Why do some of them take FOREVER to strike?

[hungba]

Skipping a feeding sounds like a good idea. However, does that only work if food is not offered? Or if it is offered and they don't eat, does that not work as a skipped feeding due to the fact that food is offered (perhaps stress?)

[Vasiliki]

Yes, technically they would have skipped a meal by refusing. However, they still encounter stress from the offering of food. So the question becomes: Do you try and offer again in 7 days, or do you wait until the feeding after that?

Personally, it's your call. If your BP has refused meals, then I would skip the next one and wait until he is well and truly hungry.

I did this with my corn and almost couldn't get the mouse into her mouth fast enough when I opened the tub about 12 days later. Best response ever. I thought she was going to explode the mouse with how hard she wrapped it. Since then, she eats like clockwork once a week

[AdamF]

Sure I can just take the rat away and wait till next week but the whole idea is to try to get them to eat and gain weight for breeding etc. over time. There are snakes that only eat like this since I got them, and if I were to just take the rat away they will not be eating at all which would defeat the purpose anyway. Unless over time they recognize the pattern and strike right away (do they?), then their not eating is my loss.

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Deborah, you put the rat into the tub. Do you mean they just eat the rat without any dangling? Or are you feeding live?

30 minute zombie dance (dangle) is crazy. I feed mine FT, and 2 hit within 90 secs or so. The others, i just leave the prey and walk away. Have you considered just dropping the prey in tubs, keep it dark and quiet and leave them for 30 mins? Try it.


And breeding size is not a sprint, its a marathon. The snakes will eat and breed almost exclusively when they want to and not when YOU want them to.

Remember for females 3 years old, 3 feet long and 1500g minimums. Getting them to breeding size is one thing, getting them fat and unhealthy is another

[Dracoluna]

I'm a little newer to balls but I only feed F/T. The first thing I do is double check the temp of the rat. If it doesn't feel alive to me, I put it back under the heat lamp. I also feed after 8:30-9 PM so that it's closer to their natural hunting time. If they are in shed and don't strike, I lay it in the entrance to their hide (the head inside, body out), turn the lights out, and leave the room. Haven't had a refusal yet and I'm feeding my juveniles every 5 days. Patience and the right conditions can make a big difference. If your husbandry is correct then double check the rats just to be sure.

[adamsky27]

X 2

Here you snooze you lose.

I put the rat in the first tub goes onto the next and next ....once done I wait 10/15 min go back over all the tubs and removed what has not been eaten, no second chance they eat during that time frame or they will wait another week.

Same with me. If they don't take it they can wait. Sometimes I will rewarm it with the blow dryer and retry. I just don't have time for them to be picky.

[hungba]

And breeding size is not a sprint, its a marathon. The snakes will eat and breed almost exclusively when they want to and not when YOU want them to.

Everybody thinks I am stuffing them with food to get them up to breeding size from one line in my post, which isn't true at all. When a snake doesn't eat for 5 weeks, 6 weeks, 7 weeks, 8 weeks etc., don't you think I should try to get them to eat? Not trying to powerfeed anybody just get them up to breeding size at a normal time frame by getting them to eat regularly.

I have not said anything about jamming as much food into them to get them to breeding weight. All I said was I had snakes that won't feed without 30 minutes of dangling and I feed (or try to) them once a week with appropriate sized rodent. Trying to get a snake to eat better who eats sporadically isn't RUSHING them to breeding size. It's trying to get a problem feeder to eat normally. I don't know what I said that caused this misunderstanding from multiple readers.

[jbean7916]

Sure I can just take the rat away and wait till next week but the whole idea is to try to get them to eat and gain weight for breeding etc. over time.............., then their not eating is my loss.

I think this is the post that people are referring too that made them bring up breeding.

I have a couple that won't strike at f/t. They won't even coil it. They just slide up and start swallowing!

Next feeding day, try just dropping them in and leaving then alone for an hour our so.

Balls will get to breeding size on their own schedules. I have a pastel female that should have been "ready" last season but went on an 11 month feeding strike instead. It happens.

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[AdamF]

My response was based on this part of OP "....the whole idea is to get them up to breeding size."

A BP that does not eat for 6,7,8 weeks is no cause for panic at all. I was not at all accusing you of power feeding. Just remember they eat, grow, breed on their schedule, not ours.

They really dont care much that you have a ready mate, the incubator, tanks, pinkies and set up for complete nursery all ready to go.

Most of us have dealt with it.

Good luck in BP patience 101

[hungba]

My response was based on this part of OP "....the whole idea is to get them up to breeding size."

Yes, it does make it sound very different when you leave out part of my sentence, and underline certain words for emphasis, doesn't it?

Try this:
"Sure I can just take the rat away and wait till next week but the whole idea is to try to get them to eat and gain weight for breeding etc. over time."

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By the way, I agree that a ball python doesn't eat for some weeks is no cause for concern about their immediate health unless they loose a lot of weight or some other symptoms, but if there is some reason they are not eating instead of they are just full then it should be corrected.

Since those snakes are eating, I am tending to think they are not simply "not hungry". Of course they may be, but to continually have a snake not eat/able to eat because that snake is shy or scared for whatever reason, and thus take longer to strike, I think is not a good thing. That was the whole point of this post to ask what are possible reasons some of my snakes would take so long to strike, while others kept the same do so immediately.

Could be just personality. I don't know. I am going to try switch to dark tubs as my friend has good success with his lot that were problem feeders.

[rabernet]

Everybody thinks I am stuffing them with food to get them up to breeding size from one line in my post, which isn't true at all. When a snake doesn't eat for 5 weeks, 6 weeks, 7 weeks, 8 weeks etc., don't you think I should try to get them to eat? Not trying to powerfeed anybody just get them up to breeding size at a normal time frame by getting them to eat regularly.

I have not said anything about jamming as much food into them to get them to breeding weight. All I said was I had snakes that won't feed without 30 minutes of dangling and I feed (or try to) them once a week with appropriate sized rodent. Trying to get a snake to eat better who eats sporadically isn't RUSHING them to breeding size. It's trying to get a problem feeder to eat normally. I don't know what I said that caused this misunderstanding from multiple readers.

I have a pastel female who hasn't eaten in months. She still in good body condition and will eat when she's ready. Would I prefer that she continued to eat regularly? Absolutely!

But, if she has other ideas, and I have to with her flow.

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