Ball Python will not feed

[Anita]

Hello I am a new user to the site but have a problem with my recently purchased Ball Python. He would not eat so i had to hold him and encourage him by putting the mouse into his mouth and waiting for him to coil that was about 6 weeks ago. The next time i went to feed him i had the same problem but was only able to encourage him to eat 1 mouse. He has just 2 days ago shed and has not fed now for 3 weeks. I tried to feed him again last night but all i managed to do was make him very angry although he did not bite me. Any advice as he is now quite strong and wriggles so much if i try to hold him and open his mouth with the mouses nose and then he gets out of my grip and curles up in a tight ball.

 

[PhilR]

My advice would be to leave him alone. If he doesn't strike feed, and not all of them do, then holding him down will just stress him more.

He is curling up into a ball because he is stressed and worried and feels threatened.

Leave him somewhere warm and dark and low traffic and then try him again in a week. If he doesn't strike, then try leaving the food in with him overnight. Sometimes that will trigger it.

You could also try him with different prey. One of our males (we have 5) went straight from feeding on medium defrost mice to rats without any preamble. One of the females we have is more finnicky and will only eat if the food's left in.

If he's not losing lots of weight then I wouldn't worry at this stage.

 

[jonnysebachi]

Just remember that ball pythons can be a challenge to the new snake person. They can sometimes be very picky eaters. They don't always eat every meal and can skip for LONG periods. I just had a female that skipped for 6 months. She is completely fine and lost almost no wt. A breeder friend of mine says the males can be even more picky than females. I have a male that eats every other week. In nature they skip meals due to the challenge of the hunt so dont give up. They are designed to not starve easily. Just keep offering weekly meals and stay on a schedule. Assuming the snake does not have an internal issue, ie parasites or such, it will more than likely be just fine. Remember to also verify it is being kept at the proper temps. Good luck with it.

 

[Mina]

I have a supposed male BP that in the last 12 weeks has eaten once. He is active, happy, healthy, and is drinking.
Previous to this fast, he ate every week with incredible enthusiasm, sometimes getting close to aggression in his hunger/eagerness for food. Then all of a sudden, he won't eat.
As long as your BP is looking good, drinking, and active at least at night, don't worry. It will eat when it wants to. Continue to offer food once a week. The only other thing you can do depending on the size of your BP is offer different prey. Offer something smaller than what it usually eats, or try a mouse instead of a rat. Just be prepared for failure.
Ball pythons are known for being super picky eaters, as long as everything else is okay, the snake looks good, and your husbandry is correct, don't worry.

 

[Mushroom Spore]

STOP FORCE-FEEDING. You are traumatizing him, stressing him out, and probably making it LESS likely that he will ever want to eat on his own. Force-feeding is an absolute last resort when you have a snake that is about to die anyway, not the very first thing you try!

Try wiggling the dead (you do feed dead, right) mouse nearby with tongs, or put it in a shoebox with him and lock it inside the tank overnight, or learn to brain prey, or scent with chicken broth, or something. There are a thousand ways to try and encourage a ball to eat that don't involve probable internal injuries.

How big is your ball python, and is it a male? It's getting to be that time of year where any male in their second winter or later is probably going to miss some meals. It's an incoming breeding season thing.

 

[mindlessvw]

also check all your husbandry issues...they can be very finicky eaters...you may want to get him to a vet just to have a fecal done to rule anything else out

 

[Ted]

STOP FORCE-FEEDING. You are traumatizing him, stressing him out, and probably making it LESS likely that he will ever want to eat on his own. Force-feeding is an absolute last resort when you have a snake that is about to die anyway, not the very first thing you try!
.

very true!!

now heres my advice!!.
I have done this with dozens ball pythons for people who couldnt get them to eat
get you a baby chick..many ball pythons dont like rodents..but love baby chicks.
and then what i did was knoch the bottom out of a clay flower pot and turn the pot upside down with the chick inside.
ball pythons get intimiated easily...and many wont feed at eye level.
with the chick inside the pot the python has to crawl up and look down into the pot..putting it at a higher level.
this has worked many times.
eventually we switched the chick for a mouse and even rubbed the mouse for the first few times with the chick.

i fully recommend this..let me know if i was clear..I'm tired.lol.

 

[ZooRex]

Checkout this link: http://www.anapsid.org/ballfeed.html ~ Rex

 

[ballpython2]

Hello I am a new user to the site but have a problem with my recently purchased Ball Python. He would not eat so i had to hold him and encourage him by putting the mouse into his mouth and waiting for him to coil that was about 6 weeks ago. The next time i went to feed him i had the same problem but was only able to encourage him to eat 1 mouse. He has just 2 days ago shed and has not fed now for 3 weeks. I tried to feed him again last night but all i managed to do was make him very angry although he did not bite me. Any advice as he is now quite strong and wriggles so much if i try to hold him and open his mouth with the mouses nose and then he gets out of my grip and curles up in a tight ball.

ball pythons do best in a good size rubbermaid container because it holds in heat and humidity. all you need is one hide, a water bowl, and holes in the side of the rubbermaid container for ventilation.

ball pythons usually stop eating because the tempetures, humidity aren't correct and these usually arent where they are suppose to be if people are using a tank. Tanks aren't good for the ball python snake species.

 

[Mushroom Spore]

all you need is one hide,

One hide...at each end of the temperature gradient. One warmer, one cooler. The snake should never have to choose between security and the temperature it wants.

and these usually arent where they are suppose to be if people are using a tank. Tanks aren't good for the ball python snake species.

