Ball python feeding advice

[wickedserpent]

Going on week 2 of my bp not eating. He sniffed the mouse for about 10 seconds and seemed a little interested but ended up not striking. I'm starting to get a little worried just because I want him to gain some weight(he seems a little underweight to me) although he is not noticeable losing weight. (Humidity and temps are fine btw) How do I know if my ball is sick or just simply not hungry? Not sure of his exact age but definitely not over a year I would say. He is about a foot and a half long and maybe 2 and a half inches at his widest.
I may just be an overly paranoid snake mama. All advice is appreciated!


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[rufretic]

2 weeks is nothing, don't worry, he's probably fine. I'm guessing he's new to you, or have you got him to eat before? If he is new, he's probably just settling in to his new environment. It would help to know what he ate previously, like live or frozen thawed and rat or mouse. Try to keep it the same for the first few feedings, sometimes it can take a little more effort to switch them to something different then what they are used to. If you have fed before, he may just not be ready to eat yet. Either way, just wait a week and try again.

[wickedserpent]

2 weeks is nothing, don't worry, he's probably fine. I'm guessing he's new to you, or have you got him to eat before? If he is new, he's probably just settling in to his new environment. It would help to know what he ate previously, like live or frozen thawed and rat or mouse. Try to keep it the same for the first few feedings, sometimes it can take a little more effort to switch them to something different then what they are used to. If you have fed before, he may just not be ready to eat yet. Either way, just wait a week and try again.

I have had him for 2 months he has eaten for me 4 times


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[wickedserpent]

I have had him for 2 months he has eaten for me 4 times. He eats frozen/thawed. He was eating medium mice. Tonight I switched to large mice which he did not eat


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[wickedserpent]

Update: I laid the mouse on a piece of cardboard in his enclosure and he is now eating it so yes the answer is I am in fact being an overly paranoid new snake mama


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[qwerty53]

Did he strike it first?

[Zincubus]

Going on week 2 of my bp not eating. He sniffed the mouse for about 10 seconds and seemed a little interested but ended up not striking. I'm starting to get a little worried just because I want him to gain some weight(he seems a little underweight to me) although he is not noticeable losing weight. (Humidity and temps are fine btw) How do I know if my ball is sick or just simply not hungry? Not sure of his exact age but definitely not over a year I would say. He is about a foot and a half long and maybe 2 and a half inches at his widest.
I may just be an overly paranoid snake mama. All advice is appreciated!


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Great news that yours ate !!


May I leave this here ... It's a rather successful method thats kinda evolved over the years ...
By all means carry on with your method but if there's any hiccups along the way - maybe try a few parts of my little system

This method WORKS if done properly ...
I wait until evening as they're nocturnal of course . I let the rodent thaw out in the reptile room so they get the smell ..
Then I warm up the mouse / rat with a hairdryer and offer with tongs IMMEDIATELY whilst still warm . If refused simply repeat the heating and offering as many times as needed. .
A couple of mine will only strike feed from within their hides so I dangle the warm rodent in front of the hide's entrance - usually works but if it fails simply reheat the rodent with a hairdryer and immediately offer again whilst it's still warm , continue until it's grabbed ...
I always wait until evenings to feed as they're nocturnal of course .

Incidentally , if it shows no interest at all not even a tongue flicker maybe it's best to leave for a week or so.

[wickedserpent]

Did he strike it first?

I was not in the room to see him strike it. He was constricting it when I walked in. He doesn't like to strike at his food very often. So I am assuming he did strike bc when he doesn't he just immediately starts to gobble it down w/o constricting.


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[wickedserpent]

Great news that yours ate !!


May I leave this here ... It's a rather successful method thats kinda evolved over the years ...
By all means carry on with your method but if there's any hiccups along the way - maybe try a few parts of my little system

This method WORKS if done properly ...
I wait until evening as they're nocturnal of course . I let the rodent thaw out in the reptile room so they get the smell ..
Then I warm up the mouse / rat with a hairdryer and offer with tongs IMMEDIATELY whilst still warm . If refused simply repeat the heating and offering as many times as needed. .
A couple of mine will only strike feed from within their hides so I dangle the warm rodent in front of the hide's entrance - usually works but if it fails simply reheat the rodent with a hairdryer and immediately offer again whilst it's still warm , continue until it's grabbed ...
I always wait until evenings to feed as they're nocturnal of course .

Incidentally , if it shows no interest at all not even a tongue flicker maybe it's best to leave for a week or so.

Thanks for the advice! I will definitely try that next time I have difficulties. I usually just warm mine up under the heat lamp. I usually feed in a separate tub bc I don't want him to swallow a piece of substrate. But maybe it's the best to do it in their enclosure bc they feel the safest? I wait until evening to feed as well.


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[qwerty53]

Why even use substrate when you have paper towel or newspaper