Baby ball python not eating for 2.5 months

Hello, my baby ball python has refused food for around 2.5 months now and I’m wondering what my options are. I’m very scared she will starve herself to death. I have checked and double checked my husbandry, my temperatures and humidity are correct. She has gone from 230 grams to 190 grams. She only defensively strives at her food, never coils around it and does not take it when I leave it at the entrance of her hide. I’ve tried to feed her rat pups (which she ate before), smaller rats (fuzzies) and hopper mice. She is still shedding normally and active. I’ve tried to make her feel secure by downgrading from a 20 gallon to a 40 gallon (around 1.5 months ago), and blocked off the sides so she can’t see out.

would a vet be of help to me? Would they even be able to do anything or would it be a waste of money? Should I be searching for an organization that takes in reptiles? I really don’t want her to die. Any suggestions about what my options are are deeply appreciated!

side note: I wish I could add pictures of her and her enclosure here but I don’t seem to be able to without a url.... :/

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/show...-hatchling-101


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Originally Posted by Ryres5850

...side note: I wish I could add pictures of her and her enclosure here but I don’t seem to be able to without a url.... :/

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https://ball-pythons.net/forums/show...-Post-Pictures ;)


How often do you handle her? What kinds of hides does she have? Pics of set-up would help us to help you also.

I never handle her at all. Unfortunately I’m not very good with technology so I’ll have to figure out how to take pictures from my camera roll and put them
in here...

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I never handle her at all. Unfortunately I’m not very good with technology so I’ll have to figure out how to take pictures from my camera roll and put them
in here

Tapatalk app for your phone is infinitely easier for uploading pictures.


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Read the 101 sticky and try it. It worked for me. Imo 20 gallon is still way too big for a baby ball python. What seems small and claustrophobic to us is perfect for a scared little noodle. And the supplies listed are cheap.

I wouldn't take it to the vet unless there are signs of illness. The fact that she is defensive sounds like she is just scared. A trip to the vet will make her more stressed out, and some vets will force feed which makes it even worse. A snake that can eat should eat on their own. Force feeding is the last option.

Lastly, once you follow the steps, I would use a live rat pinkie that it was used to eating. If everything works out, you'll get a strike in a matter of seconds.

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...d2f1061e72.jpg
This is her enclosure. Sorry for the awkward angle, it’s in a raking system. The blacked out area is a F/T rat


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Originally Posted by Bogertophis

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/show...-Post-Pictures ;)


How often do you handle her? What kinds of hides does she have? Pics of set-up would help us to help you also.

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Okay I figured out the picture thing and added one to the thread. Thank you! https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...029febf81b.jpg
This is her. Does she look very underweight?


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Still looks healthy. Snakes won't starve themselves so I wouldn't worry about that. Do you know the temp of the food you're offering?

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I heat her food to around 100F, when she was eating for me she would only take it when it was this hot


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Nice looking BP. I have no idea why she stopped eating but they will do it sometimes for what seems like no good reason. I have a few snakes that go off food every year so it doesn’t phase me much. If you’re confident that your temps are dialed in I’d say just wait her out. I agree that a healthy animal won’t starve itself to death so just keep offering food every 2-4 weeks until she decides to eat again and know that they ALL eat eventually. Best wishes!

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Originally Posted by Ryres5850

I heat her food to around 100F, when she was eating for me she would only take it when it was this hot


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Ok well that's good, it's not a temp thing then. Do you wiggle them gently. I have a male who goes off every year during breeding season, he didn't eat for six months this year lmao, and generally won't eat till he's pooped, I don't get his logic and I've wasted a lot of feed because of him. Anyway he's really particular in movement of feed, he likes a very gentle kinda bounce/vibrate up and down movement. I also have a baby right now he struck 5 times before she took her feed, pretty weird but it was her first meal with me.

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Have you talked to who you bought it from about exactly how they fed it?

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She looks okay to me too- but it's just one distant view, so not the same as seeing in person or close up, etc.

