feed tips?

[snakemann87]

Hey, my ball python hasn't been eating for the past 4 weeks. He was fed on live before, since he was a WC and i figured id try live. I bought a VERY small fuzzy (remember my ball is 3 1/2ft) and fed him it, i bought it as small as possible so it couldn't do harm him. Right after he finished the live SMALL mouse, i threw in the medium frozen rat. He took it right away, so if anyones snake isnt eating you could try a SMAll mouse that couldnt do harm, but plese dont try this with small snakes, only bigger ones, if anyone doesnt agree please tell me.

[J_Riley]

Although somewhat risky (if their eyes are open, they can pretty much bite), it is a method to get them eating frozen. Have you tried jiggling just the frozen rat? It almost seems your Royal is keyed to the movement (common thing)

[snakemann87]

yes, he has been taking frozen for a while, then all of a sudden stopped. So i got a very small mouse and right after he took the frozen. Im guessing he likes the more active items, i will just have to get bigger hemostats if i want to make it more realistic for him.

[Big Mike]

My ball had never been an agessive eater. I started him on live fuzzies and switched him to frozen before moving to adult mice. I would have to leave the frozen mice in with him and leave him for hours before he would eat it.

Now I make sure that the mouse is fairly warm. After it's thawed, I put it in warm/hot water for a minute or so. He has taken these very aggesively.

[unknownclown]

I would have to leave the frozen mice in with him and leave him for hours before he would eat it.

Does that mean its ok to feed them stiff food? Cause I always give up and take the food out at that point.

[snakemann87]

I'm not sure what you mean by stiff food? but Mike, i always leave it in for hours and he never takes it, i left one in for 1 day before

[Big Mike]

Just to clarify...
I meant to say that I leave the "thawed" mice in there for hours...

I have never seen a problem because of a stiff mouse. I don't want to leave it there to rot but I feel that just a few hours is not going to do any harm to the snake.

Sometimes he won't touch it or he constricts but does not eat it...I just take it out and put it in hot water for a few seconds and try again. If it's been over night and the mouse is still there, then I take it out and dispose of it.

SM 87,
Sometimes they just do not eat for a while. Make sure that they are healthy and that the housing conditions are OK and just wait it out.

[snakemann87]

ok, hes done this before so im not too worried, if it stretches into months instead of weeks then i may get him checked by a local herp expert

[Big Mike]

If he poops, save it. If he does not eat for months and you want to get him checked for internal parasites...you will need the poop.

[Burmies]

When any of my 5 ball pythons don't eat for a while, I just give them a Gerble and as any snake owner will tell you a ball python will never pass up a Gerble. Well maybe if it is sick.

Burmies

[snakemann87]

how old, isnt it dangerous? or is it f/t?

[Ed_r]

When a semi adult ball python doesn't eat don't go getting all up in arms about it. It is quite normal during the colder months for a Ball Python to go off feed for months at a time. So far every year My BPs dont eat for at least 3 months. Come April they are chowing down like hogs.

One good trick to use when feeding f/t to a live fed snake, is to use tongs, and grab the mouse/rat by the nape of the neck and move it around the cage as if alive. Worked well for mine.

Also for some odd reason 2 of my BPs wont eat rats AT ALL. I have to feed them super jumbo mice. I could offer a rat same color and size as the mouse and they wont take it. Turn around and offer the mouse and its an instant kill.

Please don't offer a gerbil unless its an absolute feeding emergency. Gerbils are like candy to BPs. Although they are fine nutricionally, they develop a taste for them rather quickly and may give up mice or rats.

Also may want to know what sex some of your other snakes are. My male Burm went off feed since November, and lost allot of wieght. Of course during the winter all my females are ovulating. During this time all he wants to do is breed. last wekk he disided to end his hunger strike, and chowed down 4 jumbo rats.

If your husbandry is right dont sweat it, snakes do know whats best for them

[snakemann87]

hey ed_r thanks for the advice, but im not really worried sorry if i made myself out to be, i was just wondering if you guys think my idea and tactic that got my ball to eat a frozen rat is good or not. I think it is as long as there is a live mouse small enough for your snake

[stormyva]

Snake,
My question is if you know that the snake has eaten a f/t prey item in the past then obviously it has no problem taking them. Why in the world would want to chance any of the myriad of problems that you may cause by giving it a live prey item?
You also should know from the amount of time that you have spent on forums that it is very common for a ball python to go off of feed. When and if a snake that has eaten for you in the past does stop eating the first thing to look at is it's health and living environment. Rule out all the possibilities there and then start considering alternatives for feeding. Such as different colored prey items, switching to mice or vice versa, switching suppliers.

[BurmBaroness]

You really want to be careful of offering a myriad of prey items to get a snake to eat. Especially a BP. They do go off feed, dometimes for months, and that is just the way they are. If you know it eats rats, then don't offer anything but rats, and the snake will eat when it wants to. Otherwise, you could find yourself in the position of buying gerbils and hamsters as prey, and that can get expensive. Also, to answer the question as to whether it's OK to offer a live(small) mouse or fuzzy to a snake to get it to eat, I personally would never do that. It is not harmless in the fact that it can carry many parasites, and if it's mobile, as in weaned, it CAN bite the snake. Just my .02