still hungry?

I just fed my 18'' bp a live hopper, and its been about an hour and hes pretty active, roaming around the box. Should I offer him a thawed pinky?

You should feed the snake something that is about equal to it's girth size.

Yeah, the mouse was about the size of the snake... but the snake is moving around the box like he is hungry.... aren't they supposed to be calm after eating?

Yeah, how long have you had him?

I got him like 2 weeks ago, this is the third time ive fed him (the first two were thawed pinkies) and someone suggested that he was starving so i bumped up to a live hopper. he was moving around in the cardboard box i feed him in, but i just put him back in his tank and he went into his hide.

well if he is hanging out in his hide, he was probably just looking at the box. If he moved around inside the cage too, then bump it up to a little bigger next time you feed him. He will be ok until next week. They can go a while with no food at all.

Pinks & hoppers are not appropriate-sized meals for most 18" ball pythons. At a foot & a half in length, your snake should most likely be eating adult mice or rat pups. It is OK to feed your ball python a meal that leaves a small but noticeable bulge in it, especially as it's young & growing. You don't want to overfeed, but you don't want to underfeed, either.

Feeding a ball python that size a pinky is like you sitting down in anticipation of Thanksgiving dinner & only being served a CheezIt.

Make sense? :)

K~

an adult mouse? really? I fed it the hopper, which was the size of the snakes width, and I was worried that it was too big for him.

Some snakes stay in 'feeding mode' after eating.

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Originally Posted by westherocker

an adult mouse? really? I fed it the hopper, which was the size of the snakes width, and I was worried that it was too big for him.

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Live rodents also look a lot bigger prior to being constricted. If you've ever handled a pre-killed or thawed rodent, you'll notice how "streamlined" and soft they become, and how compacted by the motions of constriction & swallowing. I'm willing to bet a hopper didn't put much of a dent in your snake. No, it doesn't mean he's starving to death, just that you may want to consider upping his prey size to something a bit more substantial for a young, growing animal.

yea mine is the same size and she usually eats a live adult mouse.

Yea I have about a 19 inch or so baby ball. I feed "her" a live adult mouse every thursday. I have about a 4 footer as well and "he" gets a live medium rat weekly.

I suggest getting a cheap digital scale(35$)... I was in your shoes one time but when you actually put a mouse/rat on a scale and see that it weighs 8gs and your snake can handle 20g your like damn he was hungry. Mine will still cruise after they eat but to me it seems normal... im sure the movement helps get the meal in place and help begin digestion... i have no proof of this... just an educated guess.

I second investing in a digital scale that measures in grams. its been a great tool all the way around at home. i have an 18" female ball who now weighs 141grams and shes eating an adult mouse every five days. good luck with your animal!