Ok to feed ball ahead of schedule?

[Nafun]

I've had my ball python (Mister Slithers) for a few months now. Except during shed, he's followed a pretty simple schedule.

After he feeds, he sleeps for two days. Then he goes back to normal routine of hiding during the day, exploring at night.

Every seven days, I offer prey prekilled prey in his feed box.

Well, 4 days ago I fed him as normal. When he finished sleeping off his meal, I moved him to his new enclosure (had him in a 30g tall aquarium, moved him to a homemade 48x24x12 melamine and plexi arboreal themed enclosure. That was yesterday. Today, He was the pissiest snake I have ever encountered.

He sat by the door to his cage and continually struck at me through the glass (I was sitting over two feet away at my computer)

I couldn't understand why he was being so aggressive. I thought it might be anxiety over his new enclosure, but he wasn't hiding. Finally, exasperated, I decided to try feeding him, even though he wasn't due to be fed yet.

He ate. Immediately, and aggressively, only 4 days after his last mouse.
He is now his normal docile self, he sunned himself for a couple of hours, and is now going back to his favorite hide to sleep.

I know overfeeding is bad for snakes, but is he going to be harmed by eating ahead of schedule? Is this indicative that I need to be feeding him larger prey items? Currently he gets feeder mice. I get them from the pet store live, fatten them up for a few weeks (also gives me a chance to see if the mice are sick), and then kill em and feed them to him. I could move him up to gerbils easily (my wife started breeding gerbils the same time I got my snake). Or I could offer him multiple mice.

Was I right that his bad attitude was hunger? Did he eat because he was mad (attacking the "invading" mouse?)? I know balls have a reputation as reluctant feeders, so I assumed he wouldn't eat if he wasn't hungry, but he certainly seems happier now.

Info:
acquired in feb/2010.
~24 inches long
I had him checked for parasites by a vet when I got him.
He shed ~2 weeks ago. This marks his third feed since his shed.
3 digital thermometers (hot hide, cool hide, and basking)
2 digital hygrometers (hot hide, cool hide)
Temp gradiant 90-95 basking, 80-90 hot hide, 72-78 cool hide.
Humidity: 40-50% (maintained with fogger)
Heated by ceramic heat bulb until yesterday, now heated by infrared heat bulb until new ceramic bulb arrives.
Has a large deep water dish that I fill with filtered tap water or filtered spring water.
I got him at a pet store (yeah, yeah, know I should have found a breeder.)

[infernalis]

http://www.thamfriends.com/mat.jpg

Feeding a little ahead of schedule will not harm your snake.

As long as you are not stuffing it like a sausage, it will be just fine.

[Chu'Wuti]

He is probably needing larger prey animals. I feed mine rats. He should be eating about 10% of his own body weight per feeding--have you weighed him? That's a good rule of thumb that Mykee gave me.

Also, though it likely has nothing to do with the feeding and pissiness, it would probably be good if you could bring up your humidity--60% minimum is better, and a little higher would be even better.

[mykee]

You are overthinking everything.
Snakes don't eat every 7 days in the wild. They eat when they can get food,; that could mean every day for a week, and then no food for a month or two.
A strict feeding schedule is alright, but I feed my animals when I remember (not really) but they never really eat every five or seven days. I mix it up a bit so they don't expect food on a certain day.

"After he feeds, he sleeps for two days"
Very unlikely. Just because he is not active, does not mean he is sleeping. He's allowing his VERRRRY slow metabolism to sloooooowly digest his meal. As for your meals, a 2 foot ball python (presumably a yearling) could very well be eating 40-60g rats (and should be).
One mouse (of any size) once a week is underfeeding in my educated opinion.

As for him being "pissy", that could very week be his change in environment. I feel that the new enclosure is wayy too large for a ball of his size and you are risking stressing him out (whether he is eating for you right now or not).

Listen to your ball python and you should have no problems. They tend to show you what is wrong by their behavior towards it.
Good luck.

[Bree]

I have to agree to switch him to Rats. My BP's start at birth with rat pups and rarely turn back. Some of the male breeders I have on mice during season to keep their meals (if taken light). However it just is much better for the snake to have the rat meal....and while i hear 10% of weight I've generally done 10-20% of their weight or something close to their girth size.


I lean towards the pissy behavior as being environmental changes. No matter what the change in environ, it can be extremely unsettling to the snake. However there was no harm or foul with feeding him a bit early either (though again I'd hike that up to small or medium rats dependent on his size)

Best of luck with him!

Bree

[shaunyboy]

hello and welcome,i'd try switching to rats mate,he may take a rat right away.if not you may have to scent the rat with a mouse at first.that should get him into eating rats.once on rats its easier to offer bigger and bigger food items as he grows.imo the new tanks not bothering him or he wouldve been to stressed to eat,so thats a good sign.as infernalis said theres no harm in feeding him ahead of schedule.
cheers shaun

[marvelfreak]

HELLO AND WELCOME! My ball is 30 inches and eat's a small to med rat every other friday. As eat a large rat a couple of times. When my jungle refused her over the winter. at 24 inches he was easily eating small rats.