» Site Navigation
0 members and 2,887 guests
No Members online
Most users ever online was 6,337, 01-24-2020 at 04:30 AM.
» Today's Birthdays
» Stats
Members: 75,126
Threads: 248,569
Posts: 2,568,979
Top Poster: JLC (31,651)
|
-
Feeding ball python for the first time, refused?
Exactly 7 days ago I got my little girl. 6 months old. She’s adjusted well, in fact she hides almost all the time lol. I offered her a small mouse for the first time tonight, she showed no interest and actually stayed in her hide. I was wondering if it’s okay to leave the mouse outside the hide for an hour or so to see if she’ll take it. I’d also be worried she may ingest some of the cypress mulch substrate. Any suggestions on this? Ive warmed the mouse up and I’d hate to waste it. Come to think of it I think she was fed on rats before I got her, so I’m wondering if that’s my issue. Her temps and humidity are perfect also. (Although she’s almost always in her hide on the cooler side)
thanks!
-
-
Registered User
It would be perfectly fine to leave the mouse out for an hour. If she doesn't eat it you should throw it away though... Some ball pythons like being left alone to eat. It's okay if she eats a little bit of substrate, but if you're concerned you can put the mouse on something like a paper towel or piece of plastic inside the enclosure.
-
The Following 2 Users Say Thank You to royalreilly For This Useful Post:
e_nigma (01-27-2019),Shadowy (01-17-2019)
-
It should be okay to leave overnight. Some BPs don't eat when you're watching.
I believe she will be okay if she ingests a little cypress mulch. If you're really worried, you can but it down on a paper plate or towel, although she might just drag it off.
-
The Following User Says Thank You to 55fingers For This Useful Post:
-
BPnet Veteran
Re: Feeding ball python for the first time, refused?
If she was fed on rats before, I would stick with rats honestly lol.
I just had hard time switching from mouse to rat so if she will take rats, go for it!
-
The Following User Says Thank You to gusanr14 For This Useful Post:
Craiga 01453 (01-18-2019)
-
Don't leave prey items on paper towels...it takes very little moisture for a paper towel to stick to the rodent, & then be ingested by the snake. That can result in
a health issue (serious blockage) as snakes cannot digest paper towels. It's best they don't swallow any substrate: even though a little may not hurt, & probably
happens in the wild, it's easy to avoid with our pets by putting prey on something that functions safely as a "plate", such as a paper plate, a plastic food container
lid, even a piece of cardboard.
Mice & rats smell & presumably taste quite different. Some snakes automatically like both, but others take some persuading to switch from one to the other. That's
likely what your problem was.
Some snakes need more than a week of settling in before they'll feed also. Do you know when she ate last, Shadowy? She might even be going into a shed.
(I assume you know not to handle a new snake until it's feeding reliably -preferably 3 times- at normal intervals.) Just be patient & try not to worry.
And by the way...
Last edited by Bogertophis; 01-18-2019 at 12:12 AM.
-
The Following 5 Users Say Thank You to Bogertophis For This Useful Post:
Craiga 01453 (01-18-2019),e_nigma (01-27-2019),Lord Sorril (01-18-2019),Phoenix Rising (01-19-2019),Zincubus (01-27-2019)
-
Re: Feeding ball python for the first time, refused?
They can eat a little substrate, no need to worry. They can digest almost anything, and swallow objects larger than their own girth. No need to worry about that.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
-
-
Re: Feeding ball python for the first time, refused?
Originally Posted by Bogertophis
Don't leave prey items on paper towels...it takes very little moisture for a paper towel to stick to the rodent, & then be ingested by the snake. That can result in
a health issue (serious blockage) as snakes cannot digest paper towels.
:
Nice catch! You beat me to it!
Leaving prey on paper towels = no
Leaving prey on cardboard, paper plate, plastic lid, etc... = ok
-
The Following 2 Users Say Thank You to Craiga 01453 For This Useful Post:
e_nigma (01-27-2019),MissterDog (01-20-2019)
-
Re: Feeding ball python for the first time, refused?
Originally Posted by craigafrechette
Nice catch! You beat me to it!
Leaving prey on paper towels = no
Leaving prey on cardboard, paper plate, plastic lid, etc... = ok
Hey, hey, we're a team here.
-
The Following 2 Users Say Thank You to Bogertophis For This Useful Post:
Craiga 01453 (01-18-2019),Lord Sorril (01-18-2019)
-
Need to stick with rats if that is what she was feeding on before. Just wondering why you'd change to mice?
-
-
Re: Feeding ball python for the first time, refused?
Originally Posted by MR Snakes
Need to stick with rats if that is what she was feeding on before. Just wondering why you'd change to mice?
I honestly didn’t even think about it when I ordered from the supplier. I’ll probably order rats and resell the frozen mice I already have. I was not able to successfully get her to take the mouse last night.
-
Posting Permissions
- You may not post new threads
- You may not post replies
- You may not post attachments
- You may not edit your posts
-
Forum Rules
|