Seriously ball python won't eat. Nothing wrong medically or husbandry wise.

I don't know what to do, he's loosing weight I've tried everything. Any suggestions?

Weight of snake? Smaller tub? Brown paper bag? Live & F/T? More details...

He is 2 years old, 3ft ish, weighe 760 grams last time he was weighed but I haven't weighed him for a while. His viv is a 4ft & wooden, he's kept on aspen, has 3 hides (one each end and one in the middle) his temperatures are 32 Celsius in the warm end and 26-29 in cool end. I feed f/t small rats every 10 days, he was tricky to start with feeding wise, but he usually eats like a trooper, strikes every time. I think he frightened him self a while ago, he missed. That was a month and a half ago and he's not eaten since. I tried feeding him again yesterday and he struck and let go. I've tried all of the tips, soaking in chicken broth, scenting with hamster... I bought a different coloured rat today and will try him in a couple of days. I'm really worried as you can almost see his spine so anything else you can think of would be great :)
he eats in his viv because if you handle him even the day before he goes off his feed. I don't think live feeding is legal in the UK.

"I don't think live feeding is legal in the UK." I was about to say try live feed. Why is it not legal?

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Originally Posted by ROACH

"I don't think live feeding is legal in the UK." I was about to say try live feed. Why is it not legal?

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I would find out for sure. I personally would buy one as a pet and feed it if weight loss is as significant as you say. I'm NOT saying to break the law just stating what I would do.
If hes lost so much weight, why have you not weighed him recently to be sure of how much he's actually lost?

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According to a post on a reptile UK forum it is not illegal just frowned upon, do it discretely... as in don't go into the pet store and ask for a rat to feed your feed snake. Just say you'd like to purchase a rat.

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Originally Posted by Crazymonkee

According to a post on a reptile UK forum it is not illegal just frowned upon, do it discretely... as in don't go into the pet store and ask for a rat to feed your feed snake. Just say you'd like to purchase a rat.

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Thats what I would do for sure! Say I want a few rats for my kids as pets and feed them to your snake. Exspecially if its not eating and losing alot of weight!

Live feeding is legal in the UK as long as you do not do it for the purposes of entertainment.

That said, I'd try an F/T mouse first.

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Originally Posted by dr del

Live feeding is legal in the UK as long as you do not do it for the purposes of entertainment.

That said, I'd try an F/T mouse first.

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Could I ask why you'd try that? I'm curious.

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Six weeks without eating for a mature ball python (assuming yours is male, it is mature at that age and weight, although it will continue to grow slowly) is not a big deal. It should not be losing weight so quickly that it's "spine is showing through" unless it was already significantly underfed before the fast began.

As Derek (dr del) says, before trying a live rodent....try switching rodents first. If the different colored rat doesn't work this time around, then a week later, try a f/t mouse. Switching rodent species often does the trick for a ball python that is fasting for reasons we can't fathom. Maybe he has some kind of negative connotation with the rat scent now, if he banged his face during a missed strike. He may be content to eat mice for awhile. If he takes one...then you can lay one or two more warmed mice down in the cage while he's busy strangling the first. Then cover the cage and leave him completely alone for a day. Check the next day and see if the mice are gone. :)

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Originally Posted by JLC

Six weeks without eating for a mature ball python (assuming yours is male, it is mature at that age and weight, although it will continue to grow slowly) is not a big deal. It should not be losing weight so quickly that it's "spine is showing through" unless it was already significantly underfed before the fast began.

As Derek (dr del) says, before trying a live rodent....try switching rodents first. If the different colored rat doesn't work this time around, then a week later, try a f/t mouse. Switching rodent species often does the trick for a ball python that is fasting for reasons we can't fathom. Maybe he has some kind of negative connotation with the rat scent now, if he banged his face during a missed strike. He may be content to eat mice for awhile. If he takes one...then you can lay one or two more warmed mice down in the cage while he's busy strangling the first. Then cover the cage and leave him completely alone for a day. Check the next day and see if the mice are gone. :)

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Ok I see know why to try with mice.

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Thank you for the responses. Like I said he goes off feed very easily and hates being handled. If I take him out I weigh him it's usually a couple of days after he's eaten so he has a while to get over it before his next feed. He was slightly underweight before this fast due the fact that we had a house fire and a house move which obviously got him quite stressed out, the vets said that there was nothing wrong with him after the fire and he ate a fair few times since. I think the miss strike has really knocked him about. If he doesn't take this one I will try live. Do you think I should try feeding him sooner rather than later? Or should I leave it a while as I tried yesterday? You can't actually see his spine...he's just headed that way. He wasn't in the greatest shape when we bought him to be honest and it took a long time to get him to eat.

