Feeding Questions/s

[Bemottled]

Back at it again with the newbie questions!

The guy I got my ball python from said that at her size she should be eating pinkie rats or hopper mice. All I was able to find at my local pet store, though, were pinkie mice, and I got a little box of 6.
My question is, since pinkie mice are obviously small, should I feed more than one to make up for that? (Is there something wrong with doing so?)

I still have one other store to check, so hopefully I won't be stuck with pinkie mice forever.

Also, I understand that moving to a new cage is bad, but should I remove hides and such for feeding? My Biology teacher does this, but those are all for live feedings, so for pinkie mice I wasn't sure.

And last question, should I like... heat the mouse up? I mean, logically I assume a frozen mouse =/= good for cold blooded snek. Should I drop the baggy in warm water, do I pull it out to 'thaw', do I... do I microwave it?

Thanks in advance for the help!

[Stewart_Reptiles]

I would recommend that you bring the pinkies back to the store those are way too small and will likely not be recognized as a prey

Was this BP feeding on F/T? If not than you should offer live, for your first feeding it is very important to emulate what the breeder used to do whether it comes to feeding or husbandry.

As for when feeding F/T NEVER microwave a prey, simply let the prey thaw near the enclosure (this is called scenting) , once thawed warm the prey up with a hair dryer. Grab the prey behind the neck, and move it like a live rat would move. If not eaten off the tongs in a reasonable time frame leave the f/T in the enclosure overnight, some prefer to eat them this way.

Finally I would also recommend that you do some research on your new friend as well.

Sent from my SM-T320 using Tapatalk

[Yodawagon]

This has to be a joke. Cold blooded snakes eating frozen animals that doesn't even make any sense. How did you even get a snake with your knowledge base as it is . you're not even close to being ready for one.

[Bemottled]

I would recommend that you bring the pinkies back to the store those are way too small and will likely not be recognized as a prey

Was this BP feeding on F/T? If not than you should offer live, for your first feeding it is very important to emulate what the breeder used to do whether it comes to feeding or husbandry.

As for when feeding F/T NEVER microwave a prey, simply let the prey thaw near the enclosure (this is called scenting) , once thawed warm the prey up with a hair dryer. Grab the prey behind the neck, and move it like a live rat would move. If not eaten off the tongs in a reasonable time frame leave the f/T in the enclosure overnight, some prefer to eat them this way.

Finally I would also recommend that you do some research on your new friend as well.

Sent from my SM-T320 using Tapatalk

Okay! I can do that. I'll drive further out to see if I can find the larger ones she needs, they've got to be around somewhere.
F/T and Live. The breeder said she would eat either- but I'll try to find live to ensure a first successful feed. I was also sure to ask what her schedule was and will be sticking to it!
I've recently ordered this book - http://www.amazon.com/Ball-Python-Ma.../dp/1882770722 and I'm reading up on this forum whenever I can. I openly admit I should have researched more before buying, and I am trying to make up for that now. (If you know a better book to follow, just let me know!)

Thank you for the advice, I'll be sure to follow this!

- - - Updated - - -

This has to be a joke. Cold blooded snakes eating frozen animals that doesn't even make any sense. How did you even get a snake with your knowledge base as it is . you're not even close to being ready for one.

If you had bothered to read my post, you would see that this is exactly what I was saying Thank you for your feedback.

[Willowy]

I'm sure this isn't the first person to not know that you have to thaw frozen prey, we all started somewhere.

But yes! You do need to thaw the prey thoroughly (any ice crystals left in the middle could kill the snake), and most snakes want it heated up to approximately mouse body temp (around 100 degrees f). Personally, I take the rodent out of the freezer the day before and put it in the fridge. I have cats so I can't leave the rodent out, but if you want to thaw it near the snake, only do that a few hours before, not overnight. Then I put it in a ziploc baggie---I have a bunch of sandwich bags to use up, and they're thin so I use 2. If you use a freezer baggie one should be fine---and run tap water as hot as it gets and soak the rodent in that for about 20 minutes. You might have to run fresh hot water a few times if the room temp is cold. Or use a blow dryer, but that's never worked well for me. Of course larger prey will need more thawing and warming time.

Mouse pinkies are definitely too small, she might not even recognize them as food. At that size she can take an adult mouse or a rat pup.

Read up on proper care, there's a lot of misinformation out there! Never believe the pet store people, at least until you've verified it!

[Bemottled]

I'm sure this isn't the first person to not know that you have to thaw frozen prey, we all started somewhere.

