Howdy! New here and pretty new to BP's - And....I have an issue with my new BP

[Adam Chandler]

Hello,

I'm new here and pretty new to BP's in general. I got a BP about a month ago off of Craigslist. She came with her enclosure and is very friendly and looks pretty healthy. It's an open air enclosure, and has its own balcony etc. Which she DOES explore the whole cage. It's got an UT heater built in between tile and wood. The sides are made of hardware cloth. She's been living in it for quite a while so I'm hesitant to change her at this point into a tank (I've been reading they should be in a tank and don't need so much space).

She apparently was fed live rats. Well when I first got her she had been fed a day or two prior to that so I wouldn't have to worry about it for about 10-14 days. Well day 14 comes, I go buy a small rat, put it in there and she refuses it.

My other half said "No...you can't put that one back in there, we'll wait a few days and go get another one but that one is now "Lucky" the pet rat".

So a few more days go by, I go get another rat (meanwhile lucky's living the life of Riley in her very own 30 gallon tank)....and she refuses THIS one too. It's at this point I notice that she looks like she's getting ready to shed so I figured that's why she wouldn't eat. SO....now I'm stuck with TWO refused rats. Eh ok, I like rats, they can stay pets.

So, she just finished shedding about three days ago. I go get another rat, she refuses it. Said rat is going back to petco tonight.

My reptile room is right above my furnace so the room itself stays about 80 degrees if I keep the door shut. Humidity...I am not sure of right now because my hygrometer croaked.

I've been offered advice to brain a rat but I just can't bring myself to do that and I"m not sure it would work anyway because she won't eat killed food.

It's been a month, she hasn't eaten and has lost a little weight (I could tell when I picked her up). Will a snake willingly starve itself to death? Or will it eat when it gets hungry enough.

She shows no signs of dehydration or lethargy or URI.

Advice would me much appreciated...because I'm at my witts end.

My other younger smaller bp is doing very well and took a switch from live to f/t very quickly. (He's a bit nippy too).

First off: Welcome to BP.net

An open air enclosure with hardware cloth sides sounds like it would be a nightmare to keep proper humidity levels in (at least 50% at all times)
As others have said Ball Pythons like smaller, secure feeling enclosure. Something where at least 3 sides of the enclosure are covered and there are hides on both the cool and warm sides of the enclosure. Preferably you want both hides to be identical in order for you BP to never choose security over thermoregulation.

If your BP is not eating I can think of 4 possible things it may be:
1. Husbandry is not right. Is her warm side over the UTH about 90 degrees?
2. Your BP does not feel secure and is stressed.
3. The former owner was mistaken and the BP is eating mice. You might want to try a live mouse and see if you get some interest.
4. Your BP is simply not hungry. Older BP's can go a long time without eating. During the breeding season my males typically don't eat for about 6 months with no ill effects.

Also to increase the chance of you BP eating try offering the meal during either dawn or dusk. In the wild this is usually when BP's come out look for food.

You also may want to check out the BP.net caresheet, it has a ton of useful information:http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...s%29-Caresheet