Should I be worried?

I'm hoping someone can EITHER offer suggestions, or reassure me that this is normal, but I'm confused.
A month ago, I purchased a hatchling b.p. (August /17 hatch) from a local, and reputable breeder. She was in excellent condition (weight 196 gms.) has been eating f.t. with enthusiasm. (once a week) and has gained a bit every week. Originally I was feeding her rat fuzzies (12 -14 gms.) but was advised that may be too small so increased to small rat pups. The first was 18 gms. which she accepted well, but my supplier didn't normally carry that size so the last time I fed her (Nov. 19) was a 20 gm. pup, which seemed to be no problem. However, that was the last thing she's eaten. She did have a shed a few days later, but since then, has been very active and behaves like she's hungry. Last Saturday, I offered her a 22 gm. pup (which is all I had) which she struck immediately, wrapped, held for about 3 minutes, but instead of eating it, she moved away and wouldn't take it. I left her until last night and offered a 16 gm. pup and she did the same thing. She struck it before it hit the floor of her enclosure, coiled around it, waited a couple of minutes, did a lot of sniffing and really looked like she was going to eat it, but didn't. Her current weight is 224 gms. so she has gained since she's arrived but has been at that weight since Nov. 23, so THAT is a deviation from the norm for her.
I get that b.p. can go for periods of time without eating, but if she wasn't hungry, would anticipate that they simply wouldn't show interest. Why is she striking and acting hungry, but refusing to eat?

That is not a long time between feedings really. How often are you offering food? What are the temperatures of the enclosure?

Temperature of the enclosure and the temperature of the rat can play a role in interest in food.

Has anything at all changed outside of a shed and larger sized prey? I would personally just hold off a week before offering again and see if you have success. Make sure to warm the rat up a bit more than you did with the smaller size and see if that helps as well. You would be surprised how temps of prey can play a factor in feeding.

Yeah, she is right about the rat temp. I have been heating up my thawed rats underneath a heat lamp until it is over 100 degrees fahrenheit, and it definitely helps stimulate feeding response.

Thank you Godzilla, I'm feeding every 7 days, she's been eating enthusiastically every 7 days but now it's been almost 17 days. When I've asked about feeding frequency, most suggest that hatchlings should be fed weekly, is this too often then?

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by SDA

Temperature of the enclosure and the temperature of the rat can play a role in interest in food.

Has anything at all changed outside of a shed and larger sized prey? I would personally just hold off a week before offering again and see if you have success. Make sure to warm the rat up a bit more than you did with the smaller size and see if that helps as well. You would be surprised how temps of prey can play a factor in feeding.

---

Thank you! She's in a bin, I did change from newspaper liner to aspen mulch, but aside from that, no changes. I do warm the rat first, temps. are 85 - 88 hot spot and 75 - 78 cool. Humidity is aprox. 60 %. There is a hide for each temp. range. :-)

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Godzilla78

Yeah, she is right about the rat temp. I have been heating up my thawed rats underneath a heat lamp until it is over 100 degrees fahrenheit, and it definitely helps stimulate feeding response.

---

Yes, I have been warming the rat for her, as I said, I'm curious because she does strike immediately, and stays coiled on the prey as she did before, but at the stage where previously, she would nose around and find the head to start swallowing, she noses around, and SEEMS very interested, then appears to change her mind. It's very strange.

Maybe it is the prey size. Wait a week and then offer a slightly smaller prey item than the ones that are being rejected.

My girl I️ feel is so small almost same hatch date the 15th of Aug and empty weight at 100g...maybe I️ should up her to med mouse....


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Aerries

My girl I️ feel is so small almost same hatch date the 15th of Aug and empty weight at 100g...maybe I️ should up her to med mouse....


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

---

Mine was hatched the ninth of August and she's only 100g too! I got her on Nov. 11, and she was 89g then. (She also hasn't pooped for me yet, so I imagine that's making up a few of her grams.)

Our pastel banana boi is an August 2017 hatchling. We took him home in October at 129 grams eating f/t small hopper mice. Since hitting 180 grams three weeks ago, he's been eating 30 gram f/t rat pups. His last weight before a shed and poop was 219 grams.

Originally, we (meaning my daughter) heated our mice with a hair dryer. When we switched to rats, we switched to warming in hot water. My own sense is that with larger prey, hot water offers a more uniform heat (also less smell). After 20-30 minutes under hot tap water our rats reach approximately 90 degrees. We then give them a minute or two under real hot water to bring them to 100 degrees and then we feed. We always use a heat gun to measure the temp of our prey before feeding.

So far so good.

Thank you Godzilla, have done that, last accepted prey size was 20 grams, she later rejected 22 gm. meal so I waited a week and tried 16 gms. yesterday, which was also rejected.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Aerries

My girl I️ feel is so small almost same hatch date the 15th of Aug and empty weight at 100g...maybe I️ should up her to med mouse....


