Extra hungry lately?

Lately, Lucy always seems hungry! A few days after we feed her, she's pacing for food again.

Now, we are not currently on a set schedule. Due to a couple of problems (a minor infection and a stuck shed on the chin) she didn't eat for about a month. Her first meal after that was 3 small rats. 2 weeks later she had 3 more (because I accidentally bought 2 bags of 3), fed by our snake sitter while we were out of town. She actually struck at them for the first time since we got her!

She was fine for almost all the time between those two feedings, possibly because she was going into shed. Just before the second round of small rats she pooped and shed perfectly (yay!).

But when we came back three days after the second feeding she was acting hungry again. We gave her one more small rat and nearly lost the tongs. Three/four days later, however, and she's hungry AGAIN. This time I gave her a medium rat and she was so excited she body slammed it after snatching it from me.

Now it's 4-5 days after that feeding and she has been pacing for food once more. She sometimes tracks us when we walk past her tank. Last night when I was topping off her water she got into the pose she makes when she is considering a rat and slowly started rising up to my hand. Probably should have backed out at that point but I was curious to see what would happen and I'm not afraid of a wee bite. She gave my finger a few licks and decided I wasn't tasty after all.

Anyway, I am wondering how she could still be hungry and if I should feed her or hold off and try to get back on a schedule. She used to do a large rat every two weeks and was perfectly happy. I wonder if our sudden change in weather (from the low 60s to the low 80s practically overnight) may have something to do with her fired up appetite. I am happy she is so enthusiastic about eating, but I don't want to overfeed! She also hasn't pooped again and, as my husband puts it, currently has 4 corpses inside her.

Anyway, this newbie thanks you for any advice you may have.

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That is a LOT of food.

What does the snake weigh???

I actually just bought a kitchen scale but haven't weighed her yet. However, I think I found the culprit for this round of pacing - I'll have to keep an eye on her thermostat. Either I accidentally messed up the settings yesterday or it glitched out. Poor baby is cold!

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I will be weighing her today, but I want to give her a chance to warm up first.

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Get a weight on her and let us know.

That seems like a LOT of food to me

If you feed small or medium rat that means she is an adult, which mean breeding season is creating this change in feeding habit.

During breeding season females will become voracious needing/wanting more food to build up and prepare for the gestational state.

Now that dies not mean that you need to feed her more especially if she is a pet, a medium rat weekly is more than enough and if you feed too much you will sooner or later encounter the opposite effect and have a BP that fasts to catch up.

If you want a BP that eats with consistency offer the appropriate size prey once a week (see chart in the BP husbandry forum)

Yes, she is an adult. I was planning on getting her onto a schedule of a medium rat weekly, as I think the previous owner might have been off with the large rat every two weeks.

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Baby girl comes in at 2360g.

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The small rats were approx. 40g each and the medium 80g.

Also she totally did poop, she just hid it in her hide. She likes to hide them from me.

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Originally Posted by Lirenn

The small rats were approx. 40g each and the medium 80g.

Also she totally did poop, she just hid it in her hide. She likes to hide them from me.

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If she's 2360G, she can easily eat a medium rat, potentially every week, but probably better to offer every other week.

However, a small rat is usually about 50-90G and a medium rat about 90-140G, give or take.

She should be eating medium rats that are at least 90G. She can eat up to about 150G easily. Generally, people do not feed BP's more than medium rats, up to about twice her size, which is not that common.

Are you feeding live or F/T? If feeding live, I got see potentially wanting to feed a smaller meal to be safer for the snake (not 40G though unless you are offering several). However, if F/T, she should be fed a true medium rat.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by dakski

If she's 2360G, she can easily eat a medium rat, potentially every week, but probably better to offer every other week.

However, a small rat is usually about 50-90G and a medium rat about 90-140G, give or take.

She should be eating medium rats that are at least 90G. She can eat up to about 150G easily. Generally, people do not feed BP's more than medium rats, up to about twice her size, which is not that common.

Are you feeding live or F/T? If feeding live, I got see potentially wanting to feed a smaller meal to be safer for the snake (not 40G though unless you are offering several). However, if F/T, she should be fed a true medium rat.

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I guess this company classifies their rats differently. These were the weights given on the bag. Maybe I should start ordering online.

We feed f/t. I used to judge her prey items by size, which is why she got whatever this company (can't remember the name off the top of my head) classify as large rats. But we are switching to choosing prey by weight.

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Quote:

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Originally Posted by Lirenn

I guess this company classifies their rats differently. These were the weights given on the bag. Maybe I should start ordering online.

