When to double up feeding

It seems like Oakley is a little small for his size.
Here is the latest pic I have of him. Sorry but he was trying to crawl away from me because I was holding him to take pics of his scar.

https://ball-pythons.net/gallery/fil...6/100_1582.jpg

I have started feeding him adult mice once a week. Should I feed him more often to size him up a bit or is he fine for his length? He has a bit of a wrinkle when he curls up or takes a tight turn.

How would i know when to feed him more/more often?

It is recommended to feed them one prey item, once each week. The item should be approximately the same thickness as the thickest part of the snake. It may be time to upgrade to rats.

Hope this helps.

The issue there is that I feed live and haven't found any rat breeders around here to be able to buy the necessary sized rat for them. Hissy is a little larger (in girth) than Oakley.

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Originally Posted by Little B-Py

The issue there is that I feed live and haven't found any rat breeders around here to be able to buy the necessary sized rat for them. Hissy is a little larger (in girth) than Oakley.

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If you are unable to get ahold of properly sized rats, and the mouse is not large enough, then you can feed multiple mice.

How far apart should I feed them if I cannot find rats?

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Originally Posted by Little B-Py

How far apart should I feed them if I cannot find rats?

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I normally feed one, wait about five minutes after the ball has swallowed, then offer the next one.

ok then. I'll try that.

We do 2 mice if we don't have any rats too.

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Originally Posted by Allie

We do 2 mice if we don't have any rats too.

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What is your feeding schedule if you do not have rats?

i feed my 08's adult mice every 5-7 days and my 07's and older i feed adult mice-small rats every 7-10 days i find that smaller meals more often is alot healthier than larger prey feedings further apart

Right now they are on adult mice every friday but Oakley seems a bit small and I would like to see him larger in girth and maybe Hissy, too. I'm not sure how much they should weigh at their length nor do I have a way of measuring weight.

I have a pin that I feed two mice every week. She is an 08 and when i bought the mice she was just the right size for one feeder at a time. She now takes two in one feeding. The next time i buy rodents she will be eating rats.

what i suggest you do is to get a scale, you can get one from any kitchen/appliance store and you can get scales that go upto 7000 grams for like $39.99 i weigh my snakes before every feed even if they dont eat just so i know, snakes can go of eating for months and its not rare for a BP to go of feeding for that period of time especially at this time of year(breeding season) as long as they arnt losing weight its not an issue, there have even been 2 cases where BP's have gone of eating for 22 months which is almost two years if he is eating then thats awesome but you can follow my schedule 5-7 days for yearlings 7-10 days for everyone else it seems to work for me and i know alot of other people go by this aswell, but i dont suggest you "power" feed him its not good for the snakes health, alot of people try "power" feeding their females to get them upto breeding size but it can cause big problems down the line . . . . i have a 08 male spider who would eat until i stopped throwing mice into his tank but at most i'll give him 1 extra adult mouse every second week he is almost 500 grams

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Originally Posted by Little B-Py

What is your feeding schedule if you do not have rats?

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With both it's once a week, usually on Sunday.

I looked at some live small rats today and they are way to big for him. guess i'll just keep with the adult mice and just try and pic out the fattest ones I can.

Your guy doesn't seem all that under weight to me.

It's just that when he makes a tight curl his skin wrinkles up. I was just curious if he needed a little more meat on his bones. He is actually gonna shed within the next few days. I got him out today and noticed he was dull.

Also before someone jumps to the conclusion (just in case) he is not dehydrated. If I pinch his skin (like the back of your hand) it goes right back into place and his humidity is spot on.