My yearling BP eating a HUGE RAT

Hi guys,

Just want to share my year-old ball python eating a huge wild-caught rat in my house.

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...fe42d9e179.jpg
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...81c9effb8a.jpg

Huge lump
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...576085a4c4.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...7273d946f6.jpg
Thats what i call a happy meal!




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Wild caught? What do you mean by this?

I wouldnt do that. Way more likely to feed your snake something full of parasites and if it was alive way more likely to put up more of a fight and hurt your snake.

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Yeah, agree with the posts above, that rat could be carrying a kaleidoscope of diseases, and since it was wild-caught, that means it's at least competent at defending itself from predatirs so it could have very well killed your snake (if it was alive when you presented it). Great pics tho [emoji2]

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Originally Posted by BallPythonWannaBe

Wild caught? What do you mean by this?

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‘Wild’ as in scurrying around my house for months. Looks clean. Finally caught it today, stunned/killed it by hammer and fed it.


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"Looks clean" has gotten plenty of people into bad situations.

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Originally Posted by KFG_Reptiles

‘Wild’ as in scurrying around my house for months. Looks clean. Finally caught it today, stunned/killed it by hammer and fed it

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Got bad news for you. You don't normally have just one rat. They're social animals and live in communities. For every one you see, you can bet there a ten more you haven't.

We had mice in an apartment we lived in. No matter how many we caught there were always more. The only effective remedy was getting a cat. They disappeared real fast after she arrived. I hear dogs can be equally if not more effective also.

Good luck with that.

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Originally Posted by Hannahshissyfix

"Looks clean" has gotten plenty of people into bad situations.

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This. Wild rodents are often riddled with worms. Also as was pointed out rats live in colonies and if a neighbor put out poison for them then your snake would have eaten that too.

Never ever feed a wild rodent to your snake.

Yep that female didn't get herself pregnant and probably not her first pregnancy at that size. I hope you're able to get them taken care of fast. I had a lone male get into my basement a few years ago and cause literally thousands in damage. Ate holes through my basement steps, into the bottom of my kitchen cabinets, out the toe kick part under cabinets, then chew the wiring in my stove and destroy the whole thing.

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Originally Posted by bcr229

This. Wild rodents are often riddled with worms. Also as was pointed out rats live in colonies and if a neighbor put out poison for them then your snake would have eaten that too.

Never ever feed a wild rodent to your snake.

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Generally it’s a bad idea to feed your snake wild animals. If you have no way of verifying that animal is free of disease, parasites or poison, don’t risk it. Ever. Unless you have your own lab to do blood tests or X-ray vision, you can’t judge that by just looking at an animal.


Good luck. Hope your snake will be okay.

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Originally Posted by bcr229

if a neighbor put out poison for them then your snake would have eaten that too.

Never ever feed a wild rodent to your snake.

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I saw a dog get poisoned by thier owner because outdoor dog was catching the poisoned rats from the owner's garage when they tried stumbling away. Not a pretty sight with the bleedout.


Would have the same concerns with the reptiles.

I would get a fecal done now. As good as you intentions were, they can cause serious harm to your snake even dead. Bag up some poop and take it to the vet for a fecal. And watch your snake closely now.

Rat poison is effective for mammals, not birds and I am guessing not reptiles. However, that rat is way to big and could cause your snake big issues. At least skip two feedings. And yes, that rat has parisites which may or may not infect your pet. Yes you have more rats. You’ll want to get that under control before winter. Rats pee as they walk and do transmit disease to people. Put out rat poison. Buy the logs and thread a wire through it. Attach the wire to a brick or something heavy. Be sure other pets like dogs can not get to the poison. They love it too. Do not put poison outside as it will kill all the squirrels and othe non target critters. Just one bite is my favorite rat poison. Amazon has it cheapest. Good luck to you.

nice... the reactions on this thread sure ruined this guy's week.

(not disagreeing with any of your critism/"advice" but by reading some of your posts you'd think it was the end of the world)

Now he is probably freaking out over a possible rat infestation and/or thinking that now his ball python is on deaths door, unless it get severe medical attention NOW.

Guys, alittle subtlety can go along way.

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Originally Posted by Nz2500

nice... the reactions on this thread sure ruined this guy's week.

(not disagreeing with any of your critism/"advice" but by reading some of your posts you'd think it was the end of the world)

Now he is probably freaking out over a possible rat infestation and/or thinking that now his ball python is on deaths door, unless it get severe medical attention NOW.

Guys, alittle subtlety can go along way.

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If your neighbor's house was on fire would you give them hugs & kisses and ask about the grand kids before telling them? Couple of big red flags in OP's post that needed to be addressed swiftly.

OP - appropriately sourced and sized prey and you're good to go.

