Feed Frequency Question

[j3phr3y]

Hello all,

It has been about a year since I last posted on these boards, although I visit regularly to read. I have had my Ball Python, Pi, for a year now and have been incredibly fortunate not to have any issues with her, not even so much as a bad shed. Pi is my only snake and has become a loved family pet. She has grown tremendously in the short time I have had her and now weighs 910 grams. I feed Pi a small rat weekly and until recently has never refused a meal. However, lately she has refused every other meal, eating a small rat every two weeks. My question is, should I follow her lead and start feeding her every two weeks, or keep offering her meals every week? Any thoughts are greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance

[tigerlily]

I have a girl doing the same thing, at least during the winter months. But now she seems to be back on track. I believe that it's not uncommon for some to go through a period like this. I would continue offering weekly. One small rat weekly is fine for a 910g bp. I think you'll notice her appetite perk once spring is fully here.

[Pythons Rock]

Also she may be at the age when you go to feeding once every 10-14 days.

[Ginevive]

My big male is still on a self imposed hunger strike, but he is still "fat" and doesn't appear any worse for wear. he will start up soon, I know it

[tigerlily]

Also she may be at the age when you go to feeding once every 10-14 days.

Unless you are feeding much larger prey, then you should be fine to feed a small rat weekly. With bps, it's recommended to stay with smaller meals offered weekly.

[j3phr3y]

Thanks for all the replies.

Unless you are feeding much larger prey, then you should be fine to feed a small rat weekly. With bps, it's recommended to stay with smaller meals offered weekly.

Recommended by whom, and why? I do not doubt the legitimacy of your statement; however, I would like more information so I can see how applicable the recommendation is to my situation. For example, if changing to a two week feeding cycle increases the probability of going off feed from .2 to .4, I would have no problem giving it a try since I only have one snake. However, if I were a breeder with 100 snakes, I would not take the change in probability because it would almost guarantee at least some snakes going off feed.

I understand that exact numbers here are impossible and I’m not looking for a peer reviewed study. I am just trying to figure out the line of reasoning behind the recommendation. As of now, I am following your advice and offering food weekly. I appreciate any more insight you can give me.

[tigerlily]

I don't have statistics. The main recommendation came from Adam. By following his advice, I have been able to keep my bps from long fasting. Admittedly that's only been a year and a half, but I have two girls who are likely to breed this season. I had one girl who had a harder time switching over from a tank to a rack, but I don't consider that in the realm of normal fasting. So unless I notice a problem, I'm sticking with what works. After reading the article on how drastically snake's bodies change in order to digest a meal, I REALLY dislike the idea of kicking their systems into major overload.

Plus weekly meals offer a routine, that is very easy for me to manage.