First feeding mishap

Feed Mysic this evening. Took the rat like normal, with no problem. As I was watching him eat(cus I'm a weirdo) I notice that Mystic didnt have the rat feet in his mouth so as he was swallowing the feet of the rat would get in the way to the point that he couldn't go down any further. I wanted to help but decided not to and let him handle it on his own. I left him alone and came back a while later and found out that he didnt eat the rat. :( I would assume because he was having difficulties. Which I get. Now I'm uncertain. Should I try to feed him another rat or wait until next Sunday(which is feeding day for him) to try to feed him.

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Originally Posted by Mc.mischievous7

Feed Mysic this evening. Took the rat like normal, with no problem. As I was watching him eat(cus I'm a weirdo) I notice that Mystic didnt have the rat feet in his mouth so as he was swallowing the feet of the rat would get in the way to the point that he couldn't go down any further. I wanted to help but decided not to and let him handle it on his own. I left him alone and came back a while later and found out that he didnt eat the rat. :( I would assume because he was having difficulties. Which I get. Now I'm uncertain. Should I try to feed him another rat or wait until next Sunday(which is feeding day for him) to try to feed him.

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First off never leave a feeding unattended until it has been fully swallowed and down. You could have came back to a dead snake. Also never attempt to help force feed or help remove a feed from the snakes mouth as it can hurt the snake and/or result in death.

Now as I understand from your post your snake was trying to eat, but rejected the rat? I’m not there but do you think the rat was to large for snake to Handle and it rejected it? Since it rejected it you should wait a week and get a rat half the size even smaller and feed the snake to help get the snake back to normal


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Originally Posted by nightscavenger

First off never leave a feeding unattended until it has been fully swallowed and down. You could have came back to a dead snake. Also never attempt to help force feed or help remove a feed from the snakes mouth as it can hurt the snake and/or result in death.

Now as I understand from your post your snake was trying to eat, but rejected the rat? I’m not there but do you think the rat was to large for snake to Handle and it rejected it? Since it rejected it you should wait a week and get a rat half the size even smaller and feed the snake to help get the snake back to normal


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I could of came back with a dead snake? Omg! Please elaborate on that. I never heard of that before. The rat size is what the breeder was feeding him. He has been doing great with eating the rats, it's just this time he was having difficulties because of the rats feet being in the way.

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I don't understand either...all rats do have feet! :rolleyes: It sounds to me as if the rat was too large for your snake. Or was he trying to swallow it backwards?
The breeder may have been trying to accelerate his growth by feeding larger prey, so don't assume that what he was feeding was the right size for your snake.

For what it's worth, I've been at this many years & I've never heard of anyone coming back to a dead snake that swallowed wrong, though it's possible for a snake
to be injured from swallowing something way too big & then getting further injury from regurgitating it, but I'm just not sure what difference it would make if you
were standing right there...you can't pull the rodent back out when a snake is swallowing it. A snake CAN die from swallowing prey that's too large, it's just not
very common.

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Originally Posted by Mc.mischievous7

I could of came back with a dead snake? Omg! Please elaborate on that. I never heard of that before. The rat size is what the breeder was feeding him. He has been doing great with eating the rats, it's just this time he was having difficulties because of the rats feet being in the way.

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Maybe nightscavenger is assuming it was a LIVE feed ...


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Originally Posted by Bogertophis

I don't understand either...all rats do have feet! :rolleyes: It sounds to me as if the rat was too large for your snake. Or was he trying to swallow it backwards?
The breeder may have been trying to accelerate his growth by feeding larger prey, so don't assume that what he was feeding was the right size for your snake.

For what it's worth, I've been at this many years & I've never heard of anyone coming back to a dead snake that swallowed wrong, though it's possible for a snake
to be injured from swallowing something way too big & then getting further injury from regurgitating it, but I'm just not sure what difference it would make if you
were standing right there...you can't pull the rodent back out when a snake is swallowing it. A snake CAN die from swallowing prey that's too large, it's just not
very common.

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Ofc all rats have feet. I wasnt saying that they dont. What I said was that the feet of the rat was preventing him from swallowing. Because the rats gets was up towards the rats head. When Mystic attacked it he didnt put the feet of the rat in his mouth. So it prevented him from eating it whole. [emoji2362]

And I feed him the same size rats the breeder was feeding him because it was recommended. So now I'm not suppose to follow the same rat size the breeder fed the snake. Smdh.

