ball python losing weight.

[lanalizard]

now you all prolly know about my python that wont eat. Joe (joe and melissa) took a look at the python at the show last weekend and said it was okay...and so did hip...but today i took him out for a minute to fix his hide out and i noticed that his skin is very loose and i can pinch it between my fingers..he is suppose to be 1000 grams but i havent weighed him yet cuz the scale is at a friends house.

he hasnt eaten so far for 2.5 months? and its bothering me cuz he has no external/internal parasites and is always been a good feeder before hand...

what shoudl i do now?

[Jeff_Favelle]

Cycle him. He's telling you something. Usually it means that the husbandry is wrong, but if he was feeding before in the exact same conditions then that can't be it. Maybe he knows the days are shorter, air is dryer, and the nights are cooler. He's cycling, so cycle him. Don't tell your snake what to do. Let your snake be a snake.

[lanalizard]

what do you mean by cycle him?
He was before living at a different house, in a rubbermaid with a heat rock (i know its bad but it wasnt my house) and then it escaped and was put in with a female. then he stopped eating. but since i knew him before hand and knew how good a feeder he was and figured he would feed again, i got him from this person and still hasnt fed...i have went a few weeks without handling, his temps are okay now and the humidity is good..living in a basement helps too....

[Jeff_Favelle]

So by escaping he probably experienced a few VERY cold nights (by Ball Python standards) and he probably didn't like that. Then, he was put in with a female that's not normally around. Hmm....so mechanisms are probably firing in this male Ball Python that's telling him that its not time to feed. These stimuli are telling the snake to NOT eat and to do other things (cruise, chill, conserve, breed, etc etc whatver). so don't make your snake eat. Millions of years of evolution is telling this snake not to eat, for whatever reason. So, if the snake is not eating, then what's a bad thing to do? Well some people will say to increase temps to stimulate foraging. But what if that doesn't work? Higher temperatures will result in more metabolism and thus burn more fat reserves (NOT a good thing!). Given the time of year, I'd just cycle that thing for 2 months and try to feed it in a month a VERY warm med-sized rat. And don't use a hot rock. I'm not sure if you are now or not, but Sunbeam sells cheapo heat pads ($19) at Walmart and set on the lowest setting is perfect for a Ball.

Just my opinion and its really hard to say anything at all without being with this snake, observing it, and knowing its history. Good luck. :D

[lanalizard]

wow thanks jeff that was extensive! no im not using a hot rock, just a heat pad. So when you say cycle him..do you mean hybernate him? cuz if so, this is my first python and i dont know what i am doing.

[Jeff_Favelle]

Heat pad is a great step up from the hot rock!! Great!

Yeah, by cycling him, its kind of like hibernation, but I little more complex. Keep in ind that I still don't know that this is the best option for your snake, its just my gut feeling based on what you told me.

To properly cycle your Ball Python, you need to give it slightly cooler days, and cool nights. By this I mean, 80F hotspot in the day, 75F ambient. At night, no hotspot and 70F ambient. Do this for 2 months, but try to feed him in a few weeks. They can still eat while "cycling" because they have that daytime access to the warm spot! This may trigger your male ball to eat, it may not. But it will most likely trigger him into going into a conservation-mode whereby he doesn't burn all his fat reserves by November!! You can also eliminate a photoperiod, as its not necessary, and it may actually benefit the feeding dilemma.

Let me know what happens!!

[Jeff_Favelle]

And you DO know what you're doing! You just don't know everything! None of us do! That's what makes this so fun!

:D

[lanalizard]

thanks, ill try jeff...this is my first python like i said..i have 2 corns and they are great...
hopefully this python will eat one day..thanks for the help and i will post updates

[lanalizard]

well i got him weighed last nite and weirdly he is 1150grams!

[Quervo]

well i got him weighed last nite and weirdly he is 1150grams!

Did you check in his hide box? maybe he's got some mice hidden in there for snacking. lol.

My guy is doing the same thing. Being in the basement this year has presented these new problems to deal with .. the normal room temp. is about 68 so I think he is having himself a winter. One thing I've learned from this guy is .. don't panic .. when I first got mine I read all I could on him and when he didn't eat right away I was prepared .. unfortunately I was prepared with just about every technique there is and I tried them all!! Poor little guy didn't know what hit him.

Anyway, I'm rambling .. Jeff has you on the right track, I'm sure your guy will be fine.