Can you feed your bp more then once a week?

[Evenstar]

Is there realy a science to feeding ball pythons?i always thought one nice size mouse,rat would be fine once a week.10-15% of body weight should be fed now.i have books on ball pythons and never read that befor.hmmm see i learned something new.you guys rock!!!ill start trying that with some of my females they eat and gain weight but it doesnt look like they are thick/fat enough maybe if i try that % scale.they thicken up a bit.thanks again guys..

No, there really isn't an exact science to feeding. We do our best to mimic nature, but we can't ever duplicate it 100%. 10-15% of body weight is approximately the size prey a BP would hunt in the wild. But this is why offering 2 prey items to equal that percentage is appropriate - if a BP finds a little mouse in the wild, he's gonna take it. But then he's gonna keep hunting til he's full - probably 1 or 2 more mice will do it til the next week or so. Incidentally, I'm not necessarily recommending feeding multiple prey items - just pointing out how it can work out sometimes.

Anyhow, that may very well help your kids to add a few grams. You can feed that percentage every 5 days or so if they have good appetites and a little less often if you have picky eaters.

Side Note: Ella ate 2 jumbo mice last night. She's about 1100 grams and the mice were 50-55 grams each. The last time she ate was 2 weeks ago. She'd been on a hunger strike from Jan-March and I'd had to restart her on live as she was still refusing f/t. 2 weeks ago, she ate 3 small live mice which only weighed in at about 20 grams each. Before that, she's taken a few live mice through April coming off her strike. So all in all, they'll eat what's appropriate.

[OtterGoRun]

I have one guy that never seems satiated too. He tracks like crazy but doesn't strike except on feeding day. We offered a larger prey size and it didn't help, so we offered several slightly smaller items (still the width of his largest diameter) back to back in the same night and that seems to work for him. He's just a PIG. Our other snake never seems as ravenous as this one, so I wonder if some snakes are just genetically determined to be ravenous feeders.

[FINGAZZ]

No, there really isn't an exact science to feeding. We do our best to mimic nature, but we can't ever duplicate it 100%. 10-15% of body weight is approximately the size prey a BP would hunt in the wild. But this is why offering 2 prey items to equal that percentage is appropriate - if a BP finds a little mouse in the wild, he's gonna take it. But then he's gonna keep hunting til he's full - probably 1 or 2 more mice will do it til the next week or so. Incidentally, I'm not necessarily recommending feeding multiple prey items - just pointing out how it can work out sometimes.

Anyhow, that may very well help your kids to add a few grams. You can feed that percentage every 5 days or so if they have good appetites and a little less often if you have picky eaters.

Side Note: Ella ate 2 jumbo mice last night. She's about 1100 grams and the mice were 50-55 grams each. The last time she ate was 2 weeks ago. She'd been on a hunger strike from Jan-March and I'd had to restart her on live as she was still refusing f/t. 2 weeks ago, she ate 3 small live mice which only weighed in at about 20 grams each. Before that, she's taken a few live mice through April coming off her strike. So all in all, they'll eat what's appropriate.

THANKS!! that makes sence now.i noticed when i feed a big rat to them they eat it and then go right to there hide stuffed i guess.some just still want more.so ill get to weighing them and there food weekly.thanks again.

[Evenstar]

Hey there, any updates? How are things going?

[FINGAZZ]

Hey there, any updates? How are things going?

not realy an update.but i decided to just feed evey week like i have been doing. there geting bigger and gaining weight so im doing things right.but i will start doin the %weight ratio thing next month. that give me more time to get the feeding list in order and a new one made up.

[EvesFriend]

I would not feed every other day, however when ball pythons are young they can generally eat every 5-7 days. Make sure your temps are right as the warmer it is, the faster the food will digest. If you really want to feed mor ethan once a week, shoot for every 5 days - granted your BP actually takes a meal within that time span. If it becomes picky, hold back.

[Evenstar]

not realy an update.but i decided to just feed evey week like i have been doing. there geting bigger and gaining weight so im doing things right.but i will start doin the %weight ratio thing next month. that give me more time to get the feeding list in order and a new one made up.

Good for you! Just remember to be a bit flexible with your schedule and you'll do fine - and so will they!

[LonelyGhost]

My ball python tinkerbell is a pig... She eats 3 small/medium rats every sunday but i love my fatty girl and she seems rather fat and happy.