I don't know where people get this, but it can be done. Glass is no inherently better or worse at holding in humidity than rubbermaid. Heat, MAYBE, but I have a cover for part of my tank anyway. The only real difference is that screen tank lids can be annoying, but covering about 80% of it is fine, and also lets the snake have some nice darkness.

 

[~Abyss~]

how long can BP go without food I have a juv. and it escaped a little under a month ago. I'm freaking worried. I don't know how he managed to poke a hole thorugh the screen and he escaped from there.

 

[Ted]

how long can BP go without food I have a juv. and it escaped a little under a month ago. I'm freaking worried. I don't know how he managed to poke a hole thorugh the screen and he escaped from there.

they can go weeks..sometimes months..it depends.

and never use screen for snakes..it can injure them and is easy to escape from.

 

[Mushroom Spore]

and never use screen for snakes..it can injure them and is easy to escape from.

First I've heard of it. :? The only thing I can think of is that a screen may be weakened around the edges or have other flaws or just be low quality in general, and a person simply doesn't notice. I have never in my life heard of a snake actually damaging a screen on their own. Pushing up lids, squeezing out of any hole they can, yes, though.

 

[Ted]

First I've heard of it. :? The only thing I can think of is that a screen may be weakened around the edges or have other flaws or just be low quality in general, and a person simply doesn't notice. I have never in my life heard of a snake actually damaging a screen on their own. Pushing up lids, squeezing out of any hole they can, yes, though.

i have seen them try and try repeatedly over time untill the find or make a weak spot somewhere, especially around the edges.
i have also seen many a snake rub their noses blood trying and also have seen them become severely lacerated squeezing out of wire mesh.
sometimes they dont do either..buts to me its not worth the risk.

 

[AneesasMuse]

My former big cornsnake was notorious for finding her way out of screen tops... the tank was designed for them, so I kept replacing them for awhile :? Finally, I got tired of her skinned up nose and finding her in very odd places at very inoppurtune times and cut two peg board pieces to fit in the tank's top design. Worked like a charm!

OP, I hope your BP eats for you soon. I would try Ted's method... it sounds like a winner to me!

 

[ballpython2]

One hide...at each end of the temperature gradient. One warmer, one cooler. The snake should never have to choose between security and the temperature it wants.



I don't know where people get this, but it can be done. Glass is no inherently better or worse at holding in humidity than rubbermaid. Heat, MAYBE, but I have a cover for part of my tank anyway. The only real difference is that screen tank lids can be annoying, but covering about 80% of it is fine, and also lets the snake have some nice darkness.

Ok use glass tanks if you want but they are going to cause many problems. thats the thing why go through all the hassle of coving 80% of a tank when a tank cost more money than a good size rubbermaid bin. and eventually the snake will grow and its going to need a bigger enclosure but ok. dont say I didnt try to help.

 

[GOE_Rescue]

We have several ball pythons and get them when not feeding the best way we have found so far is live rat pups that have been brained or live african soft fur rats ( about the size of a mouse)using those 2 methods we have never had a bp that didnt feed after a week or 2

 

[Mushroom Spore]

thats the thing why go through all the hassle of coving 80% of a tank

Yes, I find placing a black towel over part of the tank is a great deal of stress and hassle for me to deal with. It takes hours out of my day.

eventually the snake will grow and its going to need a bigger enclosure but ok. dont say I didnt try to help.

Uh, my snake is ALREADY in a big enclosure, thanks.

Also, you didn't try to help. :}

 

[Ted]

My former big cornsnake was notorious for finding her way out of screen tops... the tank was designed for them, so I kept replacing them for awhile :? Finally, I got tired of her skinned up nose and finding her in very odd places at very inoppurtune times and cut two peg board pieces to fit in the tank's top design. Worked like a charm!

OP, I hope your BP eats for you soon. I would try Ted's method... it sounds like a winner to me!

thanks, and i ended up doingthe same[with the pegboard].
my only real complaint is that they can warp fairly easy and may not fit real well,..i have used thick plexiglass with appropriate ventilation holes drilled in it, and gotten nice results..they too, can warp, though, if not thick enough.
either can be reinforced along the edges, without too much trouble, though.

 

[Anita]

very true!!

now heres my advice!!.
I have done this with dozens ball pythons for people who couldnt get them to eat
get you a baby chick..many ball pythons dont like rodents..but love baby chicks.
and then what i did was knoch the bottom out of a clay flower pot and turn the pot upside down with the chick inside.
ball pythons get intimiated easily...and many wont feed at eye level.
with the chick inside the pot the python has to crawl up and look down into the pot..putting it at a higher level.
this has worked many times.
eventually we switched the chick for a mouse and even rubbed the mouse for the first few times with the chick.

i fully recommend this..let me know if i was clear..I'm tired.lol.

Thank you Ted, this sounds like a very good idea, my ball python does show signs that he is intimidated by the mouse when i try to feed him as he pulls his head away from it.
I have questioned the pet shop owner about the method he told and showed me to use and he told me that this method was not what he would call force feeding and causes little or no stress to the python. I explained to him that obviously it was causing my python stress as he curls up for a few minuites when ive tried to feed him this way, which is causing me stress as well as i do not want to harm him in anyway mentally or physically and asked how he used to get him to feed before i purchased him. He said he had no problems getting him to strike feed and he used to place the food in his favourite hiding place. This i had already tried without success but your idea sounds as though it may work. i will try with a defrost mouse first and if he wont feed i will then try a defrost baby chick. I can not use live bait as it is illegal the united kingdom.