First Feeding and a Problem

[EthanMG]

Well, I guess he ate! Im so happy! I lifted his hide to check, and I don’t see it. Only thing is I don’t see a lump in him. Is there supposed to be one?the picture below is the picture of him when I just lifted the hide and the other picture is right after I unboxed him a week ago to compare for a lump. Not really sure if you’re even supposed to see a lump…?



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[Auntie_Moe]

Yeah!! Glad he ate for you. Don't worry about looking for a lump, it all depends on the prey size if its really noticeable.. Plus right now he is coiled and it will be harder to tell..

You will eventually get used to the strike, the 1st time is always the hardest cause you don't expect it to be so fast.. Seems all went well with the 1st feeding other than he seems to be shy eating... With time that will probably change, one of mine always drags her prey back into her hide to eat. The rest could care less that someone is staring at them...

[arpowell]

Looks like he ate, congratulations! Totally agree that the first time is the hardest, and you actually got luckier than me - my girl was so shy it took her almost a month to eat for me, but now she's practically a garbage disposal. Very pleased for you, I know that must be a huge relief.

Don't worry about not seeing a lump, I really only notice one right after my girl's eaten. Unless you fed him something quite large for him I wouldn't be concerned.

(Also, wow, he's a beautiful snake!)

[EthanMG]

Looks like he ate, congratulations! Totally agree that the first time is the hardest, and you actually got luckier than me - my girl was so shy it took her almost a month to eat for me, but now she's practically a garbage disposal. Very pleased for you, I know that must be a huge relief.

Don't worry about not seeing a lump, I really only notice one right after my girl's eaten. Unless you fed him something quite large for him I wouldn't be concerned.

(Also, wow, he's a beautiful snake!)

Thanks!! It is a huge relief. He’s an enchi bamboo 50% het pied. I know, I love his colors and patterns, very handsome boy.


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[Bogertophis]

...He doesn’t seem to be shy when he’s about to strike, it just seems to be when he is eating...

With practice you'll get better at not jumping when your snake strikes, but it's pretty normal.

The BIG thing to remember is that while our snakes are "predators", they too have predators to worry about in nature, and THEY are at risk when they're busy trying to swallow prey. That's why your snake is "shyer" about you watching him eat- it's instinctive, & they'd rather lose the meal they just caught than become a meal themselves for something else that's watching them.

In time, most of our pets learn to feel safe with us around (even when they're eating) but right now it might help to dim the room lights & be as "invisible" as you can; you might also cover his home with a towel, or temporarily tape up some paper on the sides (just newspaper or anything) so he cannot see you while he's trying to eat.

Congrats on getting the first meal into him now- with any luck, it will get easier. Before you know it, you'll be "thinking like a snake" & you'll understand him much better.

And by the way, some snakes (like some of mine) get distracted by me (my motion, nearby) when I feed them too, but it's because they think I'm something to be CHASED as PREY! So "count your blessings" as they say. LOL

[EL-Ziggy]

One down, 999 to go! Keep up the good work. 😀

[Bogertophis]

This is my first feeding ever. I had Madeline post and you guys wanted to know how my first feeding went , so this is what happened: I thawed out my rat, then looked in my enclosure and my little guy was popping his head out his hide. I dangled the rodent, then he struck in about 5 seconds, being my first feeding I jumped because it surprised me, which caused him to miss. Right after though he struck again, hot, and wrapped around the rat. I watched for about a minute then left. I came back about 3 minutes later and he was starting to put it in his mouth. After about 20 seconds of watching him, he saw me, dropped the rat and started slithering to me !! I left right after that, and barely peeked my head around the corner and the rat was still on the floor and he was just smelling all over and around it. I left right after that and haven’t gone back in. It’s been about 30 minutes since then and I’m not sure what to do. This is my first ball python and first feeding so I need some help. I hope he eats it!!


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BTW, what I would have tried under the circumstances: after you watched briefly to see if he'd pick it up & he didn't, I'd have retrieved the rat using tongs, warmed it (probably with a blow-dryer) & re-offered it via feeding tongs. What went wrong there, besides the distraction, is that the rat cooled off. BPs rely heavily on their heat sensing pits to find & pounce on their prey- they get confused if they drop it & it cools off- they can still smell it, but may fail to find it & eat.

Re-warming the prey can often help. No guarantee, of course, some snakes will just be intimidated by your presence, but that's what I'd have at least tried, rather than leaving it in his home overnight. (Leaving it works okay for some snakes that rely on scent, but BPs rely more on warmth & "signs of life".)

The fact that your BP was slithering toward you suggests to me that he's not as shy as you think, & that he was after your motion as the potential prey he just "lost". If you had just reached in to retrieve the rat right then, you'd likely have found out what a BP-bite feels like- it sounds like he shouldn't be too hard to feed, once you both get on the same page.

[Hugsplox]

And by the way, some snakes (like some of mine) get distracted by me (my motion, nearby) when I feed them too, but it's because they think I'm something to be CHASED as PREY! So "count your blessings" as they say. LOL

Mine got spooked by the feeder laying there Friday. Stuck his head and neck out of the hide, turned, saw the feeder laying there and shot back in the hide. First refusal I've had with him lol. It worked out well though because he's in blue as of today and prefer him not to have a rat in the belly when he's in shed, plus I had a good laugh at his reaction.

[Bogertophis]

Mine got spooked by the feeder laying there Friday. Stuck his head and neck out of the hide, turned, saw the feeder laying there and shot back in the hide. First refusal I've had with him lol. It worked out well though because he's in blue as of today and prefer him not to have a rat in the belly when he's in shed, plus I had a good laugh at his reaction.

Silly sneks! You're right though, when they're in shed (or even just going into shed & before it's even noticeable to us) they often react with fear to the prey we offer them.
Most snakes are not the "tough & relentless killers" that the general public thinks they are, that's for sure. And yours going "EEEK! A Rat!" sure proves that point.

[EthanMG]

BTW, what I would have tried under the circumstances: after you watched briefly to see if he'd pick it up & he didn't, I'd have retrieved the rat using tongs, warmed it (probably with a blow-dryer) & re-offered it via feeding tongs. What went wrong there, besides the distraction, is that the rat cooled off. BPs rely heavily on their heat sensing pits to find & pounce on their prey- they get confused if they drop it & it cools off- they can still smell it, but may fail to find it & eat.

Re-warming the prey can often help. No guarantee, of course, some snakes will just be intimidated by your presence, but that's what I'd have at least tried, rather than leaving it in his home overnight. (Leaving it works okay for some snakes that rely on scent, but BPs rely more on warmth & "signs of life".)

The fact that your BP was slithering toward you suggests to me that he's not as shy as you think, & that he was after your motion as the potential prey he just "lost". If you had just reached in to retrieve the rat right then, you'd likely have found out what a BP-bite feels like- it sounds like he shouldn't be too hard to feed, once you both get on the same page.

Thanks for your thorough responses, very helpful! So you’re saying if this happens in the future where I see he can’t find the rodent after leaving him for some time, to still go in and re heat it even like you said I have a high chance of taking a feeding response bite? He was locked onto me and head cocked back about to strike the glass last night when he saw me and dropped his rat. Not sure I’d be able to go in there and get his rat from him without him launching himself at me. Have you ever done this, and should I have just waited until he moved away from the rat to take it out and re heat?


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