I got my first ball python (5yo, 1300g, 3.5ft) in July. The previous owner had told me they tried many times to feed F/T rats, but he rejected them all and only took large adult mice.
I kept him on this same regimen up until two weeks ago. Of course, I wanted to attempt rats myself before knocking it completely, because I felt the one large adult mouse per week seemed to be a very small meal for his size.
When he was taking the large f/t mice once a week, I had to tease him for awhile to get him to take it. Usually to the point of my hand cramping from holding the tongs so long. However, he’s take it and go straight to his hide afterwards and be calm and collected. I’d go back to handling 48hrs after the feeding without an issue. Even in those initial 48hrs post-feed, he was just staying in his hide anytime I messed with his water and enclosure.
So I got some small rats to try myself. The very first one I tried, I hardly got the rat lowered into the enclosure before he struck at it. This was the strongest feeding response I’d seen out of him, which I was very excited about, as I could now start to give him rats instead of mice. I did it again the following week, and again it was another strong response.
However, since he’s received the rats, anytime I go to open the top of the enclosure, he instantly comes out of his hide in strike pose, which makes me nervous to change his water and things like that. It seems like he’s still in feeding mode.
How can he still react this way, even though I switched him to larger meals? He never did this with the mice.
I do not move him to a separate enclosure for feeding.

I do not know if it is relevant, but he did not eat for about 5 wks between the last two shed cycles. He went back to feeding typically with the large mice after the most recent shed. He was not aggressive about it until I switched to rats.