I have never fed live, what the hell do I do with the rat if he won't take it?

About changing the rodent, I read that in the wild they eat gerboas, I can get them online. Should I try those?

How do i post a picture? He may not be as underweight as I think. He's my first snake and I am a worrier.

Ahhh...sounds like he's had a rough go of it, and him being a difficult feeder makes a little more sense.

How exposed is his enclosure? Does it have a glass front that is opened to a well lit and/or busy room? Have you tried covering it and keeping it covered most of the time? That may help him feel more settled and secure...just a simple blanket or towel draped over the enclosure to give him darkness and privacy most of the time.

You may be trying to over complicate things. "Switching species" doesn't mean trying to find something exotic. Whatever you choose to feed him needs to be something readily available and affordable. Seriously...try a f/t mouse before you try a live rat. It's a simple solution with a high chance of success. If the mouse doesn't work, you haven't really lost anything, but if it DOES work, then you've found a simple solution that will be easy to continue working with.

Switching to live prey carries a different sort of risk. If you do choose to go that route, then I would highly recommend you get something small, like a baby rat that is just barely weaned, or not yet weaned. It will be too small to be a complete meal, but it also won't pose any risk of injury to a reluctant snake. If that turns out to be a success, you can gradually increase the size of the live rat as your snake gets used to eating them. A ball python that is anxious and eager to eat is in no danger from a live rat...but a shy, reluctant eater has more risks.

Never try to feed immediately after a failed attempt. Always give it a full week between tries. For whatever reason, your snake is feeling stressed about the encounter with the rodent, so repeated attempts too close together are counter productive.

Have you tried just laying the thawed/warmed rodent in the cage, covering the cage and leaving it completely alone for 24 hours? Might work. Rather than trying to get tricky with the "feeding tricks"....try to consider how to keep things as calm and stress-free for the snake as possible.

Good luck!!

I'd give him another week to settle down before attempting to feed again. If he won't take live, say hello to your new pet rat! Jk. I'd say get a smaller rat than he'd usually take, they grow very quickly, and if you have to wait an additional week for the next feed attempt the rat may be too large. You can keep a small tub/spare tank if you have it with some bedding, a dish of water and whatever feed you can spare to house the rat. Or you can return it to the shop? Say your 'kids' didn't like it ;)

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Originally Posted by Shaney

How do i post a picture? He may not be as underweight as I think. He's my first snake and I am a worrier.

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Upload a picture to an online hosting site...such as Image Shack or Photobucket. We also have a gallery here at BP.net that is free to use. (There's a link to the gallery in the upper left side of the BP.net window) Once you get your image uploaded, you'll find "share" links you can use...choose the BBCode link, copy and paste into your post here.

I updated a picture but I'm not entirely sure where it went? Lol. If he doesn't take it immediately I usually leave him with it overnight. That worked when he was younger but he's not going for it at the moment. He has his own room, the only thing in there is the computer, which is of most of the time as we have a laptop. He has minimal foot traffic as he's upstairs by the spare room, so he only sees or hears us when he comes out for a play or to be fed!

Thinking about it, his heat lamp died the other day, I keep a spare in the house and it was changed within a couple of hours. That may have brought this on combined with his missed strike?

I will try the mouse if he won't take his posh brown rat. I thought maybe a colour change may help?

I know that a gerboa sounds random but they're actually cheaper than mice and the come next day. He was beer keen on mice and has always had a much stronger feeding response to rats.

Thank you all for the responses.

http://ball-pythons.net/gallery/show...atid=newimages

Best I could do with the photo, taken a week ago.

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http://ball-pythons.net/gallery/showimage.php?i=46966&catid=newimages

Best I could do with the photo, taken a week ago.

If you try a live rat. And he doesn't eat you can euthanize then freeze the rat. Sealed container with vinegar and baking soda is humane. But try the ft mouse first. Goodluck

Okay, thanks :) is switching the couloir of his rat to brown a good idea?

Yes that could help

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He doesn't look all that underweight to me. :)

The other reason I suggested mice is simply that they smell more. Pre-scenting so they know food is going to be offered later can get them "in the mood" so to speak. And, while you can get a lot of exotic rodents online they tend to be more expensive or not be available all the time. No sense of converting him to a food source you then discover you can't get. ;)

He took the brown rat :D :D thanks for all your help guys !!

Good to hear!!

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I have a male that's always been super picky. He will only eat his food hot. Let the offering thaw for the normal amount of time. Then put the water in the microwave for a mi minute and a half, put the offering back in for 3-5 minutes then try again. Good luck!

Yay! Congrats!