Finicky Eater

[Bigshow]

Greetings all, I'm new to posting but have been reading a lot. I've had my ball python, Matilda, since she was a baby...about 7 months now. At first I had problems with her eating so I called the reptile store I bought her from and they suggested I place her in a tied up pillowcase overnight with the mouse and place part of the pillowcase on her heating pad in the cage. I did, and it worked. Eventually she started grabbing the food herself and I was excited, but then after about 3 weeks of feedings, she stopped doing this and every week when I feed her its the same routine.

She just doesn't seem interested in the thawed/warm dead mouse I dangle in front of her. I tried feeding her after turning out the lights at night when she comes out, I tried dipping the mouse in chicken broth, I tried leaving the mouse in her cage in her favorite hiding spot overnight only to find it still there the next morning, just about everything. The only thing that works is the pillowcase trick, but I really would like her to just eat the mouse the normal way and strike at it without me having to bag her every week overnight.

She's also very shy and rarely comes out of her hides. So far she has not once displayed any aggressive behavior. She has not bitten or attacked anyone. Any suggestions for making her more interested in eating and maybe make her less anti-social?

Right now her cage setup is pretty standard. Aspen shavings, under-tank heating pad on the far right side with a hide on top of it with a branch going from it to the left side where there is another hide on the cool side. Screen top and basking light. I was thinking about switching from aspen bedding to reptile carpet but was wondering if I should do that.

[Kaorte]

When a snake isn't eating it is usually because they don't feel safe or the husbandry is off.

What kind of hides are you using? What kind of thermometers are you using to measure temps? What are your heat sources? Are you controlling them with a reptile thermostat?

How big is the tank she is in?

[Bigshow]

One hide is the half-log you see in the pic. Since its been taken, I modified it with cardboard on both sides so its enclosed with a little door on one side, she likes this a lot better. On the other wise I was using one of those fake rock/sponge caves but she never left it so I tried taking it out for a while and using something that makes it easier to get to her...its basically a recycled cardboard thing that that secure a large toner cartridge in the box during shipping with a door cut into one side of it.

What do you mean by husbandry is off? I have a strip thermometer on the top glass of the cage. The heat sources are already listed in my original post. No, I am not controlling them using a thermostat, its a heating pad, it doesn't have an on/off switch. When she chooses to warm up she goes into the warm hide, when she wants to be cool she goes into the other one. The water bowl is in the middle of the cage. The tank is a 30 gallon breeder (wide) tank.

When a snake isn't eating it is usually because they don't feel safe or the husbandry is off.

What kind of hides are you using? What kind of thermometers are you using to measure temps? What are your heat sources? Are you controlling them with a reptile thermostat?

How big is the tank she is in?

[Kaorte]

Well, ball pythons are very shy snakes. Removing a hide so that you can see her better will just make her less willing to eat. These snakes will hide all the time if they had the choice.

The strip thermometers are meant to measure the temperature of water, not air. So whatever you think your temps are, they are not. Using a UTH unregulated is pretty unsafe. They can get up to 120* which is enough to burn or cook your animal. If your temps are off, that could be enough to make your snake go off feed.

I would think about moving her to a smaller tank or a plastic container. These are secretive snakes and thrive in smaller cramped spaces. I would only use a 30g long for a particularly large female (over 2,500 grams).

How big are the cardboard hides in relation to the snakes body? They should be very tight fitting and touch the snake on all sides. I use plastic cereal bowls from the dollar store. They come in four packs so that is four hides for $1! The cardboard hides will need to be tossed every time the snake goes to the bathroom.

Stick with the aspen. Reusable substrate is just not worth the effort of trying to get it clean. After a while, it will be impossible to get the smell out, which means bacteria is going to grow in it.

[BuckeyeBalls]

Yes small hides = great. From what i hear is if u cant see the snake thats good lol.

Also both hides should be the same if your gonna have two so they dont choose security of the hide over temp comforts.

Our bp is in a super small hide. And LOVES it

Also could goto walmart and get a acu rite hygro/therm to measure humidity/temps

Also a tstat for the uth would be best. But at least a dimmer

[Bigshow]

Thanks for the good advice, I will stick with the aspen and pick up a humidity and temp meter this weekend. I also went to your site and read the part about tin foiling 3/4 of the screen lid to prevent moisture escaping...good idea, I will do that tonight. I'll also re-add the foam cave that she likes so much.

You mentioned that using a UTH is unsafe and can cook the snake...what would be a solution to this potential problem?

Well, ball pythons are very shy snakes. Removing a hide so that you can see her better will just make her less willing to eat. These snakes will hide all the time if they had the choice.

The strip thermometers are meant to measure the temperature of water, not air. So whatever you think your temps are, they are not. Using a UTH unregulated is pretty unsafe. They can get up to 120* which is enough to burn or cook your animal. If your temps are off, that could be enough to make your snake go off feed.

I would think about moving her to a smaller tank or a plastic container. These are secretive snakes and thrive in smaller cramped spaces. I would only use a 30g long for a particularly large female (over 2,500 grams).

How big are the cardboard hides in relation to the snakes body? They should be very tight fitting and touch the snake on all sides. I use plastic cereal bowls from the dollar store. They come in four packs so that is four hides for $1! The cardboard hides will need to be tossed every time the snake goes to the bathroom.

Stick with the aspen. Reusable substrate is just not worth the effort of trying to get it clean. After a while, it will be impossible to get the smell out, which means bacteria is going to grow in it.

[BuckeyeBalls]

Hook it up to a tstat or AT LEAST a dimmer

That way u can control how hot it gets so some degree

[zantedeschia]

I have a shy feeder too, but he's gotten a lot better about it. Took about 3 months, tho.

Basically, if yours wants to be left alone, leave her alone. If she's got a hide that she likes to stay in all the time, let her have that hide. That's what ball pythons do, they hide. If she's constantly rejecting frozen/thawed, try live mice.

If you got a snake cause you want to handle it, get another one. Let your ball python settle in and get comfortable. If you want a snake you'll see, get a corn snake. If you want a snake that tolerates being handled, get a milk snake.

I'm so enamoured with my little boa, I think I overhandled him and he stopped eating. So I had to throttle way back on it and be really careful about taking him out of his cage and stuff. He likes to wrap really tightly around things and I think I was a little too rough extracting him a couple times which probably put him off his feed. He's better now.