Is this rat too big to feed my ball?

My ball python is 300 grams. The place I get his feeders from was all out of what I normally get him, so I got a small rat which seemed to be all they really had left of. The rat is about 60 grams. It doesnt seem to be that much bigger than the fattest part of my snake, but the rat is long and seems pretty heavy. Is this too big for my ball??

He should be eating rat pup, 20-29 grams

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Originally Posted by Hannahrenee

My ball python is 300 grams. The place I get his feeders from was all out of what I normally get him, so I got a small rat which seemed to be all they really had left of. The rat is about 60 grams. It doesnt seem to be that much bigger than the fattest part of my snake, but the rat is long and seems pretty heavy. Is this too big for my ball??

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Did you weigh it? 60 grams is like 2 jumbo Mice and it sounds the way you explained it that its much bigger than that. At 300 grams you should feed around 40 grams.
I had a bad experience once with a Rat that was to big for a 550 gram Ball Python. I was use to feeding my burm so all the Rats looked small to me and she (what I call) choked on it... she tried to get it back out of her mouth when she couldn't make it past the Hips/Back legs... i'll never make that mistake again. Scared the hell out of me. A correctly labeled Small Rat is to big for any 300 gram snake IMO


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Originally Posted by CALM Pythons

Did you weigh it? 60 grams is like 2 jumbo Mice and it sounds the way you explained it that its much bigger than that. At 300 grams you should feed around 40 grams.
I had a bad experience once with a Rat that was to big for a 550 gram Ball Python. I was use to feeding my burm so all the Rats looked small to me and she (what I call) choked on it... she tried to get it back out of her mouth when she couldn't make it past the Hips/Back legs... i'll never make that mistake again. Scared the hell out of me. A correctly labeled Small Rat is to big for any 300 gram snake IMO


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Wow that's scary. Yeah, he usually eats 30-40 gram rats. When I bought this rat today I wrapped my fingers around it to see the width and I measured it with my thumb. It seemed like a good size at the time, but after weighing it at home, it was 60 grams! He hasn't ate in a little over 2 weeks because he just got out of shedding, so I was desperate to get him some food tonight. But I guess he'll be waiting until I can get to a different petstore. Thank you

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Originally Posted by Hannahrenee

Wow that's scary. Yeah, he usually eats 30-40 gram rats. When I bought this rat today I wrapped my fingers around it to see the width and I measured it with my thumb. It seemed like a good size at the time, but after weighing it at home, it was 60 grams! He hasn't ate in a little over 2 weeks because he just got out of shedding, so I was desperate to get him some food tonight. But I guess he'll be waiting until I can get to a different petstore. Thank you

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Good call!

Better to give a good size meal in a week than something too big today!

At 300G he will be okay to wait, don't sweat it :).

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Originally Posted by Hannahrenee

Wow that's scary. Yeah, he usually eats 30-40 gram rats. When I bought this rat today I wrapped my fingers around it to see the width and I measured it with my thumb. It seemed like a good size at the time, but after weighing it at home, it was 60 grams! He hasn't ate in a little over 2 weeks because he just got out of shedding, so I was desperate to get him some food tonight. But I guess he'll be waiting until I can get to a different petstore. Thank you

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Yeah good idea, a small snake like that could get hurt too if the Rats to big and is aggressive on top of it. A small Rat will kick & fight more than a 30 gram Baby for sure.


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Are we talking live or frozen rat, incidentally ?

It sounds far too large, either way of course..

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Originally Posted by Zincubus

Are we talking live or frozen rat, incidentally ?

It sounds far too large, either way of course..

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Live but pre killed. I agree that I think it's too large. Poor thing had to die for nothing. Though I wonder if I could save it (in the freezer) until my snake is big enough

Good call on waiting.
And yes, as long as the rat has been properly stored until now, you can freeze it.

Thanks for posting this question! I actually recently got my first ball, and went to the pet store and they recommended small frozen rat for him. Even though I had done a ton of research before I got him, through the internet and YouTube, I wasn’t sure how much he weighed and didn’t know. Bought a scale and turns out he is only 320g. I was going to ask if the small rats were too big as well even though he didn’t have too much trouble just took him a good while to get it down. So next issue, none of the pet stores around me cary anything smaller than a small rat. Where do you guys get your feeders? Any reliable places you order from? Thanks!

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Originally Posted by Madburnit

Thanks for posting this question! I actually recently got my first ball, and went to the pet store and they recommended small frozen rat for him. Even though I had done a ton of research before I got him, through the internet and YouTube, I wasn’t sure how much he weighed and didn’t know. Bought a scale and turns out he is only 320g. I was going to ask if the small rats were too big as well even though he didn’t have too much trouble just took him a good while to get it down. So next issue, none of the pet stores around me cary anything smaller than a small rat. Where do you guys get your feeders? Any reliable places you order from? Thanks!

