so how long has your BP fasted?

So Dottie is up to about 6 months now. Doesnt seem to be losing weight and still looks good. Weighed her today and she is 1833 grams.
https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...506c8a50_h.jpghttps://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...1db6cf89_h.jpghttps://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...9f0fcf58_k.jpg

My biggest guy, Spike a reduced pattern clown. Went from 12/29/17 to 6/24/18. Almost the same as the previous year. And my next Zilla, a black pastel pin goes a little longer, but takes at least one in between. Now they’ll eat every five days if I let them. ;) Nice looking girl you got there!

Shayna, my adult (6 years old this year) Albino Spider BP, fasts every fall/winter to almost spring, like clockwork (for 4 years now). She averages not eating for 5 months each year. More is not uncommon. As long as yours is drinking and looks good otherwise, I wouldn't even begin to worry at the weight your girl is at. She can probably go a year before I'd be concerned. She will eat when ready. I offer during fasting, but 1X a month, instead of every two weeks when she's eating.

Shayna usually gets up to about 1600G, give or take, in the summer, and then drops to about 1450G by the end of her fast. She drinks, passes urine and urates, and often sheds while in fast. She is noticeably less active however. I still handle her and clean her tank etc. but I probably take her out 1-2X a week instead of 3-4X when she's eating well.

BTW - Dottie is a pretty lady!

One of my Albino Royals went 9 months without eating , then started ( after a short soak - oddly enough ) ... she's eaten everytime since ..


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The first time Geoffrey fasted I think he went 7 months from November to June. I was freaking out inside but he looked just fine. This year was his shortest and only 2 months but he’s been slightly more sporadic after starting to feed again. I forgot to pre and post weigh his fast this time but he looks just like he always does haha


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One of them took 6 months and 15 days. Other around 4 months.

My noodleprobably doesn’t count but he had me scared for almost 2 1/2 months...lost almost 30 gs.. but he has eaten the other day now and im happy... reading this thread makes me feel a little better being as my Spell is flakeyat best but almost eats every time and now that my baby has taken a meal I couldnt be happier.. I am glade all your animals are doingwell.. Thanks for the stories

My older guy went 8 months. He lost some weight but nothing crazy. Oddly enough after that he went almost 2 years and only refused a couple of times. Until now he's at about 2 months of refusing food.

Thanks. Yeah I'm kind of worried as she usually starts around Nov and ends around May. This year though, she ate up until January and then quit and now as of July 3rd, she still hasnt eaten. She looks fine and like i said, i had her out and was petting her while she sat on me and when i got down to her tail area and was petting it, she raised her tail up and kind of moved it side to side and stuff. Thought she was going to take a dump on me but when i stopped petting her tail, she stopped moving her tail and lifting it lol.

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Originally Posted by Sauzo

Thanks. Yeah I'm kind of worried as she usually starts around Nov and ends around May. This year though, she ate up until January and then quit and now as of July 3rd, she still hasnt eaten. She looks fine and like i said, i had her out and was petting her while she sat on me and when i got down to her tail area and was petting it, she raised her tail up and kind of moved it side to side and stuff. Thought she was going to take a dump on me but when i stopped petting her tail, she stopped moving her tail and lifting it lol.

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I think once these guys feel there’s love in the air, nothing else matters. Lmao

So when i weighed Dottie a couple week ago or somewhere around there, she was 1833 grams. But i guess she was getting ready to shed as last night she shed. So i weighed her tonight as she was out and about and causing a ruckus but still refused food. But anyways, she weighed 1708 grams after shed. No poop, no piss, just a shed which is pretty impressive since she hasnt eaten since mid January lol. But my question is can a BP lose 120ish grams from just a shed? I forgot to actually weigh her shed before i threw it out. Only checked to make sure eye caps and tail end came off. She looks good still, pretty streamline and not all fat like a stuffed sausage. But I'm just wondering about the weight loss pre and post shed. And it's been a little over 6 months now since she ate and I am actually starting to worry even though like i said, she looks fine and acts fine.

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Originally Posted by Sauzo

So when i weighed Dottie a couple week ago or somewhere around there, she was 1833 grams. But i guess she was getting ready to shed as last night she shed. So i weighed her tonight as she was out and about and causing a ruckus but still refused food. But anyways, she weighed 1708 grams after shed. No poop, no piss, just a shed which is pretty impressive since she hasnt eaten since mid January lol. But my question is can a BP lose 120ish grams from just a shed? I forgot to actually weigh her shed before i threw it out. Only checked to make sure eye caps and tail end came off. She looks good still, pretty streamline and not all fat like a stuffed sausage. But I'm just wondering about the weight loss pre and post shed. And it's been a little over 6 months now since she ate and I am actually starting to worry even though like i said, she looks fine and acts fine.

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I’ve experienced similar weight losses from those long fasts but never a dramatic all at once at the end like that, hopefully there might have been an error possibly on an earlier weigh in? As far as the shed goes, that’s usually a sign that the fast is coming to an end in my experience, I’ll have to double check my records. But after their shed, it seems they still take a couple of weeks till they finally start to take again. At least that’s been my experience so far. I’ve even stopped offering immediately after even a regular shed, and have learned to wait at least a week. Good luck and hopefully within a week or two she’ll return to eating.

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Originally Posted by Sonny1318

I’ve experienced similar weight losses from those long fasts but never a dramatic all at once at the end like that, hopefully there might have been an error possibly on an earlier weigh in? As far as the shed goes, that’s usually a sign that the fast is coming to an end in my experience, I’ll have to double check my records. But after their shed, it seems they still take a couple of weeks till they finally start to take again. At least that’s been my experience so far. I’ve even stopped offering immediately after even a regular shed, and have learned to wait at least a week. Good luck and hopefully within a week or two she’ll return to eating.

