Bit of a feeding emergency

[Highyeena]

Alright, so as stated in my last post feeding for the first time didn't go well, lemme lay out what is going on:

My ball python is a three month old male, he was eating live fuzzy rats before I got him.

I have been on the ball with temps and humidity, I have probs and a temp gun to check everything.

He just shed which is probably why he didn't wanna eat the first time around, shed was successful.

He gets interested in the food REALLY interested, I am talking he will sniff and follow it even when I make it feel alive and moving, he will get all up on that rat (frozen thaw fuzzy I have no way of buying live where I am at) hell at one time he looked like he was just gunna open his mouth and swallow it off the tongs I would not have cared if he strikes or not so long as he just ate.

I have tried a smaller enclosure tub, still interested just not biting. It's almost like he doesn't know if it's food.

I have not handled him at all for the past weeks I have had him.

I am getting worried, I have been leaving him alone and I know he's hungry.

Options are:

Try buying a live mouse, now the only mice I can imagine this one pet store (not a pet smart or petco) has is small mice but I don't know if that would be too big, I can see their size in my head they would be a bit wider than the fuzzy rat

Take him to a vet, I would rather not resort to this, not because money is an issue I have yet to go to this exotic vet and seeing his office filled with cats at the front desk makes me nervous, I would have to make sure this lil guy is sealed and probably ask to have him seen as soon as I get there. Plus be with him at all times in case something is fishy, the guy says he works with reptiles as well as horses and many other pets, I just have that bad vibe but if I gotta go I'll go.

Waiting game, which I don't wanna do this at all, he's drinking water but he's getting thinner every time I see him.

I try guys, I really do, I try to keep the feeder there and moving about but after deciding it's not food he just shies away from it. I get that it's winter and balls go off feed, but he's just three months old, that is not a good body weight to be able to fast on.

I've handled babies before and helped feed them, they usually take after being hungry enough be he is really stubborn and making me worried haha. It's like the saying goes, it's easier taking care of someone else's kid but the second you take care of yours it's a whole new battle.

If anyone has any tips/advice on what I should try, I did the blow dryer I even brained one, just anything that may work or maybe I am just too worried and he will be okay.

He's been happy so far aside from stress from trying to feed him. He drinks, stays in his hides, regulates well and even shed well for me. I just think it's the switching from live to frozen thing that is catching him.

[Zincubus]

Hi ..

Did you feed in the viv / tub or a separate container ?

Did you feed in the evening ?

Was it in the open or under a hide when you offered ?

Are you sure it was warm enough ?




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[Highyeena]

I fed first in the viv and then when he didn't eat I moved him to a tub, left him be and then tried feeding in the tub, still refused a meal.

I have feed in the evening, midnight and even tried near dawn

Tried out in the open, under the hide and even leaving the meal under a hide to see if natural instinct would take over.

Yes I am sure it's warm enough, as I said I have probes tracking outside temps and humidity as well as a probe on his UTH tracking that as well as a temp gun. UTH is 90F outside temp stays within 80F-87F throughout the day and humidity stays over 50% and reaches 60% when sprayed and moss raises it to 70% as needed for shedding which is why he was able to shed well, bless moss.

[Sunnieskys]

No he meant if food is warm enough. 100-102 for the mouse temp. Do not move into another enclosure. That creates more stress. Also if he was being fed live stay with live until older and you can switch him over to FT.

[Highyeena]

Food is warmed up correctly and I can't do live unless I switch to live mice. Which as I said may be a bit too big, We had a breeder here but he recently went under due to lack of customers right when I was buying him. So I was up the creek without a paddle. I guess I can switch to mice but I do not want to overfeed him as that can cause fatty tissue which leads to problems.

[ryknoll3]

A small adult mouse is the same size as a rat fuzzy.

[Jbabycsx]

You’re probably in the same boat I’m in with my Mojave female. She absolutely refuses to take f/t mice. She will follow it around, poke at it, flick her tongue at it but will not eat it no matter what. I resorted to buying live mice and breeding them. It’s fun to do and she will always have clean, healthy mice to eat.


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[Cheesenugget]

Deja vu.. You had made several threads regarding feeding your bp as early as the first week of Dec. And in each thread, advice was given numerous times. I don't remember all the details, but is it the set up that is the problem?

[Zincubus]

This method WORKS 99% if done properly ... and they show a modicum of interest ..


I wait until evening as they're nocturnal of course then thaw naturally in the snake room , sometimes on a heatmat and sometimes put the rodent/s in a sealed plastic bag and dunk in really warm water ( if I'm short of tirme) . A couple of mine are super sensitive and won't take anything dunked in water - presumably they don't smell mousy enough ?

So then when I'm due to feed , I make sure the viv is unlocked and there's some card on top of the substrate to minimise bark ingestion ... Then I get the mouse/rat by the tail in some tongs and give the rodents head / top half a 10 to 15 second blast with the hairdryer ( hottest setting ) .... then IMMEDIATELY dangle it in front of the snake . They're usually ready and waiting .... Mine all now prefer to strike from inside their hides so I dangle it in front of the entrance for about 15 seconds but no longer as it cools down quickly , if there's a hint of interest such as head movement or tongue flicking then that gives me confidence and I repeat the procedure .... Hot blast and immediately offer ..... repeat as often as it takes ... If there is simply no interest though , either it's going into shed or not hungry ( couple of mine eat every two weeks even though I offer every week just in case


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