But yes! You do need to thaw the prey thoroughly (any ice crystals left in the middle could kill the snake), and most snakes want it heated up to approximately mouse body temp (around 100 degrees f). Personally, I take the rodent out of the freezer the day before and put it in the fridge. I have cats so I can't leave the rodent out, but if you want to thaw it near the snake, only do that a few hours before, not overnight. Then I put it in a ziploc baggie---I have a bunch of sandwich bags to use up, and they're thin so I use 2. If you use a freezer baggie one should be fine---and run tap water as hot as it gets and soak the rodent in that for about 20 minutes. You might have to run fresh hot water a few times if the room temp is cold. Or use a blow dryer, but that's never worked well for me. Of course larger prey will need more thawing and warming time.

Mouse pinkies are definitely too small, she might not even recognize them as food. At that size she can take an adult mouse or a rat pup.

Read up on proper care, there's a lot of misinformation out there! Never believe the pet store people, at least until you've verified it!

Thank you! I won't hide that I'm new. Never had to handle mammalian food for my animals before. I can tell you about crickets and superworms and roaches though!

Aaa more detailed instructions :'D I'm a detail person. Thank you!
I had no idea that ice crystals could kill the snake. Definitely motivation to properly thaw...

The guy I got her from said she is eating hopper mice and pinkie rats, would adult mice be too much of a size jump from hopper? I'm not clear on the size differences.
I'd def. prefer to live feed since she is able to and because I don't trust myself to thaw properly. Maybe one day, when I have no other choice, but not today!

Oh man my experience with pet stores is terrible. It's why I came straight to a forum. Infact, the only reason I own supplies for a ball python is because my local exotics store told me they would work for my tarantula! (The joke here is that almost everything they told me to get for my tarantula would have killed it if I obliviously persisted).

I think I linked a book in my last post, that I'll be reading to try and learn more. Do you have any other suggestions in the way of reading material? (Besides browsing the forums, of course)

[Willowy]

Hopper mice are small, I think 12 grams or so. Adult mice are 18-25 grams or so. If she's a normal sized young snake, she ought to be able to manage that. No problem giving her hoppers the first few times if you want though. But adult mice are usually easier to find.

Do you have a scale? It's a good thing to have, to keep track of her growth.

If you want her to take frozen/thawed in the future, it's best to start young. If they get too accustomed to live prey it's harder to transition them.

Thawing properly isn't hard, you just want to make sure it's not frozen anymore . Having it in the fridge overnight is a sure thing for smaller prey. Honestly, with a BP, who will only ever eat small rats, it's probably not a concern at all as long as you use common sense---if it's warm on the outside it's almost certainly fully thawed. It's when you get into much larger prey like jumbo rats and rabbits that they might not get all the way thawed. . .think about how long it takes to thaw the Thanksgiving turkey! You can poke a smaller rat or mouse and feel if they're thawed in the middle.

[Bemottled]

Hopper mice are small, I think 12 grams or so. Adult mice are 18-25 grams or so. If she's a normal sized young snake, she ought to be able to manage that. No problem giving her hoppers the first few times if you want though. But adult mice are usually easier to find.

Do you have a scale? It's a good thing to have, to keep track of her growth.

If you want her to take frozen/thawed in the future, it's best to start young. If they get too accustomed to live prey it's harder to transition them.

Thawing properly isn't hard, you just want to make sure it's not frozen anymore . Having it in the fridge overnight is a sure thing for smaller prey. Honestly, with a BP, who will only ever eat small rats, it's probably not a concern at all as long as you use common sense---if it's warm on the outside it's almost certainly fully thawed. It's when you get into much larger prey like jumbo rats and rabbits that they might not get all the way thawed. . .think about how long it takes to thaw the Thanksgiving turkey! You can poke a smaller rat or mouse and feel if they're thawed in the middle.

I'm trying to track down hoppers for the first few feeds simply because it's what the breeder suggested (and I'm not experienced enough to move up on that scale voluntarily) but if I can't find anything I'll get normal mice.
I should get a scale, I'd love to track her growth!
It shouldn't be a huge issue if she stops taking F/T, but I didn't know that, that's interesting. If I vary it every now and then, would that ensure she'd still have an appetite for it?

That's comforting. I'll try a few live and then a frozen, when I know a little more of what I'm doing!

[stingermom]

This has to be a joke. Cold blooded snakes eating frozen animals that doesn't even make any sense. How did you even get a snake with your knowledge base as it is . you're not even close to being ready for one.

Slow clap for constructive criticism

[DennisM]

bemottled, please read the following useful posts.

http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...Husbandry-FAQs


http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...ius)-Caresheet