Advice Please

Hello everyone! I am new to this site! Hope I am posting in the right area.

I just bought an adult BP from someone off of facebook. He said he has had him for 20 years. I know according to stats the snake may only live awhile - that's not the question :colbert:

He told me he only fed it 2 mice once a month, and only live mice (he said if I thunk the mice it won't eat them). I want to feed it more often and feed it f/t. If it is that old, can I teach it to eat something different? And will it hurt it to start eating more often. Poor thing.

Welcome to the forums!

Wow, that's an old snake! 20 years is not unheard of though. But I would definitely say feed it larger meals, and f/t. Aim for something that is about the size of his widest point every 3 weeks (probably something like a medium rat), but start out easing him into larger food. Ball pythons can be picky about feeding changes, so take it slow. If I were you I'd start out by getting him to take a few f/t mice, then after a little while switching to f/t weanling rats, then small rats, then medium rats (or whatever looks like it's an appropriate size). The key is to take it slowly. Overfeeding is more dangerous than underfeeding.

It may take f/t, it may not; it may take rats, but I wouldn't hold my breath...doesn't hurt to try.

You can definitely feed it more often, though I wouldn't suggest letting it slam 3-4 mice a week right away. At that age, all the snake really needs is maintenance feeding to thrive- as long as it's not dreadfully thin. Maybe try to get it on an every other week feeding schedule to start, if it works for a while, try to bump it up to every 11-12 days or so. Good luck, nice to see you taking on an older snake...:gj:

This is the only snake I have and I don't have a local pet store to buy just a few frozen to try out. I would hate to buy 50.00 worth of frozen mice online and find out he won't take them.

But... I went to Earl May today and paid 4.00 ea. for the mice I fed him - ouch if that is every week! And no... I don't want to breed mice :P

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Originally Posted by Bet

This is the only snake I have and I don't have a local pet store to buy just a few frozen to try out. I would hate to buy 50.00 worth of frozen mice online and find out he won't take them.

But... I went to Earl May today and paid 4.00 ea. for the mice I fed him - ouch if that is every week! And no... I don't want to breed mice :P

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Maybe if you could find another reptile keeper who orders frozen mice you could ask for one, or pay a couple of bucks for one?

Or try looking on your local Craigslist page, and/or put an ad on here and Fauna Classifieds feeder section...

He may not change, and you have to be ready for that. If you move up prey size live just be careful since he is not used to taking down a rat.

I would start with fresh killed then try moving to f/t. You should feed him every 7-10 days (but some will only eat every other week) a meal that is 15% of his body weight (so a 100 gram snake should get 15 grams of rodent)

A cheap kitchen scale is all that's necessary for this. I got mine for $15

http://i1186.photobucket.com/albums/...t/f79cdeb5.jpg

Making sure that you provide the right temperatures and humidity is the best way to make sure that your snake will eat.

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Originally Posted by The Serpent Merchant

I would start with fresh killed then try moving to f/t. You should feed him every 7-10 days (but some will only eat every other week) a meal that is 15% of his body weight (so a 100 gram snake should get 15 grams of rodent)

A cheap kitchen scale is all that's necessary for this. I got mine for $15

Making sure that you provide the right temperatures and humidity is the best way to make sure that your snake will eat.

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The 10-15% rule really only applies to younger snakes. I would never feed my adult male a 150g-225g rat (he's ~1600g). Adult males typically only ever need small rats once per week (50-80g). However, I definitely second the need for a scale to track his weight and know the size of what you're feeding. I would personally attempt to switch from live mice to live rats first, and then try to switch from live to pre-killed, then F/T. This way, if you only succeed in the first step, then at least you are only having to feed one rat per week instead of multiple mice.

I would definately get him eating more if you can. I have corn snakes that eat more than that each month. Typically a grown male could eat a medium rat every two weeks, if that gives you an idea how much he should be taking in. As for f/t that would be easiest if you can get him to take them. Bps can be very picky. I would have my doubts that a snake that has been eating live for 20 years would switch. I suppose that could be different for each snake, but I have one that was a few years old when we got him, and flat out refuses anything except live. And not just live sitting in a corner, it has to be running around his tank (sometimes prodded into action). I guess he needs proof it still has a heartbeat, I don't know. Lol. Good luck with your new snake, you came to the right place to ask questions. Everyone here is very helpful.

Welcome to BP.net. :handshake

At 20 years old, I wouldn't assume he's on death's door due to old age or anything. :P He could potentially live another 10-20 years if well taken care of.

We'd love to see some pictures of him. Besides just the enjoyment of seeing him, it would also help us to help you evaluate what kind of feeding regimen might be best for him.

Where are you located? Maybe you can find someone local to you who keeps snakes and they can either let you buy feeders off of them, share feeder orders, or point you in the right direction for feeder-priced rodents, rather than paying a ridiculous $4 a pop for a mouse from a pet store. Local herp shows are also a good source for picking up feeders, especially frozen ones. Saves a lot on having frozen ones shipped.

In the meantime, what I would do if I were in your shoes would be to continue to feed him what he's used to eating, but increase the frequency of it. And then maybe add a mouse or two to the feeding schedule if he seems to want more to eat. And once he's fully settled in and used to his new home and routine with you, THEN try offering him a frozen/thawed mouse. Maybe right after he's taken a live one. If he eats that one...try f/t as the first offering at the next scheduled feeding.

Once he's used to eating f/t mice...then you could consider switching him to rats. Rats are nice because you can use fewer rodents to achieve the same volume of food, but nutritionally speaking, it doesn't matter which you choose to feed. So long as the snake is eating, it's all good.

I have an OLD male. I have no idea how old he actually is because he was an adult when I got him, and was an adult when he was taken in by the people who rescued him in the first place. He's got scars on his body that make it look like he was actually wild caught from Africa, but who knows? Point is, he's likely very old because he's huge for a male. (over 3000 grams) He eats very little. I offer him food every two weeks, but he averages about one small rat per month. That's his choice, not mine. And sometimes he'll skip even that.

Once you have your old man on a routine, and you're sure he's at a strong, healthy weight, you may find that he doesn't eat very much at all.