Anorexic ghost.

[TaylorMade]

Hey y'all, I'm in a a little dilemma. I purchased a male ghost a few months ago. At first he was pounding adult mice with no problem. But all of a sudden- it stopped. He has been on 22 day binge with out food. I've offered, he killed & then went to the opposite side of the steralite container. (I feed in separate containers because of substrate reasons, the mice normally get all dirty, since I use eco earth) Any ways, today's feeding day & I'm not sure if maybe feeding him in his normal enclosure would be less stress & maybe he'll eat his prey. Any other tips, suggestions or just your 2 cents. Thanks in advance! I've included a few pics, one of his empty weight, a comparison pic to my male albino & a couple kills that weren't eaten. I'm worried because my male albino, who was hatched a dew days later (they were born mid June) is almost 100 grams bigger. Any opinions & suggestions are welcomed!



Thanks & blessed be,
Taylor

[aalomon]

Firs of all, 22 days is nothing. It is not unusual for a ball python to fast for a few weeks to a few months. Only time to worry if you can see that he is losing weight. Check and double check your setup is right, but usually the best thing to do is to wait it out. Just keep offering like you normally would and he should start eating again on his own.

I will say that I dont think that there is any reason to move him to a separate feeding container. I would try feeding in cage.

[Nathan777]

You're feeding adult mice to a 99g ball python? That very well may be the problem. Prey should be ~10% of the weight from what i've experienced and read. Adult mice could very well be 20%-25%+ of his weight. I'd definitely try a hopper in the 10g range and see how that goes. Also feeding in the enclosure is no problem, and seems to be preferred by picky eaters. And yeah 22 days is no big deal, unless the weight starts dropping off quick don't worry about it, just keep offering on a schedule.

[TaylorMade]

Firs of all, 22 days is nothing. It is not unusual for a ball python to fast for a few weeks to a few months. Only time to worry if you can see that he is losing weight. Check and double check your setup is right, but usually the best thing to do is to wait it out. Just keep offering like you normally would and he should start eating again on his own.

I will say that I dont think that there is any reason to move him to a separate feeding container. I would try feeding in cage.

Yeah I've definitely been checking husbandry every other day- everything is perfect. I'm going to just try & feed him in his enclosure tonight. Thanks for the advice & peace of mind.

- - - Updated - - -

You're feeding adult mice to a 99g ball python? That very well may be the problem. Prey should be ~10% of the weight from what i've experienced and read. Adult mice could very well be 20%-25%+ of his weight. I'd definitely try a hopper in the 10g range and see how that goes. Also feeding in the enclosure is no problem, and seems to be preferred by picky eaters. And yeah 22 days is no big deal, unless the weight starts dropping off quick don't worry about it, just keep offering on a schedule.

I actually feed him "small" adult mice- 15% of his body weight. I'll try two pinkies that add up to 10 g next, my female mouse recently had 8 babies. Thank you for the advice! Many blessings!

[aalomon]

I really would suggest against the pinkies. Just keep offering him small adult mice and he will come around. Also, dont offer too often. Once a week or every 5 days maximum. Offering too often can actually make them less likely to eat.

[S.I.R.]

Hang in there! Going off feed for a while is pretty normal. As hard as it is, be patient and just monitor your BP closely. I would not stary to worry unless you start noticing a significant weight loss. Good luck, I hope it comes around soon for you!

[TaylorMade]

So after a 22 day binge he FINALLY ate last night! It was, however an odd situation. I offered a live small adult mouse, he struck & killed. Then, like he was doing before he just went to the opposite side of the steralite, not wanting anything to do with the dead mouse. After about 45 mins I took the already killed mouse and offered again, he struck and "killed" & finally ATE! So relieved! Thanks every one for the advice.

[snakesRkewl]

next time he wraps the mouse if you can grab the tail of the mouse and gently pull on it so he wraps it even tighter trying to hold onto it

[TaylorMade]

next time he wraps the mouse if you can grab the tail of the mouse and gently pull on it so he wraps it even tighter trying to hold onto it

He really doesn't have an issue with killing the mouse... he's pretty ruthless (hince the name Jesse James lol) but does this technique with pulling the mouse's tail help with him actually eating the mouse? Thanks for the input!

[Kaorte]

I have snakes that kill and then take a couple hours to actually eat. I would also try leaving him alone with the dead mouse overnight.

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