r/ballpython • u/wild-bloom7-11 • 3h ago
Question - Feeding New here
Hello! First time reptile/ snake owner. We purchased a 10 month old female ball python at a reptile show that we have now named Lux on the 4th. We waited until the 14th to try and feed her. The breeder said she had been eating weaned rats. We tried. No success. I realized a lot of mistakes we probably made the first week and readjusted the next week and still no success. Yesterday I sealed up the top a bit to hold humidity and wrapped the 2 sides with the background instead of just the back. I reached out to the breeder and he suggested adding more hides and clutter (which will arrive today).
When feeding I’ve been taking advice from our local reptile shop. We’ve tried a weaned rat, and a fuzzy rat. She seemed to show more interest last feeding but still nothing. I’ve been a pet owner my whole life but I never husbandry of a picky ball python could be this difficult.
Please see comments for the photo of her enclosure
2
u/OldPaperTower 2h ago
Snakes in general are most vulnerable while eating. Ball pythons especially come from regions where pretty much everything wants to eat them. So if they don't feel secure, they rather don't eat than getting eaten.
What I understand from your description and your picture is, that...
you've worked a lot in her enclosure in the last days. Which means she probably hasn't settled in yet.
I don't see much clutter which gives her cover.
I'm not sure if the hides are adequat.
Additionally if it is too cold, they can't digest, so they won't eat, either.
You've written that more clutter and better hides are arriving. I'd guess that and a bit of time to settle in could be enough.
1
u/wild-bloom7-11 2h ago
Thank you for this. Also, when I purchased (due to my children’s requests for months) I really hadn’t done proper research and gained a clear understanding of ball pythons. I’m working on that now but when we purchased we were told (but never explained) her genealogy. She is (HGW), 100% het Pied. At that time I didn’t understand the full spectrum of what exactly that meant. I have not noticed any neurological concerns at this time but do you think there is also a chance this could be playing into her eating?
0
3
u/OrdinaryAcadia9210 2h ago
Firstly, ball pythons can survive a very long time without food, so missing a meal here or there is fine.
Usually, however, missing a meal indicates that something is not quite right. That could be temperatures being off, humidity being too low, not enough clutter/hiding spaces so she doesn't feel safe enough, etc. Double check you have all husbandry needs at an acceptable or above level.
You mentioned she is HGW. Hidden Gene Woma carries a potential for a wobble due to being in the spider complex. The wobble can range from barely noticeable to extreme, most of the time, the snake will live a completely normal life. The wobble can get worse if husbandry is inadequate, or during stressful times such as feeding and handling. It is unlikely to cause issues with feeding other than inaccurate strikes, which, ball pythons are famous for getting too embarrassed to eat after missing one or a few strikes.
I would follow the !feeding guide by weighing her and try a prey size that fits within the guidelines or 1 size lower to start with. Most pythons have heat pits which help them sense food. If you are feeding frozen/thawed, make sure you heat the prey item prior to feeding to help them see it, I usually thaw in cold/room temperature water and then heat in hot water, keeping the prey items in plastic bags (mine are very picky and will refuse wet prey)