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Originally Posted by MissterDog

Generally it’s a bad idea to feed your snake wild animals. If you have no way of verifying that animal is free of disease, parasites or poison, don’t risk it. Ever. Unless you have your own lab to do blood tests or X-ray vision, you can’t judge that by just looking at an animal.


Good luck. Hope your snake will be okay.

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This ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ I'm in total agreement, I'd NEVER feed a wild-caught rodent to my snakes for all those same reasons (diseases, parasites, or carrying a less-than-
lethal dose of poison & other contamination), you cannot possibly tell by looking & it's very risky for your snake. Hope you remember to get the stool checked by a
vet in the future. Also I'm not a fan of feeding super-sized prey....hope your snake is OK.

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Originally Posted by hilabeans

If your neighbor's house was on fire would you give them hugs & kisses and ask about the grand kids before telling them? Couple of big red flags in OP's post that needed to be addressed swiftly.

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Not my point and you know this. I agree with all the advice, BUT you guys dont need to be so Melodramatic.

The other concern I would have is about you, KFG_Reptiles: you risk all sorts of disease just by handling that rat to feed your snake, things like leptospirosis,
not to mention they nearly always have fleas that can jump off in your home & cozy up to you or other warm-blooded pets. ("Do you feel lucky?" Well, do ya?)
I'm betting you never thought of that...;) just about getting rid of a pest & saving money on snake-food. It's not worth it, sorry.

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Originally Posted by Nz2500

Not my point and you know this. I agree with all the advice, BUT you guys dont need to be so Melodramatic.

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Oh nonsense, everyone was perfectly fine. Peeps need to have a bit of discernment when reading written replies since tone is nearly impossible to translate accurately. You can read drama into it if you want to or just take it for what it is - firm advice by way of safety warnings.

I betcha OP is totally ok. :gj:

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Originally Posted by bcr229

This. Wild rodents are often riddled with worms. Also as was pointed out rats live in colonies and if a neighbor put out poison for them then your snake would have eaten that too.

Never ever feed a wild rodent to your snake.

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This right here....

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Originally Posted by Nz2500

Not my point and you know this. I agree with all the advice, BUT you guys dont need to be so Melodramatic.

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I think it's important to remember this is a public forum. Anyone can read this thread. Anyone can look at OP's post and think feeding wild rats is totally acceptable. This is why it's important for the community to point out red flags. Both so OP can understand the risk they just took and hopefully take this as a lesson not to try feeding wild rats again

AND for those reading this thread, new snake keepers or those learning about snake keeping to understand this is a dangerous practice. Everything everyone says or shares on the forum is setting an example for newbies. Be it good or bad.


You call it melodramatic but everyone responded appropriately to address that this is a serious matter that OP needs to take responsibility for. You can't address something that should be taken seriously by being light hearted and dissmissive.

Perhaps you think it's overreacting but we rather point out the concequences of what could happen rather than brushing things off as "yeah you're fine nothing to worry about. COOL PICS!"

Anyways my hope is that OP's bp will be fine.

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Originally Posted by Bogertophis

The other concern I would have is about you, KFG_Reptiles: you risk all sorts of disease just by handling that rat to feed your snake, things like leptospirosis,
not to mention they nearly always have fleas that can jump off in your home & cozy up to you or other warm-blooded pets. ("Do you feel lucky?" Well, do ya?)
I'm betting you never thought of that...;) just about getting rid of a pest & saving money on snake-food. It's not worth it, sorry.

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+1 for the Dirty Harry reference!

@OP

While walking my dogs I have found "clean" looking pieces of meat lying around but you can bet that I never allow them to eat random, unknown meat. Not worth the risk. It should be the same concept with your snake.

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Originally Posted by Ladybugzcrunch

Rat poison is effective for mammals, not birds and I am guessing not reptiles.

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Certain rat poisons do affect birds as well - I do wild bird rehab and we’ve treated birds of prey that have succumbed to eating rodents that had eaten poison that had not died yet.



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Originally Posted by Nz2500

Now he is probably freaking out over a possible rat infestation ....

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Rodents are no joke. If the OP really thought he had just one rat, the biggest favor anyone could do him is to point out how wrong he is.

Really, you need to come down on that problem like a ton of bricks, no punches pulled. Rats are the worst sort of vermin. They breed exponentially, carry disease, piss all along their trails, and worst of all, they are surprisingly intelligent.

I don’t get this. Would you feed your dog a cat the neighbor just ran over. If a rat from my colony hits the floor and I don’t catch it within eyesight, than when it’s caught, it’s killed and tossed in the trash. I’m not putting my animals lives at risk for 1.00 rat. Good luck though... posts like this are helpful to some. I know I would never buy or sell to the OP.