Hello from a newb!

[rufftimes]

Hi all! I'd just like to introduce us to the group! My 8 year old son Ashton has shown a keen interest in reptiles for years, and has been asking for a Ball Python for quite awhile. I finally caved and after doing a bit of research decided to take the plunge. We picked our new family member Camo up almost two weeks ago and has taken well to his new home. Although I make sure everything is in good order, my son is very actively involved, and has shown no signs of getting bored with caring for Camo. Like we read and expected, he/she is very well tempered and mellow. We have fed it twice, and both times took F/T rat pups instantly!

We have no idea exactly how old he is, but I weighed him today and he came in at 126g. I'm figuring I will keep him on a rat pup every 4-5 days for the time being unless there is a reason not to. He sure seems to be thriving. My GF bought one for her 16 year old son at the same time, and it's alot smaller, and quite alot thinner. It wrinkles when it turns sharp and we're a little concerned. It is eating well though, and has taken food twice, although she is feeding fuzzies. She's concerned he's too small for a pup. Any opinions?

Anyways, I'd post a few pics, but it says I cannot post attachments......):

[Anya]

Congrats on your first!! This forum is a wealth of knowledge, and I recommend reading as much as possible! If you cant find the answer you're looking for, don't be afraid to ask.
As far as the little one goes, without pictures and weights on him it's hard to say what size to feed. I generally go with as big around as the thickest part of the belly. Match that up to the thickness of the rodent.


Posting pix requires a third party site. I use photobucket- upload there, then post the IMG link. :-)

[rufftimes]

Ok, here goes, lets hope this works. BTW, he/she was 126 grams as of this morning! lol

[jasonmcgilvrey83]

Looks like he could slam down a small Hopper with no problem. fizziest might be to small of a meal for that little guy. But like the post above said get a meal the size of the of thickest Bart of the belly or another way is to give it a meal the weight of 15% of what the snake weights if that makes sense. That's what some breeders do.

[rocknhorse76]

Pups or small hoppers should be fine for your little guy. Looks like a healthy snake. Could you post pics of he gf's snake and get a weight on it? That would help us help you in determining the health of that snake and the appropriate prey size. Sometimes if they're dehydrated/malnourished or have stuck shed they'll appear all wrinkly.

[rufftimes]

Looks like he could slam down a small Hopper with no problem. fizziest might be to small of a meal for that little guy. But like the post above said get a meal the size of the of thickest Bart of the belly or another way is to give it a meal the weight of 15% of what the snake weights if that makes sense. That's what some breeders do.

Yeah, Camo is already on pups, my girlfriends snake was apparently eating pinkies before we got her, but we switched to a rat fuzzy for her second feeding after doing more reading on sites like this. I will be over there today, I'll snap a few pics

[Annarose15]

Yeah, Camo is already on pups, my girlfriends snake was apparently eating pinkies before we got her, but we switched to a rat fuzzy for her second feeding after doing more reading on sites like this. I will be over there today, I'll snap a few pics

Sounds like you have the sizes right to me. If your gf's snake was on pinks, that explains why it is so skinny compared to yours. It will fill out better on rat fuzzies and be ready for pups before you know it. Congratulations and welcome to the site!

[PitOnTheProwl]

welcome and looking good

[rufftimes]

Here's a few more taken this afternoon

[IMG][/IMG]







Sent from my SGH-I317M using Tapatalk 2

[Pyrate81]

Welcome to the forums. Couple a cuties ya got there. Nice work getting an open mouth shot already too.

In my experience, when I've gotten a snake from a store or adoption and the snake seemed underfed and hungry it would take multiple food items for the 2nd and/or 3rd feedings then be fine with one food item afterward.

However! The little guy you have there could be younger and just weigh less for now. Either way, it sounds like what you have done just by upping the prey size sounds good. :-)