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Originally Posted by Zincubus

Maybe nightscavenger is assuming it was a LIVE feed ...


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[emoji2362] yea u are problem right.

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Quote:

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Originally Posted by Mc.mischievous7

I could of came back with a dead snake? Omg! Please elaborate on that. I never heard of that before. The rat size is what the breeder was feeding him. He has been doing great with eating the rats, it's just this time he was having difficulties because of the rats feet being in the way.

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What I meant by rejection was the rat could have been too big, like I said I’m not there. Could of also rejected it because it could have started eating from the back end and just couldn’t get it down and decided meh I don’t want it. Now speaking on coming back to a dead snake, these guys are correct it not very common at all but it can happen. I should have better clarified myself on the part. I never leave a snake unattended I’m there all the way till I see a complete swallowing just Incase for some spook reason the feed gets stuck somehow.


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Originally Posted by nightscavenger

What I meant by rejection was the rat could have been too big, like I said I’m not there. Could of also rejected it because it could have started eating from the back end and just couldn’t get it down and decided meh I don’t want it. Now speaking on coming back to a dead snake, these guys are correct it not very common at all but it can happen. I should have better clarified myself on the part. I never leave a snake unattended I’m there all the way till I see a complete swallowing just Incase for some spook reason the feed gets stuck somehow.


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"Meh, I dont want it" lmbo made me laugh. He ate it from the front and couldn't get it down because of the rat feet. I wish I could draw a diagram for you but I SUCK at drawing. Lol. But I know not to leave him unattended again when it comes to his feeding. I thought we as snake owner was suppose to leave them alone while they were eating and a few days later after their meal. Thought I was being a weirdo by watching him eat the previous times before. Lol. Thanks for your advice and tip. I will let him be for now on and try to feed him again later on in the week.

He is eating f/t weaned rats. Is that too big of a rat for a 222g ball python?

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Originally Posted by Mc.mischievous7

"Meh, I dont want it" lmbo made me laugh. He ate it from the front and couldn't get it down because of the rat feet. I wish I could draw a diagram for you but I SUCK at drawing. Lol. But I know not to leave him unattended again when it comes to his feeding. I thought we as snake owner was suppose to leave them alone while they were eating and a few days later after their meal. Thought I was being a weirdo by watching him eat the previous times before. Lol. Thanks for your advice and tip. I will let him be for now on and try to feed him again later on in the week.

He is eating f/t weaned rats. Is that too big of a rat for a 222g ball python?

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Does seem weird lol, I don’t hover over it while it’s eating I’m back away but can still keep eyes on it. And yes you don’t want to handle it for at least 3 days after it’s meal.


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Originally Posted by nightscavenger

Does seem weird lol, I don’t hover over it while it’s eating I’m back away but can still keep eyes on it. And yes you don’t want to handle it for at least 3 days after it’s meal.


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I just find it very fascinating the way their body move when they are eating. Dont ask me why I do not know. Lmbo. Yea, I dont handle him at all for a few days.

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Originally Posted by Mc.mischievous7

Ofc all rats have feet. I wasnt saying that they dont. What I said was that the feet of the rat was preventing him from swallowing. Because the rats gets was up towards the rats head. When Mystic attacked it he didnt put the feet of the rat in his mouth. So it prevented him from eating it whole. [emoji2362]

And I feed him the same size rats the breeder was feeding him because it was recommended. So now I'm not suppose to follow the same rat size the breeder fed the snake. Smdh.

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Normally when a snake swallows a rodent head-first, the feet (front or back) are flexible and can be swallowed easily.

The only thing I can think of besides the rat being WAY too big is if the rodent was dead a while before freezing, so that rigor mortis made the body stiff...thus, even when thawed the legs & feet were not flexible.

You perhaps need a better supplier of rodents, IF this was the case...as rodents dead long enough to get stiff have started to spoil prior to freezing. And that
is unacceptable.

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Originally Posted by Bogertophis

Normally when a snake swallows a rodent head-first, the feet (front or back) are flexible and can be swallowed easily.

The only thing I can think of besides the rat being WAY too big is if the rodent was dead a while before freezing, so that rigor mortis made the body stiff...thus, even when thawed the legs & feet were not flexible.

You perhaps need a better supplier of rodents, IF this was the case...as rodents dead long enough to get stiff have started to spoil prior to freezing. And that
is unacceptable.

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[emoji2962][emoji45][emoji29] now you got me nervous. The company that I got the f/t from was from perfect prey.

