another feeding question and a question on handling

[tryme]

hi guys

im new to royals/ball pythons. im from the uk. im part of a forum there which is great but its also a small community so takes a while for replies.

thats how i found myself here!

any way. ive had my ball for about 2 weeks now. last wednesday i assist fed him after leaving a fuzzy in his enclosure overnight which he did not take.

i let him settle in for one week before offering the fuzzy too. i was also aware he was being assist fed but as he is young i thought this was quite normal and purchased him off a private buyer any way.

last night, i offered him a fuzzy as i saw him out and about in his enclosure. he did not take it so i again left it inside his enclosure all night. this morning it was still there so i attempted to assist feed him. this time, not much luck and he didnt seem interested at all. where as last week he took quite easily.

i noticed it was stressing him a bit so i set him back in his enclosure and disposed of the fuzzy. (this is frozen, thawed btw).

now im concerned ive ruined our bond as i havent had him very long and literally last night was the first night i saw him roaming!

i really dont know what to do, i dont want to stress him out. i also dont want him going hungry.

i have been advised to leave him well alone for at least 3-4 weeks and only going inside his enclosure to change water, also do not offer any food.

he weighs 60grams empty right now which i thought was pretty light. infact, my blackberry torch weighs more than that!

am i worrying over nothing? his temps are spot on (32c in warm end) his humidity is fine 57% overall. he is in a RUB type container.

he has wood chippings as substrate and a little bit of decor.

any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

thanks

[SRMD]

Welcome to BP.net a lot of people here will be able to help you with this issue,
i have a 10 week old ball that weighs around 86 grams which is pretty light aswell..

but balls can go months without eating with no ill effect...
but im sure more people will weigh in who will be 100% more helpful then me

but welcome to BP.net a fellow UKer!

Also balls are nocturnal so they will roam there cages at night, and sleep through the day.

[tryme]

hi,

yes im aware they are nocturnal. im still concerned. im at work constantly thinking about him.

thank you for the reply.

any other who wish to chime in please do. all help will be appreciated.

[sprockett]

Welcome to Bp.net.......I went through the sane thing...I bought a baby that hadn't ate yet...I assist fed him 4 times (months worth)and still couldn't get him to eat...so I asked advice and was told to leave him completely alone for 14 days except to change water.....well on day 14 I dropped rat pup in and he slammed the poor little guy with such fury....I think by assist feeding and offering him food too much he was horribly stressed...he has now fed the last 3 weeks on his own....so my advice is to be patient buddy...I worried sick to the point where it affected my life by the lil guy not eating..and looking back now if I was to do it again I would of only of assist fed once.then waited 14 days for him to calm way down..then offered a live rat pup...your lil guy ate once,so I would just wait 10-14 days then try a LIVE rat pup or mouse hopper....it usually takes live to get them started and get the feeding response going..hope this helps...

[tryme]

Thank you for the great reply. I think it's illegal to feed live in the uk though

[tryme]

Any other tips?

[snakesRkewl]

I would not handle him until you get him eating well, treat him like a hatchling, food first and once he's eating well then handle him.
You will be able to bond with him after he's secure enough to eat on his own.
I would also try to make sure the f/t was properly warmed up, blow dry the mouse just before offering it to the snake, about 90ish Fahrenheit(32 Celsius) will help get a feeding response.

[tryme]

Ok sure hank you. I'll leave him 14 days with only water changes. Then offer food

[sprockett]

Oh..I didn't know it was illegal...sorry....also if he doesn't eat in 14 days you might have to do another assist feed depending on how much weight he lost in the 2weeks and how skinny he looks...if you do have to assist feed in 2 weeks,wait another 14 days and try feeding again...keep to this schedule and I promise you he will eventually eat for you...

- - - Updated - - -

Also can I get a picture of his tub and a picturee of him please...that will help me out alot so I can look at your setup...im no expert by any means.but I went through hell trying to get my hatchling to eat.so I feel obligated to help others out to save them the stress I went through...

[tryme]

ok ive done some research and it isnt illegal. just frowned upon.


however like you say i will wait 14 days then off thawed out food. if he really isnt eating after a month i will get hold of one live prey item, just to get him feeding.

http://i493.photobucket.com/albums/r...14346779_n.jpg

http://i493.photobucket.com/albums/r...49530992_n.jpg

http://i493.photobucket.com/albums/r...30712488_n.jpg

http://i493.photobucket.com/albums/r...92120456_n.jpg
thank you for the response.