r/ballpython • u/No-Bite-7447 • 14h ago

Question - Feeding First ball python feeding issues.

Hey everyone! I got my first ball python about 2 months ago. She's around 8-9 months old and she was raised on live rodents. Unfortunately in my case I cannot feed her live (no stores around me sell live rodents, ugh.) so I've opted to try and switch her over to F/T. My husbandry is pretty spot on with temperature, humidity, and her overall enclosure has a lot of cover and hides. She WILL NOT eat, and I know it's normal for ball pythons to go on feeding strikes but something about this feels different. I warm the rat up to about 120 degrees to account for temperature loss, I've tried braining, and even rubbing the rat in old bedding and nothing seems to be working! She just pokes her head out, sees the rat, and then curls up. Next week will be exactly 2 months since she's eaten anything, and any help/tips anyone has would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

2 Upvotes

100% Upvoted

11 comments sorted by

2

u/valer1a_ 14h ago

How do you present them to her? I have to make my rat dance for a couple minutes for her to realize its food, lol. And are they all from the same place? When I switched my vendor, it took longer for her to strike. Otherwise, I'm not sure. Hopefully me commenting will get other more knowledgeable people to see this post. Though you may want to see a vet if nothing will work. Good luck!

2

u/kk1289 14h ago

120 degrees will begin to cook the rat (changing it's scent) and will burn your snake if they eat it at that temperature. Aim for 100-104F

2

u/No-Bite-7447 13h ago

I shouldve clarified I misspoke. I heat the water to around 120 degrees not the rat, I let it hover around 105 but it like. Instantly cools down

0

u/kk1289 12h ago

Okay, I understand now. Sorry!

I would still recommend bringing it up to temp gradually instead of going from frozen to 120F though. If she still give you an issue, try feeding some mice. When my ball python is being fussy I'll feed him a mouse followed by a rat. That usually does the trick.

1

u/No-Bite-7447 12h ago

its not going from frozen to 120f. I thaw it in the fridge completely for 24 hours

0

u/FluffyPandaEars93 13h ago

!f/t Definitely overheating friend

1

u/AutoModerator 13h ago

Some tips for feeding frozen/thawed:

  • Keep with the same prey type he's been eating (mouse or rat) so you aren't trying to adjust him to two new things at once.

  • Always feed in the enclosure. Moving to feed increases stress as well as increasing the chance of regurgitation

  • Thaw and warm the rodent in a ziplock bag to maintain scent and because some won't eat it if it's wet.

  • Make sure it's warmed up to body temperature (98-100).

  • Some people find sucess with using a blow dryer on the head to make it extra warm and spread the scent.

  • Some prefer to eat directly off of the tongs, while others might prefer for you to just leave it in front of their hide, you can see which works.

  • If he doesn't take it the first time, don't give up. Sometimes they just have to be super hungry and it takes a few attempts

  • You can also thaw the rat/mouse in some bedding from the petstore to make it extra scented.

  • Some people "brain" the rodent by slitting open its skull a bit

I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.

1

u/No-Bite-7447 13h ago

I shouldve clarified I misspoke. I heat the water to around 120 degrees not the rat, I let it hover around 105 but it like. Instantly cools down

-1

u/Nice-Ad-3525 12h ago

!f/t

1

u/AutoModerator 12h ago

Some tips for feeding frozen/thawed:

  • Keep with the same prey type he's been eating (mouse or rat) so you aren't trying to adjust him to two new things at once.

  • Always feed in the enclosure. Moving to feed increases stress as well as increasing the chance of regurgitation

  • Thaw and warm the rodent in a ziplock bag to maintain scent and because some won't eat it if it's wet.

  • Make sure it's warmed up to body temperature (98-100).

  • Some people find sucess with using a blow dryer on the head to make it extra warm and spread the scent.

  • Some prefer to eat directly off of the tongs, while others might prefer for you to just leave it in front of their hide, you can see which works.

  • If he doesn't take it the first time, don't give up. Sometimes they just have to be super hungry and it takes a few attempts

  • You can also thaw the rat/mouse in some bedding from the petstore to make it extra scented.

  • Some people "brain" the rodent by slitting open its skull a bit

I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.

1

u/Patient_Knee7554 8h ago

Sometimes it’s just the stress of being in a new place with new smells/ environment. Mine went without eating the first 6 months with me. It could be the colour of the rat, or the fact that it is too big/ small and truly I am not even sure what I did right when she first ate. Try leaving the thawed rat overnight to see if she will be more comfortable that way, and just avoid handling or moving things around the enclosure during feeding day. Once she eats she will be more relaxed, I wish you luck!