feeding new snake

[CB1125]

ok the guy i got her from said she ate last tuesday but he hasnt given her frozen thawed. could i feed her now just to see if she will take it even though i just got her. he said he feeds every four days also but im just not sure.

[stevepoppers]

Give her a week to settle in, then feed on whatever day you want to be feeding day. Don't bother her except to change water and clean up any poop or urates. This is to make sure that she has the best chance to feel safe enough to eat. Some don't need it, but I'd rather take the precaution, right? If she refuses, give her another week.

You can try f/t right off the bat, and you might get lucky. Do you know all the tricks? How old is she? If she's big you can wait for her to get hungry enough to eat f/t, but if she's a hatchling, you just need to get her eating.

[CB1125]

he said she was like two to three months

[stevepoppers]

Such a small snake probably can't stand to be off feed for very long. I'd give it a shot a few times, but at that age she probably just needs to be eating whatever she will eat.

I don't have any personal experience with young ball pythons though, so I hope someone else chimes in with solid info.

[mozbink]

I got my new snake home. She had only ever eaten live. I let her settle in for a week which put her feeding schedule late by two days based on when they fed her at the store.

I fed her frozen thawed and she hammered them. I fed her two because after buying the mice based on gram size on box they did not seem big enough when I actually took them out of the box. They were "large" mice but her girth was bigger.

Her feeding response was soooo strong that I am a little bit intimidated now.She seemed so innocent and sweet when I held her at the store but I had never seen a snake feed before and it was a sight to behold.....

Good luck.

[stevepoppers]

after buying the mice based on gram size on box they did not seem big enough when I actually took them out of the box. They were "large" mice but her girth was bigger.

Someone here says he takes his scale to the pet store and roots around in the freezer until he finds what he needs. I did this and the 40g mice at Petco are actually about 65g. If they have singles, you can estimate the whole box pretty well. Or divide the whole box by the # of items inside, minus a little for the box itself.

[cschneider]

I just picked up a lesser female at the columbus show. She hadn't ate at all when I bought her. I gave her a small f/t hopper last night and she snatched it right up. I was so relieved because I had never bought a BP that hadn't ate a few times and shed.

If I were you, I would try feeding a f/t or fresh killed. It couldn't hurt, but if she doesn't take it, I would try again in a few days. I'm fortunate enough that none of my BP's eat live. I'm sure others will have more info for you.

[Vypyrz]

Someone here says he takes his scale to the pet store and roots around in the freezer until he finds what he needs.

That would be me.

OP, there is no reason to feed the snake every 4 days unless you just absolutely want to try it. I would let it settle in for a week. If you want to try feeding a F/T at that time, go ahead. If your snake refuses it wait a few more days then offer it a live. Personally, I would continue to feed whatever prey it is used to, for at least a month, so that you get it established at feeding for you. Once you have it feeding on a regular schedule, then think about switching it to F/T...

[CB1125]

ok i offered her a grown mouse and she took it like she was waiting for it for years and it was only five days it made me kinda happy to know she is comfortable enough to eat lol and i was told the more i feed her the bigger she will grow and when should i expect her to shed