lil help pleeze?

[Freakonaleash]

i dont really have anything new to add to this thread... but if you know anything bout ball pythons and how to follow up with his first feeding, check out my thread, just under Python Regius . im pretty psyched about him eating and want to make sure i get some good advice

[mykee]

You follow up a first feeding with a.........second feeding!

[sapphire_moon]

ball pythons eat rats, they are to big for mice, and gerbils are WAY expensive and I believe they are high in fat? But I may be wrong on that part.

[mykee]

Gerbils. Bad choice with all the other, more nutritional food sources so readily available. And by all the other, I mean rats. Poor snake....

[Kane65]

Balls eat mice then move on to rats as they grow. Prey should be no larger than 1.5x the girth of the snake & should leave a slight but noticeable bump. I don't like gerbils, from my experience they fight back more than any other prey.

If you are feeding live, move to F/T. I've got one I inherited that only eats live though I stun the prey so it's twitching when the snake gets to it. The other's a youngster and takes F/T as readily as anything else.

[mykee]

Kane, balls should never eat mice. There's an appropriate-sized rat for every stage of a ball pythons life.

[knoerr3232]

I have posted questions on feeding f/t as opposed to live....I tried EVERYTHING to switch (with help from this site, thx, btw) but with no success. I have been feeding mice because Im afraid a rat will injure my snake. I trust that rats ARE better if you all say so, but, why are they better? I thought balls ate mice and gerbils in the wild. Is it a matter of cost or nutrition?.....I have spent more on these mice than I would on rats, but my snakes safety is worth the money. Are rats more nutritious? I want to keep my snake safe but I dont want him malnourished either. It seems live prey is the only option for me, so can I stick with mice and still have a healthy snake even though its frowned upon?

[sapphire_moon]

actually their natural food source is Jerobas, they are gerbil LIKE. But they aren't gerbils. I'm sure they get some kind of mice over in africa, So I won't comment about that.

Rats are better in nutrition, Go to www.prorodent.com they have an article on it somewhere, lol.

My male bp was on mice all his life, he was about 2ys old, and about 2-2.5ft (sad), once I got here (meaning ssnakess.com) I found out it is better to feed rats. and within a month he shed, and within about 3 months he was up to about 3-3.5 ft. And a year later, he's atleast 4.5-5ft And it is a he, as he was sexed and I was showed his hemiphines (sp??).

I think your snake will still be healthy if you feed mice, you just have to feed MORE mice.
personally, I just stopped feeding mine until she went for a rat. Took 8 months off feed of refusing rats.

[Freakonaleash]

well like i said earlier, the fighting back thing as far as gerbils are concerned isnt a proble, i make good and sure its dead before i try giving it to my snake.

[mykee]

Knoerr: your worry is backwards. Rats, though bigger, and much less apt to attack a snake as a mouse would. Mice are terribly high-strung and will bite ANYTHING. I've only ever seen two injuries to a snake, and BOTH were inflicted by mice, not rats. There was a post a while back in which I explained how to feed live items restrained to virtually eliminate any fear of injury to your snake. Do a search on "restrained" and you should find it. Good luck.

[jjnnbns]

I believe that sapphire meant www.rodentpro.com

[sapphire_moon]

ya that, lol

[knoerr3232]

Mykee...My first concern is safety, second nutrition....So I have been under the impression that rats are more dangerous, but now that you said they are not, I will feed rats. My snake is 20 inches long, should I feed him small to medium rats? Thx for setting me straight Mykee....I would be lost without you guys...lol.. ;)

[mykee]

Restrain your food. A 20 inch long snake is only a few months old. I would feed your snake 20-30g rats fuzzies.