BP not eating. Please help

[azuree]

Hi, I have a 1.5 year old BP and its been eating about 3-5 live mice every week. Up until 2 weeks ago that it stop feeding after only 1 mice. Now I have been keeping the leftovers (4 mice) for about 2.5 weeks to entice it to feed again but to no avail.

Can somebody explain? This is my first time with Ball. Previously I had a Red Tail Boa but never encounter this issue.

Thanks

[withonor]

It's common for ball pythons to stop eating, especially during the winter. Just wait an extra week before you offer him food again. It's important to know that he'll be fine even if he doesn't eat for a couple months.

Just to make sure he's not eating because he really doesn't want food, double check your temperatures and humidity to make sure he's comfortable and not stressed.

[azuree]

Thanks David, by the way I'm living in Malaysia and its tropical here so I believe weather is not the factor here.

So I guess I'll just wait till it eats again. My BP is in perfect health and tame as usual. Nothing quite unusual from it apart from turning away from its meal.

[withonor]

Even if it is tropical there, captivity isn't a natural setting for a ball python. In the wild they can move freely through terrain to get the temperature they need. The best way to represent this is to offer a hot spot (~92*F) and a cool side(~83*F). I'm not saying that you don't provide this for yours but assuming that your location in the world is good enough may not be the most intelligent thing for your snake. Remember you need to represent, in 20 gallons or less, everything your snake may need in nature. It's easy to maintain but not something to take for granted.

I don't mean any offensive with this. You asked questions and that's the best quality any human can have.

[dr del]

Hi,

What weight is the BP and what would be the weights of the mice?

It's possible 3-5 mice at one sitting was a little more than he needed and he is now feeling less hungry?


dr del

[loonunit]

BPs are tropical/subtropical animals anyway, and they typically do not eat during breeding season, which is sub-Saharan winter. Living in Malaysia just means they have a bit more choice for the definition of "winter", but they're still going to try to breed. (He might be responding to humidity levels instead? Who knows.) Anyway, at 1.5 years, he's at That Age. So I wouldn't worry about it!

3-5 mice is a lot of mice per week. It's a fine diet for an adult in summer, but I'd switch to offering 1 mouse per week for a few months. You can even offer 1 mouse every other week if he's making you insane by rejecting food constantly. By March or April he'll start regaining his appetite.

[loonunit]

For the record, I have a 1.5 year-old male who hasn't eaten in 7 weeks, and a 1 year old female who's eaten two small mice since November. The female is getting a bit triangular, and I'm glad she ate this week... but the male is still so fat, I can't be bothered to worry about him.

If your snake is still fat, it's okay if he fasts.

[CopperNightShade]

It's common for ball pythons to stop eating, especially during the winter. Just wait an extra week before you offer him food again. It's important to know that he'll be fine even if he doesn't eat for a couple months.

Just to make sure he's not eating because he really doesn't want food, double check your temperatures and humidity to make sure he's comfortable and not stressed.

Really? I have recently (last week) encountered the same problem... I thought it was due to a cage re-organization. Perhaps it is the season? And if so, when should I look for her to eat again?

[blackcrystal22]

Why not just feed one small rat a week instead of 5 mice? It's a lot easier on their system.

[azuree]

I've heard of them not eating for a period of time but never thought it could happen to my Ball Thanks guys, yes am now switching to only 1 mice per week. Lets see how it goes.

And David, I kept the lil' guy in a 40 gallon herp tank with heater and humidity control system even I live in a tropical place. Perhaps its just the time of the year.