I love this guide.https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...3d259aca18.jpg

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Agree with advice given, one other thought is give a good check for mites, nothing obvious in the picture but I have had one snake in the past go off feed and I didnt think anything of it, and during a cleaning day I decided to peek under his hide to make sure he was okay, I pulled him out to check his weight since he had gone off food for a bit and was :O when I found mites. Immediately treated him and his tub and he went back to eating the next week. Good luck, another suggestion for getting him eating again would be to try a live rat fuzzy or mouse. When feeding live you don't leave the snake alone you want to keep an eye on the situation and if the snake doesn't eat after 10 minutes I take the rat out. Shouldn't be an issue with a baby rat but just fyi for the future if you have to feed larger rats.

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Originally Posted by Ryres5850

Okay I figured out the picture thing and added one to the thread. Thank you! https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...029febf81b.jpg
This is her. Does she look very underweight?


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Aside from anything else - that is an absolutely gorgeous critter !!!

Certainly doesn’t look underweight to me


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May I ask what you’re using to take the surface temperatures ??
Hopefully nothing like these ..

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...af7068f012.jpg


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Oh and I’ve taken the liberty of sending you instructions for the hairdryer method of feeding thawed frozen mice / rats !!

You can thank me later ..... lol

:)



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Originally Posted by Zincubus

Oh and I’ve taken the liberty of sending you instructions for the hairdryer method of feeding thawed frozen mice / rats !!

You can thank me later ..... lol

:)



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Lol I used to do that, I just use a folded heat pad for my cramps now. Little rat juice never hurt no one (kidding lol).

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Quote:

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Originally Posted by Zincubus

Oh and I’ve taken the liberty of sending you instructions for the hairdryer method of feeding thawed frozen mice / rats !!

You can thank me later ..... lol

:)



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Hi Zincubus, can you sent it to me too please? Some of my snakes don't seem to like like dripping wet food with the hot water method. I find it hard to get a temperature that lasts a reasonable length of time with the hairdryer.

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Originally Posted by Ascended

Hi Zincubus, can you sent it to me too please? Some of my snakes don't seem to like like dripping wet food with the hot water method. I find it hard to get a temperature that lasts a reasonable length of time with the hairdryer.

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Just sent it now :)


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Quote:

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Originally Posted by Zincubus

Just sent it now :)


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Thanks so much for the message sharing your experience:gj: I will try your advice.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Zincubus

May I ask what you’re using to take the surface temperatures ??
Hopefully nothing like these ..

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...af7068f012.jpg


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I use a temp gun. Also thanks for the advice on the hairdryer method, I will be trying next time I attempt to feed her !


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she is gorgeous. oh, my word.

For the record also, be sure to increase the amount of time between feedings. Is there belly heat in the enclosure? I know you said that you checked and triple checked the husbandry. Can you describe it in a little more detail? Thanks.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Zincubus

Just sent it now :)


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Me three? :D

I've had my first two BP for just over a month now, female has eaten 3/4 times offered and the male 0/4...so I'd like to give this a shot; water cools down SO FAST as well.

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Originally Posted by Albert Clark

For the record also, be sure to increase the amount of time between feedings. Is there belly heat in the enclosure? I know you said that you checked and triple checked the husbandry. Can you describe it in a little more detail? Thanks.

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What's the purpose of waiting longer between offering if a BP refuses? I'm still learning and this is the first I've heard of this! If I normally feed once every 7 days, if they refuse I wait 14 or something?

GL OP, hope that beauty eats for you soon!

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Originally Posted by Ergot

...What's the purpose of waiting longer between offering if a BP refuses? I'm still learning and this is the first I've heard of this! If I normally feed once every 7 days, if they refuse I wait 14 or something? ...

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The purpose is to give the snake time to de-stress, & have time to feel hungry. Snakes (esp. BPs) are shy, & if you keep offering food too often, it may just stress them into more refusals, depending of course on the reason they've been refusing. Many times snakes are handled too much, & may then refuse to eat. Allowing more time between meals (without handling-I would add) gives them time to relax (feel "safe") and to feel hunger. Think about it- if you're genuinely afraid of something, you're not thinking about food either. Same thing for snakes. It helps to have empathy to what they might be feeling- they certainly cannot "tell you", but with practice, we can often correctly infer. With a young snake that happens to refuse, I'd do NO handling & offer again in a week (IF the snake is not showing signs of being in shed); but, if the refusal to eat continues more than 2 or 3 times, you'd definitely want to lengthen the time between offerings.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Ergot

Me three? :D

I've had my first two BP for just over a month now, female has eaten 3/4 times offered and the male 0/4...so I'd like to give this a shot; water cools down SO FAST as well.



