it was a bigggg meal

[scarface2jz]

BEFORE




AFTER






took him a half hour to swallow... and he took it like a champ... medium rat vs 11 month old BP... he had to use his whole body to coil it... lol... i think he did well, and he can barely fit in his hide now.... hahahaha

[2kdime]

Hope he doesn't regurgitate it.

Ball pythons as adults don't need much more than a small rat, especially at 11 months.

[scarface2jz]

Hope he doesn't regurgitate it.

Ball pythons as adults don't need much more than a small rat, especially at 11 months.

hes had it in his belly for quite a bit, these pics were a few days after, i doubt hes gonna regurge

[dr del]

Hi,

Make very sure his temps stay in the right range after a meal like that - it is basically a race between his body digesting it and the prey item rotting.

As long as nothing goes wrong you should be ok though.

That being said I would stick to smaller prey myself - Less chance of any problems in the long run.


dr del

[Mike Cavanaugh]

sorry man, but especially if that snake was a few days after it ate, that rat was WAY too big.

Just because they can swallow it, and keep it down does NOT mean it is what is good for their health. Keep reading.

[llovelace]

You should try to keep in mind the 10-15% rule when feeding your snake.

[Kysenia]

I would agree with the above posts, 10-15% body weight along with same width as your bp at its widest point....the benefits of a larger prey item then that are not established and if there are any the risk of issue would far outweigh them imo...........beauty bp though

[scarface2jz]

Thank you Dr. Del... Right now he's got belly heat under the hide to help out, and this big of a meal wasn't quite planned, I went to my normal spot to get a small rat, and I usually pick the smallest from their batch. But they were out and only had hoppers, fuzzys, med mice, and med rats, the guy working had seen my snake before and said he should be able to easily eat it, and he just grabbed one and threw it in the box, by the time I got home and saw it I figured it would be ok, I prescented the room and he came right out for his meal, by the time I dropped the rat in and saw how big it was compared to him it was too late and he struck and coiled like the killer he is... So I just let him do what he does best, I'm gonna give him a week break from eating and switch back to small rats... But he seems to be taking it quite well, he has been chilling in the hide, coming out at night to cruise, and drinking water, so no harm no foul... I just hope he won't be dissapointed when he gets a small rat next time LOL

[rabernet]

Wow! Way too big a meal for the poor guy! I can just feel the tummy ache from overeating!

I'm glad to see you won't be feeding that large again!

[stevenkeogh]

Don't be surprised if he refuses food the next week. Think about giving him a 2 week break.
-Steven