BP hasn't shed yet

[sharpe]

We've had out BP for around 9 weeks now.

During that time, he seems content and unstressed. His habitat is fine based on everything I've read. He's eating pinkies once per week without problem.

He pooped once about a week after we first got him, but nothing since and he still hasn't shed.

This feels like a rather long time to me.

Should I be concerned?

[larryd23]

I would not be concerned about his lack of shed.

I would be concerned about his diet. From my own experience and everything I have read, newly hatched ball pythons should be fed hopper mice from day one.

[sharpe]

I would not be concerned about his lack of shed.

I would be concerned about his diet. From my own experience and everything I have read, newly hatched ball pythons should be fed hopper mice from day one.

OK, I'll move up and try those. If the pinkies are too small though, would that mean that he'd want to eat more often? Around once every 7 days is as often as he will eat.

[Craiga 01453]

BPs should never eat pinkies. Pinkies are primarily water and offer no benefit to a BP. They eat hoppers fresh out of the egg, for only 3-5 meals typically. They quickly move up to small adult mice.

Your snake should be eating a small adult mouse every 7 days. He's only pooped once because he has nothing to poop. He's using every last bit of that pinkie just to survive. There's nothing left to poop out.

He's also not shedding because he's doesn't have the food intake required to shed.

[sharpe]

Well damn it. Looks like I got some pretty bad advice.

I'm going to take it as a good sign that he still seems otherwise healthy and rectify the diet problems right away.

Thank you all so much.

[sharpe]

Ok, so maybe another dumb question, but I'm trying to learn.

I'd tried feeding him the pinkies previously every 4-5 days, but he hasn't seemed interested in eating any more frequent than the once a week (with the pinkies).

Will a BP only eat so frequently, regardless of if the diet is sufficient or not.

Maybe it's looking at it too simplistic to say that if he wasn't getting enough to eat, that he'd eat more often.

I really do appreciate the help gang

[Stewart_Reptiles]

Feed = Growth = Shed

Underfed BP means most if not all of the prey is use for vital body functions allowing little to nothing for growth.

The average animal get started on hopper mouse or crawler rats quickly moving through sizes. Pinky mice are colubrid food.

If your BP has issue feeding lack of interest and such there are likely some husbandry issues as well not to.mention that such a small prey is more often harder for them to it and sometime not recognize as a prey at all.

[sharpe]

He has no problems at all with the feeding at once a week when it was the pinkies. Any more frequent than that though, and he wasn't interested.

Will a snake only eat so often, regardless of the size of the meal? That is, will a snake eat three times a week of the meals are small, and once a week if it's a large meal, or the frequency is the same reagardless.

I last fed him three days ago. Do you think he'd be interested in eating again today, so soon?

[Craiga 01453]

The answer to that question will vary drastically species to species. But also animal to animal.

Your best bet is to offer a small adult mouse 7 days after he last ate, then offer weekly.

[sharpe]

Update:

He ate the larger mouse without any issue whatsoever on his next scheduled feeding time, 4 days ago.

Since then though, he's been spending all of his time in his hide and not coming out as much as he did before.

I'm assuming that a more satisflying meal means he's just taking it easy and not out "hunting".

Do BP's ususally hide out more for a few days after eating?