I do have a question, when you recieved your f/t in the mail. Do you put the f/t in plastic bags? And put them in your freezer. Because that's what I did. I just wanted to see if I made a mistake in regards to his food.

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Originally Posted by Mc.mischievous7

He is eating f/t weaned rats. Is that too big of a rat for a 222g ball python?

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Weaned rats are definitely pretty big for a 222 gram ball python.

Typical feeding chart calls for rat pups (20-29 grams) until they weigh about 350g. Then weaned rats up to 500g (rats weighing 30-49 grams)

I don't have a pic of the chart, can anyone else link it?


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Originally Posted by pretends2bnormal

Weaned rats are definitely pretty big for a 222 gram ball python.

Typical feeding chart calls for rat pups (20-29 grams) until they weigh about 350g. Then weaned rats up to 500g (rats weighing 30-49 grams)

I don't have a pic of the chart, can anyone else link it?


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Yea, I just saw the chart when I was searching through the forums. -facepalm- I will have to order rat pups.

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Originally Posted by Mc.mischievous7

Yea, I just saw the chart when I was searching through the forums. -facepalm- I will have to order rat pups.

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Generally they can manage the feet just fine on the right size prey, so that shouldn't be a concern with the rat pups.

Look on the bright side, at least you won't need to order weaned rats when your BP outgrows the rat pups!

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Originally Posted by pretends2bnormal

Generally they can manage the feet just fine on the right size prey, so that shouldn't be a concern with the rat pups.

Look on the bright side, at least you won't need to order weaned rats when your BP outgrows the rat pups!

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Lmbo!!! Right! My poor snake was eating the wrong size rats! I just hope the rat pups are cheaper than the weaned rats. Lol

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Originally Posted by Mc.mischievous7

Lmbo!!! Right! My poor snake was eating the wrong size rats! I just hope the rat pups are cheaper than the weaned rats. Lol

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They're usually cheaper per prey item, but smaller prey is often sold in larger packs, so total cost may be more. I haven't seen the prices on them lately nor looked at Perfect Prey specifically, since Big Cheese is closer/cheaper for me.

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Originally Posted by pretends2bnormal

They're usually cheaper per prey item, but smaller prey is often sold in larger packs, so total cost may be more. I haven't seen the prices on them lately nor looked at Perfect Prey specifically, since Big Cheese is closer/cheaper for me.

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Mmm...yea Iam check it out. Man oh man. -facepalm-

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I was just gonna suggest cutting the legs off next time before you said it's been getting the wrong sized rat :)

Years ago I took on two Royals as a favour but they only are thawed frozen chicks !!

I felt terrible feeding those cute little yellow chicks so I snipped all their heads and feet off '

It was much 'easier' to feed them little balls of fluff :)


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Originally Posted by Zincubus

I was just gonna suggest cutting the legs off next time before you said it's been getting the wrong sized rat :)

Years ago I took on two Royals as a favour but they only are thawed frozen chicks !!

I felt terrible feeding those cute little yellow chicks so I snipped all their heads and feet off '

It was much 'easier' to feed them little balls of fluff :)


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Awww that was sweet of you. Here I was thinking that he was eating the right size rats because he took the last two with no problem. Well it seem like it wasnt a problem. My poor Mystic.

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Originally Posted by Mc.mischievous7

Awww that was sweet of you. Here I was thinking that he was eating the right size rats because he took the last two with no problem. Well it seem like it wasnt a problem. My poor Mystic.

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They can "handle" bigger prey than you would think, but it isn't good for them to do it regularly (or really at all). It usually takes them extra time to digest and extra energy which can be a big problem with a snake with any other health issues or under severe stress.

Mystic will probably be just fine as long as you get the right sizes from now on. The biggest issue is usually fully swallowing and regurgitating the meal a few days later. Spitting it out before getting it down is not nearly as rough on them. The week off while you get rat pups may even give him a bit of a break from all that digesting he did before.

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Originally Posted by pretends2bnormal

They can "handle" bigger prey than you would think, but it isn't good for them to do it regularly (or really at all). It usually takes them extra time to digest and extra energy which can be a big problem with a snake with any other health issues or under severe stress.

Mystic will probably be just fine as long as you get the right sizes from now on. The biggest issue is usually fully swallowing and regurgitating the meal a few days later. Spitting it out before getting it down is not nearly as rough on them. The week off while you get rat pups may even give him a bit of a break from all that digesting he did before.

