Can my BP Eat this Size?

[Natail]

Could my 300g ball python eat a 50g rat?

i bought frozen rats that were said to be 30g or so but turns out they are 50g. I know it's not THAT much more but they look so big. my snake was eating live mice around 25g no problem, I'm tryna convert him to frozen rats.

(tips on converting are also helpful too)

are they too big? or just right or okay?

[Alter-Echo]

Yeah, he should have no issue eating that at all, it will just be a rather hearty meal for him and will take longer to digest.

[Godzilla78]

Yes, just feed less often than you would small meals. A 50 gram rat once every 7-12 days is fine for a 300 gram python.

[Craiga 01453]

I see no reason to feed prey that big unless you're trying to get the animal to breeding size.

Following the 10-15% body weight rule of thumb, 45 grams would be the highest to go. You say it's not THAT much more, but it's nearly DOUBLE 30 and literally DOUBLE what the snake is used to.


CAN the snake eat it? Of course.
SHOULD the snake eat it? Prob not.

Just buy appropriately sized prey and save those for later.

[Godzilla78]

The “10-15%” is a recommendation, not a rule, and fairly arbitrary. There is fundamentally no difference between small, frequent prey meals, or large, infrequent prey meals. They will thrive on either, as long as overall longterm caloric intake is in the right range.

[Lord Sorril]

Ball pythons rarely get to measure their prey in the wild.
Adjust the feeding schedule accordingly.

[Alter-Echo]

*imagines a python asking it's prey to stay put while it goes and gets a tape measure and gram scale.*

[Skyrivers]

*imagines a python asking it's prey to stay put while it goes and gets a tape measure and gram scale.*

Only after getting on the gram scale and measuring its self.