BABY ball python what should it eat?

So I got my baby ball python from a reptile store. I asked the owner what are they feeding him. They said a fuzzy mouse. So he gave me a fuzzy mouse for free to try and feed him. So I got home let my snake get use to the house. Then I gave him the fuzzy mouse and he ate it right away.. Now, a week later I got him another fuzzy mouse. I just want to make sure I am feeding him the right size mouse since he is small and a baby? not even over 14 or 17 inch long.

If anything, a fuzzy mouse is too small of a meal for your BP. You might want to move up to at least hopper mice. Generally as long as the prey item is no bigger than the girth of the biggest part of your BP, you should be ok.

I fed Furio fuzzies when he was that little for about a month before switching to hoppers now he's up to adult mice.

So...I should start feeding it hopper mice? If so, I'll do it next week.

I would say you probably could.

I feed hatchlings hopper mice or rat pinks.

What does your snake weigh?

I don't think weight matter since he ate lol.

Ummm- weight matters. Lots of people feed about 10% of the body weight. It's length that doesn't matter.

Well I dont know how to weigh him.

Just to echo what Starmom said, most keepers judge meal size on the weight of the snake. I'm also a proponent of the 10% rule. You can weigh the snake on any kitchen scale, preferably a digital scale, and preferably in grams.

Steve

I am trying to feed it right now a frozen one. but Im scared to transfer my snake since its in a corner in a ball. Last time I tried to pick him up he striked at me. What should I do?

Go for it anyways... It's a baby ball python... they have tiny little teeth. 99.9% of the time they're bluffing anyways. It would be like a paper cut. Just be confident. I'm a huge supporter of the "confidence is key" theory.

Just leave it in the enclosure. They feed much better in their own home, and you won't have to stress it out, possibly causing a regurgitation, by moving it to another cage.

It is a myth that they will associate you coming into their home as food.

Why do you want to transfer your snake? They don't need to be transfered.
If you smell like rat then there is a good chance you will get tagged. It won't hurt but it's kind of silly to do.
Just feed your snake in its enclosure.
Since your snake is balled up, sounds like he's stressed. Has he taken the prey?

Now its in its den what should i do lol. im a new snake owner. sorry.

Don't apologize- we were all first time snake owners once and we've all been where you are now :)
Tell me what you have done so far and what the snake's response was.

I try to pick up the den and he just back his head away.

I have to agree with SatanicIntention...leave him in the enclosure to feed. I used to feed in a seperate tub and often enough would (once is too many!!) have a regurgitation or was struck at because the snake was still in feeding mode.
It is essential you overcome your fear of being bitten in order to properly care for your snake. Try handling with gloves for awhile and work up to bare handed. Before you pick him up....each time...touch him on his side, pet him once or twice...then pick him up....that way, he'll get used to the pet and touch and associate it with being picked up.

Get a scale that weighs in grams as it's very important to track their weight and growth...that information is extremely helpful for vet visits and for your own information

good luck with your little guy! :)

Actualy I have held my snake three times, but yesterday he try to strike at me two times! So I kinda got scared. Also I feed frozen. He use to eat live now frozen.

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Originally Posted by Rarist

Actualy I have held my snake three times, but yesterday he try to strike at me two times! So I kinda got scared. Also I feed frozen. He use to eat live now frozen.

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Leave the warmed up prey just outside of the hide....he'll probably take it when you leave...check back in a half hour or so....leave him alone for a few days if he does not take it, then try again

Okay, here's what I do:
I always pre-scent the room with the prey. Since you have one snake, put the prey right by it's enclosure so he can smell it and get the hunt mode going on.
I wait until dark since these snakes are nocturnal and seem to do their hunting at night.
I use a hair dryer to get the prey all warmed up, concentrating mostly on the head area (wit a fuzzy, just zap it!)
After about a minute I offer it to the snake.
WHAM!! The snake tags it, coils it, and eats it.

It truly sounds like your snake is freaked out. Please try the above suggestions and wait until dark to feed; it might help.

If the snake refuses, wait for a week and try again, with a larger prey size. In the meantime, get a gram scale ;)

Yea my snake just tried to strike at me again and all I did was take the basking light off the cage top!!! What should I do? I also want to feed it in a separate container so it won't bite me when I try to pick it up. Please help!

BPs strike for one of 2 reasons. Either they are hungry and think the thing they are striking at is food, or they are scared and are striking defensively. When you get to know your BP better, you will learn the difference.

Since earlier in the thread you were talking about the BP being balled up, it sounds to me like it is scared and defensive. However, if you've had the prey item in the room and it has been able to smell it, it might be in hunting mode, so it is pretty much impossible to know for sure what is going on.

One thing you need to realize is that if a baby ball python does bite you, it isn't going to hurt. Someone compared it to a paper cut. Actually, in my experience, a baby BP bite hurts much LESS than a paper cut.

You do not need to feed it in a separate container. You should be doing things in your BPs cage on at least close to a daily basis (giving fresh water, etc), so there will be more times that you open the enclosure when you aren't feeding than when you are. So the myth that feeding them in the caqe makes them associate it with food and become more aggressive just isn't true.

As far as feeding, once it is defrosted, just warm up the prey item to a suitable temperature (slightly warmer than human body temperature), and offer it to the snake. Some will take it off the floor of their enclosure, others need the movement to stimulate them, so you can dance the mouse around a little bit. When I first switched my BP to f/t, there was a fine line between moving the mouse enough to catch her attention, and moving it too much and scaring her. You'll learn what works for your BP.

Also, as has been mentioned, pre-scenting helps a lot to let the snake know it is feeding time and get into hunting mode.

So my snake ate the fuzzy mouse. He didn't even contrict it. I think he knew it was dead. I guess yesterday when he striked at me because he was defensive. Anyways, he is in den but he peeking out like moving around. Is he still hungry?

Yes, he probably is still hungry. A fuzzy mouse is a small meal for most BPs even when they have just hatched. If you have another fuzzy you could offer it to him. But, as long as he isn't skinny, it won't hurt him to wait 5-7 days until next feeding day and give him a larger meal then.

Glad that he ate for you!

PS - He might have not constricted because he knew the mouse was dead. It is also possible that he just knew it was small enough he didn't need to, even if it was alive. Snakes will sometimes eat something that is still alive if they know it is so small it can't hurt them.

He isn't skinny. I think he is still hungry since he is out of den and looking for food. I just give him a hooper prekilled mouse in 7 days. A hopper mouse should be good enough, right?

You need to get a scale and find out how many grams the snake weighs. When you find this out you'll be able to determine prey size without guessing.

I don't have a scale. I'll try to get one.