Hi

The secret to feeding your Royal / Ball python in my humble opinion ....is to make sure he's/she's hungry , so don't feed too often ....every 7 or 10 or 14 days whichever suits him/best best .

Always feed in the evening , ideally when dark ....

I feed all mine in their vivs and put piece of card in front of their hides . My Royals all strike from within their hides so I dangle the mouse in front of the hide entrance

Defrost the mouse / rat and then quickly offer the mouse using tongs .
Waggle the mouse in front of the hide entrance , if there is no response ....heat the mouse with a hairdryer for ten second and quickly offer again , repeat this procedure until it takes the mouse /rat .
This method rarely if ever works providing the snake isn't in shed and even then some of my Royals still take the meal .