Weight gain question/concern

[Jakemh91]

I've had my girl Lucie for 3 months. The breeder didn't tell me how old she was when I got her, but I'm estimating about a month or so. So my best guess is that she's about 4 months old. I usually weigh her once a week, the day before feeding day. She's had pretty steady growth for the last few weeks. But when I weighed her this week she had gone up nearly 60g from the week prior. From 270-330. Double what she normally gains in one weeks time.

Is this normal for a Ball her age? I know any major weight fluctuations, up or down, can be problematic. But I'm not entirely sure what constitutes a "major" shift. Especially given she's still really young and growing.

[Faith.luu]

Did she defecate prior to you weighing her that time? That might be your issue. If she defecates regularly prior to you weighing her then I’m not sure. The only reason I can think of is that she might still be digesting.

As well, a 4 month old bp that’s 270g-330g sounds to either be quite large or overweight. That’s their typical weight when about 7-9 months old. I’d check her overall body condition. She should have a somewhat slender tail and a slight point at the top, but should not be super triangular. If she has a great body condition then I wouldn’t worry, she might just be a large female. A photo of her would be helpful. It just sounds quite odd, but you also mentioned you are unsure of your snakes age.

How often are you feeding her and what?

I’d also like to ask, do you notice any swelling or feel strange lumps on the underside of her belly? I’d do it after she completely digests her meal, but something more serious could be going on and I’d check for any abnormalities to be safe.

[Jakemh91]

Did she defecate prior to you weighing her that time? That might be your issue. If she defecates regularly prior to you weighing her then I’m not sure. The only reason I can think of is that she might still be digesting.

As well, a 4 month old bp that’s 270g-330g sounds to either be quite large or overweight. That’s their typical weight when about 7-9 months old. I’d check her overall body condition. She should have a somewhat slender tail and a slight point at the top, but should not be super triangular. If she has a great body condition then I wouldn’t worry, she might just be a large female. A photo of her would be helpful. It just sounds quite odd, but you also mentioned you are unsure of your snakes age.

How often are you feeding her and what?

I’d also like to ask, do you notice any swelling or feel strange lumps on the underside of her belly? I’d do it after she completely digests her meal, but something more serious could be going on and I’d check for any abnormalities to be safe.

Her last poop was about month ago. So some of that weight is for sure being contributed to by that.

My best guess is 4 months, she very well could have been older than I thought when I got her originally.

Physically she looks good. She just had a really smooth shed. Her tail is nice and slender. I always check her for any kind of abnormality I can think of whenever I handle her. I have noticed anything out of the ordinary.

I feed her once a week. Right now I've been feeding her two fuzzy rats as one rat on its own is too little to offer alone. But i keep the amount under 30g total.

I'll try to post a pic of her. The method of posting pics here just confuses me a little bit.

[Faith.luu]

Okay no worries. I’ve learned you can post pics through Tapatalk, and it’s quite easy.

One month without pooping is quite concerning. Possibly a compaction issue?

[Jakemh91]

Okay no worries. I’ve learned you can post pics through Tapatalk, and it’s quite easy.

One month without pooping is quite concerning. Possibly a compaction issue?

Is it? Because I've come here asking about it before. Because she does t poop like, weekly, or anything. It's usually AT LEAST 2 weeks between them, if not onger. But I've been told thats normal for a BP.

[Absololol]

As well, a 4 month old bp that’s 270g-330g sounds to either be quite large or overweight. That’s their typical weight when about 7-9 months old. I’d check her overall body condition. She should have a somewhat slender tail and a slight point at the top, but should not be super triangular. If she has a great body condition then I wouldn’t worry, she might just be a large female. A photo of her would be helpful. It just sounds quite odd, but you also mentioned you are unsure of your snakes age.

Sorry to hijack this thread but I'm a bit worried as I'm in pretty much the same situation as OP. BP about 7 month old but almost 500g, and I'm worried she's too fat esp with you making the comment about it being too much. Does she look overweight to you?

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[dakski]

Is it? Because I've come here asking about it before. Because she does t poop like, weekly, or anything. It's usually AT LEAST 2 weeks between them, if not onger. But I've been told thats normal for a BP.

Jakemh91, BP's poop when they are ready and when they want. So do other snakes with slower metabolisms. I have a young boa, about the weight of your BP, and he goes an absurdly long time between poops. His temps and humidity are dead on and my two other boas go much more regularly. It's just him.

IF temps and humidity are correct, you should not be worried. If you are, and compaction was really an issue, you could soak your BP in 80-85ish degree water and she would probably release whatever is in there.

HOWEVER, pooping is a combination of food coming in, growth, prey size, etc.

If you are feeding proper sized prey and your snake is in the 300G range, she might be putting much of what you are feeding to growth and not have as much to poop out.

What are you feeding?

When my BP was about 300G, she started pooping less frequently as well and hit a growth spurt. Not saying that's what yours is doing for sure, but I wouldn't be surprised. Below 300G she was going frequently, about every 2 weeks. After 300G, as she grew and the prey got smaller proportionally (rat pups at the time before moving on to weaned rats at about 400-450G), she started pooping less frequently, like monthly or less.

She's now about 1,800G and 8 years old and poops every 1 to 2 months or so, on average. She is eating much smaller meals proportionately, but also not really growing anymore. She eats small rats every other week - about 70G - and still grows throughout the summer on a regular eating schedule.

Another thing is if they are going to shed, snakes will often defecate when they shed. They know in the wild that poop = scaring the prey away, as does shed, so they hold it, do it all at once, and then move on to another rat hole.

Now, I mentioned temps. If you have a proper hot spot - 88-90F or so, a cool spot about 78-80F, and a gradient, so temps in the middle are about 82-84F, with humidity in the 50%+ range, you shouldn't be worried.

If temps or humidity are off, that can cause issues. However, if you are correct in husbandry, I wouldn't sweat it. You can look for "sausage butt," but I wouldn't be too concerned.

Another thing that can often help, is to clean the cage. They love going in a clean cage, but again, probably not the issue.

I use paper substrate so that doesn't make much of a difference. However, if you spot clean coco husk, bark, etc. there can still be some remnants of smells.

[Faith.luu]

Is it? Because I've come here asking about it before. Because she does t poop like, weekly, or anything. It's usually AT LEAST 2 weeks between them, if not onger. But I've been told thats normal for a BP.

If your snakes does take longer to defecate then that’s is fine. One week is average, and if your snake has taken up to a month or longer before then that’s okay, but if one month is out of the ordinary for you then I would be concerned.

[Faith.luu]

Sorry to hijack this thread but I'm a bit worried as I'm in pretty much the same situation as OP. BP about 7 month old but almost 500g, and I'm worried she's too fat esp with you making the comment about it being too much. Does she look overweight to you?

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That’s just an average. The best way to determine is the overall body condition. Your snake doesn’t look too fat, but I’d keep an eye on her. She almost looks (to me) on the border. When she’s straight I’d then check to see if you can still see that slight point at the top, if you still can then you’re fine, if not it might be good to slim her down a bit. Having a fat, or even obese snake can result in health problems in the future.

[Jakemh91]

Here are some pics I got of her today.

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