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It's really hard to find good sizes at chain petstores. I get feeders from a speciality reptile store. Search for reptile stores near you, but if there aren't any you can order feeders online at places like feedersource.com. The shipping can be pretty pricey, but you can buy in bulk to save money. Another way to get feeders for much cheaper is to go to reptile shows. Repticon is coming up for a lot of states, so see when it's coming near you. I know that feedersource goes to all repticons and the prices are reasonable.

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Originally Posted by Madburnit

Thanks for posting this question! I actually recently got my first ball, and went to the pet store and they recommended small frozen rat for him. Even though I had done a ton of research before I got him, through the internet and YouTube, I wasn’t sure how much he weighed and didn’t know. Bought a scale and turns out he is only 320g. I was going to ask if the small rats were too big as well even though he didn’t have too much trouble just took him a good while to get it down. So next issue, none of the pet stores around me cary anything smaller than a small rat. Where do you guys get your feeders? Any reliable places you order from? Thanks!

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Rodent Pro. They run sales too and you can fill a box all for the same shipping price.


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I use perfect prey online.

I found a local breeder on Craigslist that gave me 85 rats for $75! About a TENTH of what the ridiculous corporate petstores charge. I recommend finding a local breeder, or I was going to buy from Perfect Prey, IF I didn't find such a great local deal. I am going to continue to buy from this local breeder, the quality and prices are fantastic!!!:mouse2::mouse2::mouse2::mouse2::mouse2::mouse2::mouse2::2cent::2cen t::2cent::2cent::2cent::2cent::2cent:

85 rats for $75 - that guy lost money on that deal. You can't buy the rat food and bedding for that price. Although I've made some deals when I had an excess of rats and needed to unload them. I usually get at least $1.50 to $2.00 per rat. I breed my own rats and mice and have 50 tubs of rats. I pair up 6 females per week now, that gives me tubs of all sizes. I mark the top ten sizes number 1 being the largest and 10 the smallest, usually all under #10 are too small to feed yet. That gives me rats of just about any size I need for feeding day. Some get too big and I move them up to grow out tubs for my two retics. Works fantastic. If someone local wanted a couple rats I could give you some of any size.

I accidently fed a few rats that were too big when I first started breeding ball pythons. Sometimes they would regurgitate them, but often times they would eat them but then go off of food for weeks or months at a time, seems like a bad experience for them. Now I tend to feed on the smaller side.

I mostly use http://bigcheeserodents.com.

I have had good experience with them. They are often out of medium rats (which is what many BP adults eat, especially females - over 1000G or so). However, I do small orders and if I call them, they can often accommodate at least one pack of 10 mediums (which for me lasts a while). Having said that, you do have to pay for shipping every time. For me, it's okay, for now, as I usually order small rats for my young female BCI and jumbo mice for my Corn as well.

They have also offered, if I call early enough and can wait, to compile a few packs before shipping. I really like the customer service and the freshness of the frozen rodent packs (vacuum sealed).

I have used Rodentpro.com in the past (just via online ordering) and not had a problem. However, I really enjoy dealing with big cheese. I also haven't used Rodentpro in probably 15 years, so no idea if quality is the same. I am sure other users here have more recent experience.

Another option is reptile shows. Not sure where you are located, but you can often meet local frozen rodent producers there who will ship or you can meet, or can buy right there. It is more of a crapshoot as the bigger online stores many people can comment on.

Also, see if there are any reptile specific stores in your area, or contact a local breeder and ask what they do.

Just some thoughts.

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Originally Posted by craigafrechette

I use perfect prey online.

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I just checked out the website. Looks like good stuff.

Also, cool that they have different size packs, if you only have one snake, etc.

If you happen to live fairly close to a repticon or other reptile show keep those in mind. I raise most of my own rodents but I also supplement with extra from the reptile shows they have three times a year in my area. I see what I am short on and estimate what I may need with the snakes I have and the snakes I may get. The $10 entrance fee is nothing when you are talking about shipment costs. It is a great time to get those younger rats that I can never seem to keep available.

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Originally Posted by dakski

I just checked out the website. Looks like good stuff.

Also, cool that they have different size packs, if you only have one snake, etc.

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Their packaging and quality is fantastic.

As mentioned above, reptile expos can be great as well. You can often find online prices without the big shipping cost.
Just be sure you're buying from a reputable source. I've seen and heard of prey from expos that is just thrown into ziplocks with bedding, urine, feces, etc...as well as broken tails and limbs.

Any which way, buying bulk from a reputable source is always the best way to go for quality and cost efficiency.