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

---

Size may not be anything to worry about as I think there can be quite a size disparity in hatch sizes in ball pythons. My girl "Franny" may have been larger than yours right out of the egg. What weight is the meal that you're feeding? I understand that an adequate meal size is 10 % the weight of the animal. Thus, if your b.p. weighs 100 gms, she could take a 10 gm. mouse. If I'm wrong, perhaps somebody can correct me, but this is what I understand to be the case.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by larryd23

Our pastel banana boi is an August 2017 hatchling. We took him home in October at 129 grams eating f/t small hopper mice. Since hitting 180 grams three weeks ago, he's been eating 30 gram f/t rat pups. His last weight before a shed and poop was 219 grams.

Originally, we (meaning my daughter) heated our mice with a hair dryer. When we switched to rats, we switched to warming in hot water. My own sense is that with larger prey, hot water offers a more uniform heat (also less smell). After 20-30 minutes under hot tap water our rats reach approximately 90 degrees. We then give them a minute or two under real hot water to bring them to 100 degrees and then we feed. We always use a heat gun to measure the temp of our prey before feeding.

So far so good.

---

Holy Smokes!!! He's 129 grms and eating 30 gm. rat pups!!!!! And I was so afraid I'd do my girl. (224 gms) irreparable damage in feeding her anything over 20 gms.:O LOL Where do I go to pick up my official "Nervous Nellie" award. :)

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by B.P.'s 4me

Holy Smokes!!! He's 129 grms and eating 30 gm. rat pups!!!!! And I was so afraid I'd do my girl. (224 gms) irreparable damage in feeding her anything over 20 gms.:O LOL Where do I go to pick up my official "Nervous Nellie" award. :)

---

My post may not have been clear... he was 129 grams when we got him and he was 180 grams when we started feeding rat pups. He's now had three rat pup feedings and is currently just under your girls weight.

We are new to BPs so consider this one person's experience. I'll leave the advice for those that truly know about these things.

For the most part, we've followed the feeding guidelines we found on BP.NET: https://ball-pythons.net/forums/show...ing-Guidelines

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by B.P.'s 4me

Holy Smokes!!! He's 129 grms and eating 30 gm. rat pups!!!!! And I was so afraid I'd do my girl. (224 gms) irreparable damage in feeding her anything over 20 gms.:O LOL Where do I go to pick up my official "Nervous Nellie" award. :)

---

I've done that.:O My 4 month old baby ball python just stuffed down a small adult rat! I didn't weigh either of them, but the rat was maybe 25% of the snake's weight. Chuck had no problem with it at all. Python species in general are notorious for eating monster meals in the wild. This is not something I would normally feed, it was just a leftover rat one of my adults rejected, and chuck was really hungry! I know most forum members will think I am evil, but it was impressive.:gj:
https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...b/IMG_1178.jpg
https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...w/IMG_1179.jpg

Hot spot is to cool. 85 to 88 degrees is not warm enough, esp. if the snake is trying to digest a large meal.

And where do you measure your hot spot ? Directly above the heat tape (as you should) ? Or on top of the substrate?

She could be used to less substrate (when you had her on paper) and was closer to the heat then, than she is now.

Make sure the heat is at least 90, up to 92, right above the heat (under substrate) and then make sure the substrate isn't to thick, so she doesn't have to burrow down to much to get warm.

If the heat was on your lower range of 85 , possibly less on top of substrate, it wasn't in the safe range for digesting a large meal..

Yep, make sure the hot spot she can access is 90F. She may not have been able to digest the meal yet.

Otherwise, as is being said, the prey temp is important. Essentially, your animal is striking while its hot (100F) but by the time they get to actually eating it, it's not "noticeable" due to scent being washed away if water thawed (stinky is better, even if we humans don't like it) and they "see" with their heat pits, meaning cool prey may not be recognized as prey within the heat field of their enclosure. Imagine it's like trying to find a salad someone left for you in a dark room with no hint as to where they put it. Silly thought, but the same really. Make sure the food is hot enough to stick out.

Try warming the prey til its warm to the touch, especially focusing on the head. Then offer as usual.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by larryd23

My post may not have been clear... he was 129 grams when we got him and he was 180 grams when we started feeding rat pups. He's now had three rat pup feedings and is currently just under your girls weight.

We are new to BPs so consider this one person's experience. I'll leave the advice for those that truly know about these things.

For the most part, we've followed the feeding guidelines we found on BP.NET: https://ball-pythons.net/forums/show...ing-Guidelines

---

O.k. gotcha, sorry for the misunderstanding. :-) and thank you for sharing your experience and for the link.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by zina10

Hot spot is to cool. 85 to 88 degrees is not warm enough, esp. if the snake is trying to digest a large meal.

And where do you measure your hot spot ? Directly above the heat tape (as you should) ? Or on top of the substrate?

She could be used to less substrate (when you had her on paper) and was closer to the heat then, than she is now.

Make sure the heat is at least 90, up to 92, right above the heat (under substrate) and then make sure the substrate isn't to thick, so she doesn't have to burrow down to much to get warm.

If the heat was on your lower range of 85 , possibly less on top of substrate, it wasn't in the safe range for digesting a large meal..

---

Thank you, I put her back on newspaper yesterday and increased her heat a bit. I was measuring temp. on top of the substrate as I thought that was the surface she was using, but understand your point. Thank you for your advice. :-)