What's the purpose of waiting longer between offering if a BP refuses? I'm still learning and this is the first I've heard of this! If I normally feed once every 7 days, if they refuse I wait 14 or something?

GL OP, hope that beauty eats for you soon!

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Feeding every ten to 14 days works wonderfully well with Royal Pythons in my experience..

Of course my Kings and Corn snakes would eat every day though
:)


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Quote:

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Originally Posted by Ergot

Me three? :D

I've had my first two BP for just over a month now, female has eaten 3/4 times offered and the male 0/4...so I'd like to give this a shot; water cools down SO FAST as well.



What's the purpose of waiting longer between offering if a BP refuses? I'm still learning and this is the first I've heard of this! If I normally feed once every 7 days, if they refuse I wait 14 or something?

GL OP, hope that beauty eats for you soon!

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Ergot, first of all thank you for your comments. The purpose of waiting is multifaceted. Primarily, to give the reptile the benefit of the possibility he’s just not hungry. Secondly, he may not desire the prey that’s being offered because it’s not presented properly or just because his interest and feeding response hasn’t been triggered. Also, he may be in a breeding mode where he’s really not interested in feeding. Then again, maybe he’s approaching the 1000 gm. wall where refusing to feed is common behavior in some reptiles. Another thing is maybe the animal is ill and has become anorexic. The possibilities are many, and because it’s the first you’re hearing of it doesn’t mean that it’s unheard of! And that it’s not sound reputable advice.

I realize the animal is only 190 gms down from his original 230gms. So I know it’s not the 1000 gm. wall theory on refusing. At his age he should be a feeding machine where they utilize a big portion of their meals for growth and have very little waste. He can’t be in a breeding mode either however the handling and environmental possibilities should be explored more.

I hope the snake has eaten since then as the OP posted this in June last year >_>;

Be careful pulling up older threads and commenting instead of making a new one or checking the stickies?
Ergot has gotten some good advice though at least!

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Originally Posted by Armiyana

I hope the snake has eaten since then as the OP posted this in June last year >_>;

Be careful pulling up older threads and commenting instead of making a new one or checking the stickies.

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Armiyana, this thread was pulled up previously by Aplahz 3/11/2022 and responded to by several other members. Old threads are quite often resurrected due to a interest by someone. They become answers for keepers in similar situations and circumstances. I did check the date but saw several responses and decided to chime in.

It just feels like this has been happening a lot more lately.
The comment that necro'd it was about how pretty the animal is, which you replied to about upping the time between feedings like it wasn't from 9 months prior.

Yes, it sparked more conversation from a member who hadn't seen the thread, but it seems counterproductive to keep talking about an animal who's owner just dropped off with no further info instead of a new post that maybe references the thread instead. I honestly only checked in on this because I hoped it was an update from OP.

I'm probably just a bit biased from how other forums I poke around are regarding necros and lacking in patience after some of my own day to day stresses though. So for that I do apologize!

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Originally Posted by Armiyana

It just feels like this has been happening a lot more lately.
The comment that necro'd it was about how pretty the animal is, which you replied to about upping the time between feedings like it wasn't from 9 months prior.

Yes, it sparked more conversation from a member who hadn't seen the thread, but it seems counterproductive to keep talking about an animal who's owner just dropped off with no further info instead of a new post that maybe references the thread instead. I honestly only checked in on this because I hoped it was an update from OP.

I'm probably just a bit biased from how other forums I poke around are regarding necros and lacking in patience after some of my own day to day stresses though. So for that I do apologize!

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No need to apologize. It’s possible someone else may have / be in a similar predicament. Whereby the responses can be more helpful than hurtful.