I have a 4 year old ball python. She is about 4 feet long and has nice thickness to her. I kept her on mice until approximately 3 months ago. When she was feeding on mice, she ate 2 adult mice per week. She ate the mice like a snake possessed. Sometimes, she would come out of her log as I was opening the cage tasting the air. I switched her to rats about 3 months ago. At first, she attacked the rats the same way. One day while constricting a rat, it bit her. She finished constricting it and ate it, however, it broke the skin. I treated it with antibiotic ointments and after a couple of sheds, she is pretty much back to normal with her skin pattern. However, she hasn't eaten for three weeks now and I am a little concerned. After the rat bit her, I started killing them prior to placing them in. She ate one in that manner, but, no more after that. I have a feeling of what the answers are, however, I want opinions. Thanks.
The ones you're feeding now, are they killed them frozen for preservation? Or killed as required, and still twitching?
Sorry to use you as an example, but this why I tell everyone not to feed live prey to their snakes. I'm sorry you guys had to go through that, sounds like it was an easy fix though, I've seen worse outcomes form live feeding. It could be that she is just not liking the change in food items. If she is used to live feeders then it may take a while for her to switch over.
Also, don't get worried if she dosen't eat for a while. As long as she's of good weight, she could go fine for months without food. I've heard of ball pythons go more than a year without eating, then suddenly snap and be hungry like a lunatic. The finicky eating habits is one of the reasons I wouldn't personally get a BP, hehe.
thanks for all the responses. i killed them fresh then put them in her cage by her log. she actually feels heavier now than before. i'm hoping that she is just full. lol. can that happen? lol. by the way, i have a columbian red tailed boa and chilean rose tarantula.
It's possible she could be ovulating. I've not experienced it personally with ball pythons as I don't keep them, but many reptiles will start to develop eggs without a male even being present. They will of course be infertile. Sometimes the mother simply reabsorbs them, sometimes they drop infertile clutches, and this is about the right time of year. I know a few BP breeders that put their pairs together recently, and eggs are starting to develop.
i have 2 baby ball pythons 1 male and 1 female. we just got them on saturday and the guy we got them from told us they are ready to eat had their first shed and we would be giving them their first meal. well they are not wanting to eat....we have tried a few times and dont know what else to do....we are also wondering how to use the cypress in the cage to get the humidity right. we are first time snake owners and are kinda lost out here if anyone has any information they can give us PLEASE help
OK, kind of late advice, but you really should never buy an animal that isn't a proven feeder. This is for several reasons. They may be sick, so they're not eating or may end up needing to be force-fed their first meal. It's never an easy situation when an animal won't eat. Hopefully the answer is in what type of prey you are offering. You don't want to offer anything bigger than the widest part of their body, first off. Sometimes with new feeders, you may want to offer something that is smaller than what is recommended for your snake's size, just to get them started. What are you offering? Are you offering in a feeding cage/box? (You really should to prevent them from correlating your entering the cage with them getting food. They won't be as snappy when you enter the cage then.) Are you offering fresh killed of frozen/thawed? What size? Balls can be picky eaters sometimes. Plus, considering you just got them, they may just need time to adjust to their new surroundings before they eat. The cypress in the cage just helps hold in humidity. To get the humidity to the proper levels requires other sources like a large waterbowl (at least big enough for the snake to fit completely into), daily misting, or an ultrasonic humidifier. Balls really only need higher levels of humidity during shedding (at least 70%) and around 40% the rest of the time. Of course these levels vary by keeper so other people may have other ideas. In any case, you don't want the cypress too wet or else it will mold and you don't want you your snakes living on wet substrate because that can lead to a whole mess of skin diseases and infections. I'll PM you a little article on problem feeders and juvenile feeders I wrote for a friend's website. hopefully it will help you out some.
I couldn't get mine to eat then I rubbed a wouse on it mouth and It bit it and as soon as it realised food it ate it like a pig
Yeah, they usually catch on quickly once they realize that what you're trying to do is FEED them! LOL!
Dont be worried, the female at 4 feet likely has enough fat support to last for months on end like previously said. Try and get frozen or P/K rat, and try to entice the snake into thinking its alive. try this now or in about a week.
As I said as soon as mine bits into it even if I force it to it will eat it. try not to froce it to open it mouth thoug because it can stress the snake. I sounds like it is just acting normal for a ball python (being picky) I think that why they are called ROYAL PYTHONS! hahahaha (a joke)
