BP acts weird when feeding/won't eat

[RyanTheNoodleMan]

At this point I have to double check...

OP- are you sure you're offering rats and not mice?

If you're sure they're rats, then the size is fine and that eliminates that as a potential issue.

If you're mixing up rats and mice and offering mice they're definitely too small.

They're rats, I order them from perfect prey.

[Moose84]

He's in a 20 gallon tank. The breeder didn't mention what he was kept in before.

He's normally between 110-120 but since the fast he's gone down to 98.

98 grams at nine months old?? My man, I would start to worry.. For example I have a 9 month old that is in excess of 500 grams and eats a small rat every 7 days.. I have a female that is 7 months and eats a small rat every 7 days and weighs in excess of 500 grams.. That snake is WAY too small for that age. You need to try something different yesterday and I would suggest finding live prey quickly and get some weight on that snake before you kill it... You won't have to worry about watching a mouse die because that snake won't live much longer.. He's already dropped close to 20% of his body weight since starting to fast. Once again this isn't a 1200 gram female.

Also, a 20 gallon enclosure for that sized animal is too large. Please make some changes quickly. I would try a small tub immediately until that snakes starts eating and gaining some weight. I would be concerned. To be honest I would almost pay you to have it shipped to me because based off of what you have said with his spine and stuff showing it's not in a good place..

I have all the best intentions here I promise...

[RyanTheNoodleMan]

here's a pic of him from today when I went to weigh him:

[Stewart_Reptiles]

3 months old has always had problems with eating.

a pinkie. I bought him when he was ready to be moved up to fuzzies but had only eaten pinkies so I bought pinkies just in case he was unsure about eating a larger rat. The next feeding he ate a fuzzy but after that he just wouldn't eat them anymore

He's in a 20 gallon tank.

110-120 but since the fast he's gone down to 98.

Here is what I see you have underfed your animal and kept him in an enclosure that was and is still likely too big considering his size.

Now hopefully you understand why your BP has been a poor feeder since you have had him, and why you should have been concern a bit sooner, at that age they are eating machine if they are not in 90% of the cases is because people are doing it wrong and sadly poor feeding habits in young animal kind of become a vicious circle.

So now what? Back to square one https://ball-pythons.net/forums/show...-hatchling-101 to work you way back to an animal with a healthy eating behaviour. The only thing you can change is the food since he eats rat feed rats.

[Moose84]

Hi,

I'd also like to know how much he weighs and if he has managed to grow much since you have had him? A picture of him might be handy to judge his size better so we can be more aware of what might be the best alternative prey to try.

I've found the key to a good feeding response with mine is for them to know food is going to be offered - this is what the dry defrosting near the cage does - the hairdrier just slams the message into overdrive as it spreads the warm prey scent around.

I know you may not want it to be a long term solution but I would definitely try mice or african soft furred rats of the same size.

Your temps don't sound too bad but it depends on how and where you are measuring them - is it with a probe inside the hides orsomewhere else? If the temp inside the hide ( where the snake hangs out ) is lower than the 79f you think it might be worth bumping those temps up until the hide is the right temp.

But good call on stopping the handling when the problem started.


del

98 grams at 9 months... It has also dropped close to 20% of its body weight in the last month..

[Moose84]

Here is what I see you have underfed your animal and kept him in an enclosure that was and is still likely too big considering his size.

Now hopefully you understand why your BP has been a poor feeder since you have had him, and why you should have been concern a bit sooner, at that age they are eating machine if they are not in 90% of the cases is because people are doing it wrong and sadly poor feeding habits in young animal kind of become a vicious circle.

So now what? Back to square one https://ball-pythons.net/forums/show...-hatchling-101 to work you way back to an animal with a healthy eating behaviour. The only thing you can change is the food since he eats rat feed rats.

OP: PLEASE, PLEASE take her advice...

[RyanTheNoodleMan]

98 grams at nine months old?? My man, I would start to worry.. For example I have a 9 month old that is in excess of 500 grams and eats a small rat every 7 days.. I have a female that is 7 months and eats a small rat every 7 days and weighs in excess of 500 grams.. That snake is WAY too small for that age. You need to try something different yesterday and I would suggest finding live prey quickly and get some weight on that snake before you kill it... You won't have to worry about watching a mouse die because that snake won't live much longer.. He's already dropped close to 20% of his body weight since starting to fast. Once again this isn't a 1200 gram female.

Also, a 20 gallon enclosure for that sized animal is too large. Please make some changes quickly. I would try a small tub immediately until that snakes starts eating and gaining some weight. I would be concerned. To be honest I would almost pay you to have it shipped to me because based off of what you have said with his spine and stuff showing it's not in a good place..

I have all the best intentions here I promise...

Why would a 20 gallon be too big when bps come from the wild? Don't you mean I should add more clutter? I'm going to take the advice but I just want to understand some things.

[Moose84]

Because they don't feel secure.. Understand that the snake didn't "come from the wild..." They are captive bred and I would be willing to bet money based on the morph that you purchased it's from a breeder. Breeders use racks and that snake was used to being in something MUCH smaller. When you took possession of the animal you probably tripled if not quadrupled what it was used to and put it in a glass fish tank when it was used to being in something dark and probably much better controlled as far as temperature goes. You said you had a ton of issues with the heating mats as well.. All of this is a recipe for a poor feeding snake... Like Deborah mentioned, they are typically trash cans at that age and will over eat if allowed... Once they are older they become more picky but at 98 grams and dropping you don't have the luxury of a 3 month fast..

[RyanTheNoodleMan]

Sorry I meant that ball pythons in general are wild animals, not that he came from the wild. Where can I store a tub since I don't have a racking system? Is there some way I can change up the tank to make him feel more secure?

[Moose84]

This is what Deborah posted... Step by step instructions...

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/show...-hatchling-101