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Thanks for the advice. I will be doing that. [emoji1419]

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If you've been feeding weekly, I'd wait two weeks after this last 'super-sized' meal...& then only if he's not going into shed.

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Originally Posted by Bogertophis

If you've been feeding weekly, I'd wait two weeks after this last 'super-sized' meal...& then only if he's not going into shed.

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Just to clarify, are you suggesting 2 weeks total, or 2 weeks from this failed attempt?

Sounded like this feed was a fail, spat back out, so next weekend would be 2 weeks from the last meal he actually ate.

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Originally Posted by pretends2bnormal

Just to clarify, are you suggesting 2 weeks total, or 2 weeks from this failed attempt?

Sounded like this feed was a fail, spat back out, so next weekend would be 2 weeks from the last meal he actually ate.

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Bogertophis is basically saying since he failed to eat, you should wait at least two weeks before trying again, then after that you can go back to normal feeding.


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Originally Posted by nightscavenger

Bogertophis is basically saying since he failed to eat, you should wait at least two weeks before trying again, then after that you can go back to normal feeding.


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Not necessarily. They said to wait the 2 weeks after the last over size meal (i.e. last week), not the last over size feed attempt (i.e. this week).

I just wanted bogertophis to clarify for everyone, due to the potential misinterpretation. I'm not sure which of us is correct, but my interpretation is the opposite of yours.

Either way, not my snake/situation, so the answer isn't going to impact me at all.

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Originally Posted by pretends2bnormal

Not necessarily. They said to wait the 2 weeks after the last over size meal (i.e. last week), not the last over size feed attempt (i.e. this week).

I just wanted bogertophis to clarify for everyone, due to the potential misinterpretation. I'm not sure which of us is correct, but my interpretation is the opposite of yours.

Either way, not my snake/situation, so the answer isn't going to impact me at all.

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Last comment wasnt neccessary. We understand it's not your situation or snake but I understood what he said by "waiting two weeks" Seems like you were the one who was misunderstood.

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Originally Posted by Bogertophis

If you've been feeding weekly, I'd wait two weeks after this last 'super-sized' meal...& then only if he's not going into shed.

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[emoji1419]

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Thank you all for your suggestions and advice. 1. I will be ordering his pups rats this week
2. I wont feed him until December.

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Originally Posted by Mc.mischievous7

Last comment wasnt neccessary. We understand it's not your situation or snake but I understood what he said by "waiting two weeks" Seems like you were the one who was misunderstood.

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No offense was meant by it. It felt like I was being responded to as the OP and wanted to keep it clear since nightscavenger is newer to the forum.

I was only trying to clarify if by 2 weeks it was meant to wait until Dec 2nd (2 weeks past last eaten meal) or Dec 9th (2 weeks past last offered meal). I read it as Dec 2nd, and nightscavenger reads it as Dec 9th.

Folks on this forum often seem to take my posts poorly, so I will be sure to stay quiet about it in the future.

Best of luck with your snake.



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Originally Posted by pretends2bnormal

No offense was meant by it. It felt like I was being responded to as the OP and wanted to keep it clear since nightscavenger is newer to the forum.

I was only trying to clarify if by 2 weeks it was meant to wait until Dec 2nd (2 weeks past last eaten meal) or Dec 9th (2 weeks past last offered meal). I read it as Dec 2nd, and nightscavenger reads it as Dec 9th.

Folks on this forum often seem to take my posts poorly, so I will be sure to stay quiet about it in the future.

Best of luck with your snake.



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There was a little confusion, I admit that, I should of clarified myself a little better about the meal you offered and it refused it. You are correct I’m new to this forum. And my apologies to you if I had made you feel as if you were the OP as that was not my intentions.


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Originally Posted by pretends2bnormal

No offense was meant by it. It felt like I was being responded to as the OP and wanted to keep it clear since nightscavenger is newer to the forum.

I was only trying to clarify if by 2 weeks it was meant to wait until Dec 2nd (2 weeks past last eaten meal) or Dec 9th (2 weeks past last offered meal). I read it as Dec 2nd, and nightscavenger reads it as Dec 9th.

Folks on this forum often seem to take my posts poorly, so I will be sure to stay quiet about it in the future.

Best of luck with your snake.



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I accept your apology. It was how you said it. It came off as rude. But it's all good. Like I said I appreciate your help in this situation. It was greatly appreciated.

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