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Thanks. She was a terror last night after the shed lol. I let her out as she was doing a Caesar and pushing at the door and climbing all over her poor pothos plant. She played around on the bed a while. Then when i put her back, she went back to destroying her cage. Today though, she is quietly sleeping. Hopefully she does eat soon. I know BPs can go ages without food but i always get worried when she quits eating.

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Originally Posted by Sauzo

Thanks. She was a terror last night after the shed lol. I let her out as she was doing a Caesar and pushing at the door and climbing all over her poor pothos plant. She played around on the bed a while. Then when i put her back, she went back to destroying her cage. Today though, she is quietly sleeping. Hopefully she does eat soon. I know BPs can go ages without food but i always get worried when she quits eating.

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I had some scares myself since getting back in the hobby about 5 years ago. The first time my biggest boy stopped eating and we hit 5 months I told my wife for sure we’re going to wake to a dead snake. I kept reading these guys could do 7 to 9 months and remember reading about some rattler in captivity at a university going super crazy long. So I just crossed my fingers and prayed a little extra, lol. Now I have records that are scary similar regarding my 2 eldest’s fasting history. And don’t even sweat when someone refuses. They eat once a week, just a jumbo mouse. And then towards fall, either 2 every other feeding or I go to a five day schedule. I know you are very passionate about the hobby and your animals, and am often impressed by this. I hope your girl breaks her fast within the next 10 days or so. Best of luck buddy! The shed has been an awesome indicator for the fast nearing its end, in my humble experience.

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Originally Posted by Sonny1318

As far as the shed goes, that’s usually a sign that the fast is coming to an end in my experience,

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I'd agree with that too. My guy was almost on three months of no food then he shed then went right back on food.


How often do you offer food when she's not feeding?

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Originally Posted by fluffykitten

I'd agree with that too. My guy was almost on three months of no food then he shed then went right back on food.


How often do you offer food when she's not feeding?

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Usually every 2-3 weeks. Basically, I offer a weaned or small rat when it is Luna, Louie and Gina's feed day or a medium rat when it is Vicky and Rosey's feeding day. The little ones eat every 2-3 weeks and the big ones eat every 4 weeks.

Yep that's the same thing I do. If I know they are on strike I offer every two to three weeks. I don't want to offer too much and the fact that I hate wasting feeders. Hopefully you will be good to go now that she shed.

When was the last time you did a deep cleaning of her cage? The first time Geoffrey fasted it was like 6-7 months. Tried everything I could think of and then read an article about doing a full clean out after they shed so they sense that they’re in “new” feeding grounds. Ten minutes after I cleaned his cage he ate. That hasn’t been a consistent solution over the last few years for him but it might be worth a shot if you haven’t done a full cleaning recently?


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Well......I thought Dottie was back to eating. She ate a small rat back in the beginning of August and since then, hasnt wanted anything. So in close to 8 months, she has eaten once. She still looks ok, is alert when i take her out and still weighs in at around 1744 grams. This is by far the longest she has gone and the weird part is she ate through last winter but now fasted through this summer. Guess I'll just keep offering her a small rat every 2 weeks and see what happens lol. I swear...BPs.....heck even Luna finally switched over to FT rats. You cant approach her with it or she freaks out and machine guns it and runs away lol. But if you lay it on a piece of cardboard about 6 inches from her, she will stalk up to it and eat it.

And yeah, Jacob, I did do a cleaning. I even switched her back to aspen as that is what she was on since i got her as a baby. She ate SO well as a baby up until about a year old. Then she became the picky pita BP lol.

The longest mine went was 7 months. I moved houses twice during that time and it took her quite awhile to settle in I think. She's lost weight but thankfully is eating steadily now and about to shed as well. I spent the last couple of months anxious every day about her well-being but it seems we're out of the woods.
You're keeping tabs on her and that's what counts! I know how maddening it is.

Out of curiosity - for those who mention how long your snakes have fasted, how often do you feed when the snake isn’t fasting?

I often suspect that many of the famous BP “hunger strikes” are actually the snakes’ own way to regulate their food intake. In other words, if a snake eats every two weeks for six months and then fasts for six months, it’s the same number of feeds per year as a snake that eats once a month all year. Given that they are highly adapted to storing and using energy extremely efficiently in between huge meals, this isn’t unreasonable. Not to mention that many members of the same family of snakes naturally experience long annual fasts during breeding season or during times when prey is scarce; or alternatively, they are able to take advantage of brief periods of abundance by eating a lot all at once and living off of those reserves for long periods in between.

Plus, huge numbers of captive snakes are overfed and under-exercised, including ball pythons. Devoted owners want to do right by their pets, and it’s not intuitive to us to feed an animal once a month or less. Plus we base recommended feeding schedules off of what respected breeders do, and then apply them to animals that are not experiencing the huge metabolic cost of breeding. It’s like a human who isn’t pregnant basing their caloric needs on those of a human who is. Or we take the recommendations for feeding babies and apply them to adults that are not growing anymore. I know I don’t have the appetite I had when I was 16, do you?

Anyway, that’s not to say that husbandry issues, disease, and stress don’t cause fasts. But I do suspect that a lot of the fasts in *adult snakes* (not growing babies) that worry concerned keepers basically boil down to the snake just being legit not hungry for a few months because it’s had enough food for awhile.

Maybe that at least makes the fast less frustrating and worrisome. :)

One of my Albino Royals went 9 months without eating a thing ..

It suddenly lost all colour and started to look wrinkly ... I did some research and the suggestions online were that she was possibly dehydrated ..

I gave her a 25 minute soak after which she immediately looked plumper and regained colour .

She fed the very next day ..


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