BP still acts hungry after switching to rats

[Noodle95]

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.

[SDA]

Small rats are between 55 and 90 grams in weight. You snake was 1300 grams in July. 10% is the guideline for feeding so a less than 90 gram rat is not enough to satisfy that condition alone. A medium rat would be more along the weight for such a ball python. That is not to say he will take it. Mine refuses to eat medium rats so I have to feed 2 small rats.

[Sunnieskys]

I have a routine with boople because she would be the same way. I take her out, weigh her, let her have some mommy and floor time. I put her rat into the enclosure while she is out. I then put her back in to her enclosure with the rat already there. No strike pose. She knows she come out first. She waits on her feeding day lol.

[cchardwick]

If your tank is small enough on a big enough table I found a trick to snap them out of feeding mode, you can rotate the tank 180 degrees. I do that with tubs too. Seems to disorient them and they instantly mellow out. Or you can lightly mist them with water (not in the face though).

As as far as feeding I go strictly by body condition. If they look like a sausage I don't feed until they thin out a bit. If they look super skinny I'll feed multiple rats every few days until I get them looking good, then just a maintenance diet. In fact I usually don't just randomly feed every snake every week, I open each tub, lift out the snake and inspect the day before feeding to get an idea of what they need. I do the same with my dog too, if she is getting fat I'll cut back on her food LOL.

[Tonald Drump]

I agree with SDA, you're feeding him rats that are too small. If you bump up the size and it doesn't work, then he probably assumes that the smell of your hand is the smell of food. If that's the case, then all you have to do is handle him more often.

Sent from my vivo 1601 using Tapatalk