i thought that lenghth didnt matter when choosing prey size...

[bobbi]

i got some advice from some crazy guy that told me that my ball should be eating much bigger prey because of his length!!

i thought that you were supposed to feed something approximetly the size of the biggest part of their body.. correct me if im wrong.

i have a ball who was abandoned and is quite long 4.5 feet to be exact but hes really skinny, ive been getting him eating and gaining weight so do you think that i should give him prey that is WAYY bigger around than he is??

maby im wrong and this crazy person is right...
what are your thoughts?

[DutchHerp]

Sounds like the crazy person is wrong. It's about the feeder animal's weight, not it's length.

Weight is largely determined by the girth of the feeder animal, so an appropriately sized meal for a snake creates only a small lump in the animal.

[mak2266]

4.5 Feet is a big Ball. I usually feed my big girl med size rats. I would start out with small rats and see if he has any problems. Then go from there.

[bobbi]

i thought so, i may be new to this whole thing but i have done my research... and the "little" guy lol is gaining weight pretty good considering soooo ya i guess im not the crazy one this time

[kc261]

If your rescue is gaining weight and looking better, then obviously you are doing something right.

When I read the title of your post, thought you meant the length of the prey, and I was thinking well obviously feeding something as big around as your snake but also just as long as your snake isn't going to be a good idea...

[TheReptileEnthusiast]

Using the gauge of the snakes largest girth is a visual aid to help a person visualize an appropriately size meal for a healthy snake. If the snake is very thin/underweight, using this gauge could cause you to underfeed him. He has the head and neck of a much thicker, heavier snake, so he is capable of swallowing larger prey. However, he may be weak or emaciated if he is very thin, so start off by feeding more frequently or multiple small prey, then try to feed him something a little bigger once his strength is up. The previous post about small rats to start, then med rats sounds about right.

[bobbi]

Using the gauge of the snakes largest girth is a visual aid to help a person visualize an appropriately size meal for a healthy snake. If the snake is very thin/underweight, using this gauge could cause you to underfeed him. He has the head and neck of a much thicker, heavier snake, so he is capable of swallowing larger prey. However, he may be weak or emaciated if he is very thin, so start off by feeding more frequently or multiple small prey, then try to feed him something a little bigger once his strength is up. The previous post about small rats to start, then med rats sounds about right.

exactly my thought but this guy really thought i was wrong... i started feeding 2 adult mice twice week and since then have moved to small to med rat once a week. he/she seems satisfied

[PythonWallace]

I think the concern is ther possability of broken ribs or digestion being too slow. If it's a very thin, long snake, I would offer smaller multiple food items for a while until he bulks up. But if he's 4.5' long small rats shouldn't be a problem. I have balls that are probably little more than 2' that eat small rats.

[hoo-t]

exactly my thought but this guy really thought i was wrong... i started feeding 2 adult mice twice week and since then have moved to small to med rat once a week. he/she seems satisfied

You're doing perfectly. With an emaciated snake that may not have eaten in a long time, start with a VERY small meal. That will get the beneficial gut flora re-established. Too large a meal at that point can kill the snake! Once the flora is re-established after a couple very small meals, then you can start increasing meal size. You're right on track. Your snake should do wonderfully on one small/medium rat per week for the rest of its life.

Steve

[hoo-t]

I think the concern is ther possability of broken ribs or digestion being too slow. If it's a very thin, long snake, I would offer smaller multiple food items for a while until he bulks up. But if he's 4.5' long small rats shouldn't be a problem. I have balls that are probably little more than 2' that eat small rats.

Jake, too large a meal for the size of the snake can cause regurgitation, which is a very bad thing for a snake. Not that I enjoy it, but regurgitation isn't so much a big deal for us humans. But it can cause bigger problems for our snakes.

Also take a look at my previous post about emaciated snakes. Too large of a meal in a snake that has no gut flora can kill the snake. The reason for this is that the snake can't digest the meal, and it rots in the snake's stomach. I know this from experience.

Steve