Is my BP overweight? Pictures

[hhw]

Ball pythons' natural prey may be smaller, but they adults also tend to eat multiple prey in a sitting. But it's rather inconvenient to feed multiple prey items in captivity, and feeding a single larger prey item is fine.

Rather than going smaller, feed less often. Adult males and non-breeding females can be fed an appropriately sized meal once a month, and not all for at least 3 months a year to replicate their natural dry season cycle, when they would naturally be off feed in the wild.

This isn't just acceptable, but desirable. Most boas, pythons, and vipers undergo significant organ remodeling for approximately 2 weeks after a meal, regardless of prey size. During this time, their heart, liver, and lungs double in size and their intestines complete change in structure and they operate at a metabolic equivalent of a horse race at full sprint.

The question of whether smaller meals more often, or larger meals less often has long been settled by scientific research for almost 15 years. It's sad that most of the hobby is still not up to date with the science.

Here is some reference material, in multiple mediums in case you're not accustomed to reading scientific research papers (but it's always a good time to start).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bY0mCXLrhUA
At 33:20 or so, Dr. Warren Booth (University of Tulsa, Department of Biological Sciences) talks about the physiological changes from digestion, and what his feeding regimen is.

Snake Digestion with Joshua Parker
https://www.blogtalkradio.com/…/snak...-joshua…

Corallus Radio Episode 15 w/ Vin Russo - Insular Boas and IBD
https://www.blogtalkradio.com/…/epis...so--ins…

Rapid changes in gene expression direct rapid shifts in intestinal form and function in the Burmese python after feeding:
https://www.physiology.org/…/10.…/ph...ics.00131.2014

Growth and stress response mechanisms underlying post-feeding regenerative organ growth in the Burmese python
https://link.springer.com/article/10...864-017-3743-1

Several papers from Stephen Secor found here:
https://ssecor.people.ua.edu/publications.html