Now that is the kind of answer I'm happy to see, thanks NR.

Naturally, stages of life will help to guide you in how much to feed. I'm not too concerned with the first 12-18 months of a Ball's life as this is when it grows the most. Although I think even my spider may have pushed the envelope a little in his early stages, which was 100% my fault.

My concern comes in once the ball reaches adulthood. Growth is no longer at the same rate as when it was younger and the animal's needs have changed. It is at this point that I am focusing my efforts regarding feeding.

The ball does not need the food energy to grow at a high rate anymore, so do we need to continue to pump food into them?