feeding problem - striking but not eating

[gsrawlinson]

hey, thankyou for anyone who will take the time to read my first post

ive had a ball python for about 2 months now, i took the time to make sure that all the temps and humidty are fine.

during about the first 6-7 weeks there was no intrest in prey whatsoever and was feeding well before i purchased him.

recently i moved him from large exo terra hides to homemade tighter fighting hides and has been striking very fast at its prey. i have been offering only medium mice so wont be too large.

problem is as the title suggests, he keeps striking at the mouse but nothing else. after about 3 times at striking i leave the mouse in front of the hide, but doesnt eat.

any ideas why this would happen

[Spaniard]

Sounds like he's striking in defense, which is usually the sign of an insecure ball python. How big is the snake and the enclosure in which you're housing him. New tighter fitting hides are definitely a step in the right direction. Could be the tank is too large.

[JLC]

As Rich says, it sounds like defensive strikes. More detailed information about your setup and about the snake itself (how old, what size, where'd ya get it and what was it eating before, etc) will help us trouble-shoot your feeding issues.


Welcome to BP.net!

[gsrawlinson]

i house the ball python in a contico plastic container
http://www.eurorep.net/retail/images/FBOX272.JPG

The dimensions are 565 x 405 x 140mm

i dont think it is too small really, ive put scrunched up newspaper balls either side of the hides to make it all really compact. but ive only done this recently, considently when he started striking.


this response came from me starting to heat the mouses head so i assumed it was a feeding response.

hes a subadult captive bred 06 feeding on medium mice. hasnt really lost much weight at all. did defeacate? shortly after i housed him, which backed up the advice that he was eating well.

[JLC]

Cool looking enclosures...I hadn't seen those before.


Some more questions, though: What temps are you maintaining? What are you using to heat and what are you using to measure the temps? How consistent are the temps? (Do they stay steady all the time, or do the fluctuate throughout the day?) Same questions for your humidity.

What is the environment around the enclosure like? Busy and noisy or quiet and peaceful? Bright lights? Loud (vibration-causing) music or lots of flickering TV images close by?

Are you handling him often? What is your handling routine with him?

From what little I know so far, it sounds like a med mouse is a decent sized meal. We just need to figure out why he hadn't eaten for so long and why he's displaying what seems to be defensive behavior now. There are lots of reasons that could cause it, so that's why there's so many questions.

[gsrawlinson]

hey thanks for taking the time on this,

the temps are maintained by a heat mat and a temperature thermostat and i use a thermometer with a probe on the surface.

temps dont really fluctuate i dont decrease the temperature at the basking end - about one third of the box surface is heated to 32c and the cooler end around 28-27 maybe very slightly cooler during the night but its not in a cold room.

the room he is in is pretty much silent 24 hours a day and i havent handled him at all for about 4-5 weeks unless i need to change newspaper or something.


i feel i cant possibly give it anymore security thats why im worried. to be honest i thought that the strike response was a positive sign but i dont know.

[JLC]

hhmmmmmmm.....well, here's something to try that might help. At the moment, I can't think of any other obvious reasons other than he's still nervous.


Try filling his enclosure up with loosely crumpled up balls of newspaper. Fill up the whole space and leave it that way, undisturbed, for a week. At the end of that week, attempt to feed him. And when you do...first pre-scent the room by warming the mouse nearby. Let him get whiffs of it a good 20-30 minutes before opening his enclosure and putting it in. Then do so with as little fuss as possible and leave him be overnight.

Next morning, you should be short one mouse. If so...continue with the paper trick for another week...then slowly, each week after a successful feed, remove one piece of paper...until eventually he'll be used to living without it in there.

I surely hope this works for ya!

[gsrawlinson]

thanks again

just one question should i carry on dangling the mouse in front of its hide or just leave it be in front of the hide opening

[JLC]

In this case, I would just place it in the tub and leave it be, if it were me.

[Spaniard]

Judy gave some great advice, I hope you give her suggestions a try and best of luck. Keep us posted.