Question about feeding

[Gruba]

We got a 1.5 yr old BP about 2 months ago. We've been feeding him every Friday. We started with large mice and switched to a small rat last week. It was definitely a solid meal for him and we have even noticed a change in behaviour at the end of the week. With the mice, we found he was getting testy by Wednesday or Thursday. With the rat, he's still very content. Hes a nice, healthy size and he had no trouble eating the rat. My question is, should we give him a small rat every Friday or should we alternate and give him a rat bi weekly with a mouse in between? It's our first BP and I want to make sure we're feeding him properly. We have a rescue nearby and seeing the underweight snakes made me sad

[Eavlynn]

I have a BP the same age, and I feed him a rat every 10 days. They don't have super quick metabolisms, and aren't super active, so an extended feeding schedule is better in the long run. For a snake to become underweight or emaciated, they are usually neglected or fed too small 9f a meal. I don't think you'll run into that issue, it sounds like you really care about your little guy.

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[Gruba]

The 7 days worked well with the mice. Perhaps because they were smaller? He had the rat last Friday, so I'll try waiting until Monday. I did manage to figure out the behaviours he displays when he's hungry so, I'll pay attention to that and find what works best for him! He likes food so, I want to make sure he's happy with the feeding schedule too. We do really care about him, he's our 3.5 year old sons snake so we want to make sure he's healthy, happy and well fed. Happy snake = happy son = happy life! Haha

[Eavlynn]

The mice are smaller, so every 7 days wasn't a bad idea. Ball pythons aren't bottomless pits like some other species, they usually start to get hungry around the time they are due to be fed. Unlike our carpet pythons that eat and hunt immediately afterwards, and every night until they are fed again haha. You have a lucky snake and a lucky son

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[Mr. Misha]

I've always stuck to the once a week feedings because it makes things easier for my own schedule. Plus, I noticed that if you feed on the same day each week, they anticipate to be fed on that day. Do whatever works better for you. Don't worry too much about the BPs. A few extra days without food won't hurt them.

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[Gruba]

That's why I was hoping to stick to the 7 day schedule. My son absolutely loves handling him so I was thinking, if the snake knows what day feeding day is, it'll cut down on the risk of hungry nips, especially in the beginning. Plus, we have a strict no touching rule on feeding day. Maybe I'll try to feed him this Friday and if he eats, we'll stick to it. If he doesn't eat, then we'll wait and try again Monday. He won't eat if he's not hungry so, it can't hurt to try right?

[shadow reaper]

I ran into something similar with my year old this week. He's been getting a weaned rat every Monday since I got him a month or two ago and has seemed pretty content. We weighed him over the weekend and found that his big rear end weighs 495 grams, meaning he's due for a bigger meal. He would start to look very "hunt like" a couple days before his feeding and yesterday (two days after feeding) he struck at the air when we turned the ceramic light on for the evening. We thawed a rat and fed him, which he hit and swallowed immediately! Time for bigger rats! Luckily the reptile expo is this weekend, so we can get small rats.

[Gruba]

Well, I gave it a shot with a small rat on his usual feeding day, Friday. He wasn't quite as quick to strike as he was with the mice but, sure enough, he struck and gulped it down quite happily!

[Eavlynn]

Well, I gave it a shot with a small rat on his usual feeding day, Friday. He wasn't quite as quick to strike as he was with the mice but, sure enough, he struck and gulped it down quite happily!

You're lucky! Getting my boy to transition from mice to rats was a long and laborious process. It's nice when they make it easy on you!

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[Gruba]

Yesterday was his 2nd. We gave him his first rat last week and he must've been hungry. He wasted no time going after the rat. He was a bit difficult at first but he shed and is eating enough now so, he's actually a very easy and agreeable snake. Being our first snake, it's nice that we managed to get an easy guy!