Hello guys!

[SlashaLO]

Hey. Just wanted to drop in and say hi. New to the BP world. I got myself a small BP and got a glass tank with mesh setup. I followed one of the very comprehensive guides here and have it all set up and Nagini (yes i know, stereotypical name ) set up and he seems to enjoy it. Hot/cold/humidity all where is recommended. He is a very inquisitive snakey, loves to explore when he is active. Only issue I am having is feeding. From what I was told, he was on a 1week feeding schedule on pinkies, but I can't seem to get him to eat yet. Only been about 1.5 weeks since I got him, so I'm not SUPER worried just yet. Tried some of the "tricks" mentioned from other BP owners. But I dont think I will start getting worried until the 3 or 4 week mark unless told otherwise. I havent written his weight down yet, but he doesnt seem to be losing weight.

Just wanted to stop by and say thanks for having a great forum with lots of information. Ill read around more on feeding and see where that takes me!

[Kira]

Welcome and congrats on your first snake! Just so you know, pinkies are way too small. Most likely he will need hoppers or bigger. It would be a good idea to get a scale for him so we have a better idea of what size meal he needs

[RickyNY]

Welcome!

[SlashaLO]

I only mentioned pinkies because that is what I was told he was eating before. I had accidentally got fuzzies? and they were much too large for him. He only weighs 54g right now. He is a tiny one.

[Kira]

He's cute! Yeah unfortunately petstores typically don't take great care of their snakes and usually underfeed them. This feeding guide is really helpful:

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/show...ing-Guidelines

I'm sure he will eat for you soon

[DLena]

I suggest a prey item that is as big around as his widest part. Kira is quite correct that mouse pinkies are way too small. And feed every 5 days for now. A weight would be great to further define prey size; cheap kitchen scales (grams) at Walmart, Big Lots.
Limit handling to "only as necessary" for now, until he is feeding.
Please give us warm and cool side temps and describe set-up in detail.
He's probably just stressed.
And HEY! Welcome to the forum. You found a great place to get help and share pics and conversations about your little guy.

[SlashaLO]

Awesome, I'll read that for sure.

Tank temps and setup: uth may set and regulated to 90 degrees. Humidity at 55% at this moment. Red bulb with dimmer to regulate if needed. Due to our house temps his light is always on or would be too cold. Cold side is at 80 monitor by one of the humidity/temp thermometers with a probe. 3 sides of cage with white paper over it, front is clear. Foil laid on top with hole for the light. Log hide on cool side with one end butted up against the white wall. Water dish in middle.

The pinky is smaller than the widest part, so I'll look at the next step up if he doesn't feed in the next 5 or 10 days for sure.

[Sunnieskys]

At 54g I would do hoppers at the minimum. And it sounds like Petsmart when you said pinkies?

[SlashaLO]

At 54g I would do hoppers at the minimum. And it sounds like Petsmart when you said pinkies?

I'll go grab hoppers then I'll dig through forums for good sources. I'm not a fan of asking the same questions when the answers are a search away. Ya, I got the BP at petsmart. I did all the reading I could and then pulled the trigger. From what I can tell he is healthy as well.

[SlashaLO]

So the "fuzzies" I got match what other places call a "hopper". Some fur, about an inch to inch and a half not counting tail. Is that correct, or do I need hopper specifically. Just want to do the best I can for my snake