Is this a healthy ball python??

I don't know a lot about snake diseases(i know some but i'm sure theres a lot of things i don't know about snakes); I think my snake is pretty healthy but is there something I'm missing? does she seem underfed or overfed??
also is one large mouse a week too much or too little for her?

http://imgur.com/a/x3n3r

i couldn't get a good photo of her belly, only when she was curled around my hand could I get a half-decent pic

some of the photos are a bit blurry/dark but i think some of them are clear enough
(also pls excuse the mess, my 4 year old nephew has spent the entire day here making a mess haha)

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Originally Posted by dthe2000

I don't know a lot about snake diseases(i know some but i'm sure theres a lot of things i don't know about snakes); I think my snake is pretty healthy but is there something I'm missing? does she seem underfed or overfed??
also is one large mouse a week too much or too little for her?

http://imgur.com/a/x3n3r

i couldn't get a good photo of her belly, only when she was curled around my hand could I get a half-decent pic

some of the photos are a bit blurry/dark but i think some of them are clear enough
(also pls excuse the mess, my 4 year old nephew has spent the entire day here making a mess haha)

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Is there anything visible on her or something in her behavior that makes you worried? I'm pretty much a newbie on this, (had my ball for almost 2 years) but she looks healthy to me. Judging from her size tho I would definitely feed her a bit more than an adult mouse. She should be on a decent sized rat by now or multiple adult mice. Other than that she looks great :gj:

nope, she acts perfectly fine. im just worried that theres something wrong with her that im not seeing xD]

edit: also i never knew that :0 when i got her a few years ago(dec 2014), the guy i bought her from told me that she would eat one small mouse a week. I've upped the size, of course; she's grown. but i always thought that rats would be too large for her to eat?

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Originally Posted by dthe2000

nope, she acts perfectly fine. im just worried that theres something wrong with her that im not seeing xD]

edit: also i never knew that :0 when i got her a few years ago(dec 2014), the guy i bought her from told me that she would eat one small mouse a week. I've upped the size, of course; she's grown. but i always thought that rats would be too large for her to eat?

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I waited a little too long to switch mine over to rats. Do you feed live or f/t? Its better to switch them over to rats because as she gets older you'll have to feed her several adult mice. (I've read on here some people having to feed their adult females ten adult mice) Sometimes its difficult to get them to switch over to rats because they don't recognize the smell so its better to try to do it as early as possible.

she looks OK. it's hard to say what would be a good size feeder because we don't know her size. but, she doesn't appear to be underweight. she will definitely get big enough to eat small to medium rats eventually. she looks like she might be ready for small rats now, but again I can't be sure. can you get a weight on her?

She looks good very pretty..:)

Handy dandy little conversion chart to let you know what size rat would replace your current food item.

https://scontent-lax3-1.xx.fbcdn.net...af&oe=5763BE1B

She does not appear to be underweight from what can be seen, but she definitely should be switched to rats they offer better nutritional values for a ball pythons ... I feel comfortable saying she should be on at least small rats at her age and by how her size looks compared to your hand .... The best way to know would be to get her weight in grams, if you can provide that information we can advise you a lot more accurately. This can be achieved by using a simple set of digital kitchen scales, make sure they are set to grams them set a container on the scale and then zero it out (push the "tare" button) then place her in the container :gj:

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Originally Posted by SmoothScales

Handy dandy little conversion chart to let you know what size rat would replace your current food item.

https://scontent-lax3-1.xx.fbcdn.net...af&oe=5763BE1B

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Not to step on toes here however I feel there should be more clarity provided .... This is a chart of estimated mouse and rat growth/weight margins for the age of the feeder you are offering. It provides the estimated weights and length of the mice and rats at that age, it converts what size feeder you will need to use "IF" you are substituting a smaller prey item for what should be being used. In order to properly use this chart you will still need to know how much your snake weighs.

dthe2000, your best bet is to make a nice cup of hot chocolate, pot of coffee, or whatever tickles your fancy and to explore this site .... use the search feature at the top right ... if there is anything that you cannot find via searching then don't be afraid to make a thread such as you did this one and ask.

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Originally Posted by T_Sauer

In order to properly use this chart you will still need to know how much your snake weighs.

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I was actually posting it so the OP could tell what size rat would be equivalent to the prey item that is currently being offered. However, you did make good points and I should've provided more information when providing the chart.

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Originally Posted by SmoothScales

Handy dandy little conversion chart to let you know what size rat would replace your current food item.

https://scontent-lax3-1.xx.fbcdn.net...af&oe=5763BE1B

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Is this chart based on nutritional value?
It doesn't appear to be a gram for gram equivalent

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Originally Posted by SmoothScales

I was actually posting it so the OP could tell what size rat would be equivalent to the prey item that is currently being offered. However, you did make good points and I should've provided more information when providing the chart.

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I understood what you were getting at :gj: and like I said I didnt intent to step on toes but the fact that the OP had to ask this question to begin with made me feel that there should be a little bit more elaboration on the situation. And it is no fault or anything of that sort of the OP either, but it is a sad fact that many first time BP owners are either misinformed or not given enough info by the breeder or seller at the time of purchase, I myself feel that that is part of our (those of us who choose to stay and frequent this site) duty

CantHelpIt ...... read the next to last post on page 1

SmoothScales ......... I'm not going to say I told you so but ...... ;)

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Originally Posted by CantHelpIt

Is this chart based on nutritional value?
It doesn't appear to be a gram for gram equivalent

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Good morning! Welcome to the mouse vs. rat debate among BP owners, which is as old as the frozen/thawed vs. feeding live debate. You will find owners on both sides furiously telling you which one should be fed to your girl.

Rats are cheaper in the long run, as they are so much larger, but it all depends on what your BP prefers to eat. There is some chatter about nutritional differences between rats and mice as well. Our Ginger will only eat live mice - she refuses live rats and anything frozen/thawed. It's just how she's eating now, and hopefully she'll go back to rats to save me a lot of $$$. But mice are her preference, so she gets mice.

The rule of thumb regarding the size of her food is to feed her something that is 10% larger than the widest part of her body. That being said, I have spent a lot of time in the pet store, trying to size up her food. Is this rat too big, or too small.....ugh. I suggest that you err on the size of too small if you switch over to rats. Feed her a small rat and see what happens. She should plump nicely with a full belly.

How old is she, what does she weigh, and how long is she? Are you feeding live? That will help us to help you determine the size of prey that's right for her.

Cheers,
Pamela








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whoa all these replies

When I got her, the guy told me she was about a year old? I've had her for 2 years so I'm guessing she's at least 3.
I have no clue how much she weighs but I think she's about 2 1/2 feet; I've kinda measured her before but it was really quick and she wasnt completely straightened out.
From what I've seen, she's not picky; she eats both live and frozen/thawed mice. It's kind of a mix, because I'm not sure whether I'm going to the store or if my aunt goes when i don't have a ride; i buy f/t and she buys live.

i also have no way to weigh her atm 8(

You would need to pick up a food scale - they don't cost much - and weigh her in grams. Place a bowl on the scale and weigh it. Then place your BP in the bowl, do the math, and voila! you've got her weight.