We feed f/t. I used to judge her prey items by size, which is why she got whatever this company (can't remember the name off the top of my head) classify as large rats. But we are switching to choosing prey by weight.

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Sounds good to me!

I think I had a typo. Small rats are 60-90g, I believe. 50g would be a weaned rat.

Yes, weight is the best way to go, especially at her size.

If you want recommendations on ordering online, there are threads on that.

From what I can see, Big Cheese Rodent Factory (who I use) and Perfect Prey are very highly regarded.

Keep us in the loop.

Looks like I misremembered the weights of the med and large rats. Medium is about 100g. So I have one thawing in the fridge and she will have a lovely meal when I get home from work at 2 am.

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Num, num, num. Happy dinner time!

She didn't so much strike at the rat as come over and yank it out of the tongs lol. I have some pictures below. If you're wondering why she's in her water bowl it's because I accidentally startled her by standing up too fast.

She was very active for a few minutes afterward, it almost seemed like she was searching the tank for something. Did a little snoot pressing and a few adorable yawns. Sadly I have yet to catch a photo of one.

Am I crazy for watching her until she completely settles down each time? And then going back to check on her like a minute later? [emoji51]https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...ab4624b4dd.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...8b63ff21ea.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...f28ffc3502.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...b8343ef0f6.jpg

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Originally Posted by Lirenn

Num, num, num. Happy dinner time!

She didn't so much strike at the rat as come over and yank it out of the tongs lol. I have some pictures below. If you're wondering why she's in her water bowl it's because I accidentally startled her by standing up too fast.

She was very active for a few minutes afterward, it almost seemed like she was searching the tank for something. Did a little snoot pressing and a few adorable yawns. Sadly I have yet to catch a photo of one.

Am I crazy for watching her until she completely settles down each time? And then going back to check on her like a minute later? [emoji51]https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...ab4624b4dd.jpghttps://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...8b63ff21ea.jpghttps://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...f28ffc3502.jpghttps://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...b8343ef0f6.jpg

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Nice! Happy snake!

Yeah, Shayna is the same way about not striking (she only strikes about 1/15 times). She is so shy (and seems to know the food isn't going to be alive at this point).

She used to take off the tongs, or half heartedly strike. Now I shake for her, put down, and walk away (if no strike). Most of the time, when not fasting anyway, she comes and grabs it, and eats it (often in her house in privacy).

As long as she's eating happily, frankly, who cares!

Now, if I could just get my corn snake and BCI to calm down for two seconds and let me get the prey item safely into the tank before going APE and striking!

Seriously, BP's can be so cute about how gentle they can be. Nothing wrong with a strong feeding response either. All's well that eats well!

When we first got her we had to lay the rat in the tank before she would even inspect it. But she struck her last 3 meals! It was so exciting to experience. She's so powerful despite being so shy.

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Originally Posted by Lirenn

When we first got her we had to lay the rat in the tank before she would even inspect it. But she struck her last 3 meals! It was so exciting to experience. She's so powerful despite being so shy.

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Nice. She is gaining confidence. They are all different. Not sure why Shayna strikes when she does. I guess she gets a little overexcited sometimes, for her anyway.

Enjoy her and learning all of her idiosyncrasies. You sound like a good snake parent; taking the time to learn what she likes, ask questions, etc. Keep it up and you will have happy snake for a long time.

I am loving it, despite being a rather anxious snarent. She has a wrinkle on her neck and I'm like "omg is she too skinny???!?!"

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Quote:

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Originally Posted by Lirenn

I am loving it, despite being a rather anxious snarent. She has a wrinkle on her neck and I'm like "omg is she too skinny???!?!"

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Yeah, I still get anxious too sometimes. Always take a deep breath, don't do anything rash or quick (unless temps are crazy or something), and try to make informed decisions.

Shayna, my albino spider BP, who I have had for 5 years now (she is 5 1/2) had a whistle in her nose a few months ago. Turned out to be a piece of dirt or similar, there were no other symptoms, and the whistling stopped by the next day. Husbandry was on point, but I wanted to make sure everything was ok. I took her to the vet as a precaution. Aside from hurting my wallet, and the vet telling me Shayna was the calmest snake she had ever treated, it was pretty uneventful.

Anyway, the point is, it's okay to get a little anxious and be careful with husbandry, ask questions, keep learning, etc.

Reptiles rely on us for everything; heat, humidity, security, food, space, etc.

Always keep that in the back of your mind, without going crazy, and everything will be fine!

Keep up the good work. Your girl is lucky to have you.

P.S. The wrinkle could be totally normal or she may shed soon. I wouldn't sweat it. It also depends on how they move, curl up, etc. It can look more prominent sometimes.