pet. Looking forward to caring for him for years to come :)

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Originally Posted by zina10

I see people getting animals that may very well outlive them, and they don't give a second thought about where they will end up ..

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I totally agree. In my twenties when I got this snake I really didn't consider it myself, but over the last 10 years I realized I wanted more snakes and with their longevity you really have to think long term. I now have another ball python (yearling) and a young jungle carpet python. I know there's a possibility that they can outlive me at this point, or that in my 70s (20 + years from now) I just might not be able to provide the care they need.

I think everyone that owns snakes, turtles, parrots, etc... Needs to have a plan for when they can no longer care for their animals. I hate to imagine my pets going to a shelter, or winding up going on Craigslist or something. A good home for my pets, should they need it is very important to me.

Lucky for me I have a great friend that loves snakes...that's younger than me lol Although, he's always hoping my jungle carpet bites me lol so I'm tempted to get something like a cribo or some other hyper aggressive snake just to punish him haha just kidding.

Wonderful job caring for that beeper! It's so nice to hear!

The few snakes I've had that were quite elderly did show some general signs of 'old age' and eventually I had them euthanized as the quality of life just wasn't there any longer. My old corn started getting RIs constantly. Vet just said his immune system was failing due to age. My old boa, she went blind for a few years and then eventually started going off feed and getting lethargic. Once she started to seriously drop weight the vet put her down as I didn't want her to suffer. Others are like what people had said, they are fine one day and dead the next. That's my limited experience at least.

I wish you and yours many continued happy years, well done!