My BP regurgitated her meal hours after eatting

[Wykyd]

So far so good, she was out again last night and I found no mouse. She ate a hopper mouse. I got 5 of them and then I'll move her back up to adult mice.

[Aaron_S]

Will you please consider switching from adult mice to rats?

It is much easier for you to switch the snake to feeding on rats.

[Chris72]

Originally Posted by Aaron_S

Will you please consider switching from adult mice to rats?

It is much easier for you to switch the snake to feeding on rats.

Solid point...and to add.....

Switching a BP to rats while the snake is say...under 1kg... Is much...much...easier than trying to switch a large (established) animal.

If you are going to switch...do it ASAP.

(You don't want to screw around with 4 or 5 mice a week when your animal is 2,500g....and if you wait till is that big it will probably be a struggle.)

If you have 4 hopper mice left:
> forget the adult mice completely.
> feed again in a week, if nothing make the next interval 2 wks.
> go in with a hopper mouse! Let her take it then as she is finishing give her a rat that just (just) opened its eyes....drop that in, leave it over night.
> try that a few times and you should be good.

Once she takes a rat, try just a rat the next week. Eventually she will take the rat first.

Remember some snakes switch first try.....some it will take two months of trying (I spent a year switching a large girl)....stick with it and keep us posted.

Once you get her on rats we can help you get her on F/T, the maybe we can try for thawed at room temp (no hot water....that makes life easy!!)


Keep us posted.

[Wykyd]

Aren't small rats too big? I'm still unsure what caused the initial regurge and am leary about a large meal, tho she does take down adult mice fairly easily.

I'll have to get her out and weigh her at some point, but she is approx 22 inches long and about an inch to 1.5 inches in diameter.

About a month ago I did try a rat, but as I said before it busted open and I just threw it away. If it's thought to be a good move maybe I'll feed her these last 4 hoppers over the next two weeks (2 per feeding) and switch after that.

[Wykyd]

Oh, btw... recent pic just for fun.

Also, I bought a meat thermometer and stuck it in the water while thawing out her last meal to be sure that wasn't the issue. I fed her when the water was at approx 98°F.

[Wykyd]

Lastly, getting my hands on pinky rats is nearly impossible. I've checked so many stores and most only sell small which are considerably larger than adult mice. Any tips?

[Chris72]

Originally Posted by Wykyd

Lastly, getting my hands on pinky rats is nearly impossible. I've checked so many stores and most only sell small which are considerably larger than adult mice. Any tips?

Forget the pink rats. I'll have been feeding hatchling crawler rats. (With solid fur color)

It's hard to tell the size of your animal but as a rule you are going to pick the rodent size that is about the same diameter as the fattest part of the snake.

If it was eating adult mice then a fat weaned rats (45-90g) would be perfect.

Thoughts:

A) ask the pet supply place when they get the rat shipments and try to be there as close to delevery as you can.....ask for the smallest "small" rat.

B) search for a Facebook ball python "group" in your area, join that facebook group, ask who the nicest live rat supplier around is....buy from him.

C) take a picture of your snake on something really common (like a magazine) so we can get a sence of how big is it....give some guidance on the right rodent size.

D) you would be shocked at how much rodent your ball can put away. You'll bet against going down once or twice just to watch it vanish in disbelief.


PS. Very cool pattern.

[Wykyd]

Thanks again for all the help. I just got back from an out of town training trip. I fed her right before I left and returned to NOTHING in the tank (YAY!!). I'll get her out and get a few good pictures for y'all to see.

I picked up some pretty cool ivy vines and some other cheap greenery that I'm going to use to fill up the tank some more. Going to add "branches and leaves" to the drift wood pieces to add some more flare. Should have some pictures of that over the next few days if not this weekend.

[Wykyd]

Here are some pics of her on an 18 inch ruler... she's getting big lol. When I got her I think she was only 16 inches.

[Aaron_S]

Originally Posted by Wykyd

Lastly, getting my hands on pinky rats is nearly impossible. I've checked so many stores and most only sell small which are considerably larger than adult mice. Any tips?

Forget the small meals.

Find rat pups or rat weanlings. Those should be fitting for yours.

[Chris72]

Originally Posted by Wykyd

Here are some pics of her on an 18 inch ruler... she's getting big lol. When I got her I think she was only 16 inches.

Yup....should be eating a larger pup or weaned. (Forget the pinks)


You wouldn't want to over feed but this animal could put away a larger "small" rat in three minutes or less if it felt motivated.(impressive to watch) The pup / weenie size will be perfect right now.

[Chris72]

Just for comparison:
Here is a pinky rat a few days old with a new baby ball python.
This snakes is less than 85g today.
That pink is a good meal for this baby.

Your Alice is a solid yearling (what....400g?)..don't be afraid to feed it well.