my ball poops every few months... some poop weekly... don't worry about at all.

pick a day... and feed on that day every single week. balls loooove routine.

when you are going into his enclosure to pick him up do the same thing every time. remove his hide and stroke him on his side a few times. i speak very gently letting him know i'm going to pick him up now. then i scoop him up quickly and put him securely on my hands.

when i feed... i place the mouse near his enclosure for 15 minutes to get him interested in the prey item. then i open his enclosure and set the mouse at the opposite end of him and close the lid. dexter (my ball) comes out and sometimes takes his sweet time and other times strikes immediately. depends on his mood i guess... no real rhyme or reason.

i always remove extra items from his enclosure before i feed (like his tree branches) so they aren't in the way when he's striking at the mouse. i do this before i set the mouse for the 15 minutes cause i don't want to put my hands in there once the feeding ritual has started! it also signals to him that the ritual is about to begin.

NEVER remove his hides though. he needs to feel safe to eat.

hope this helps
aleesha