Need Help with my Ball Python!!!!!

[BigDaddyJ]

I hope that someone can shed some light on my problem. I got my ball in March this year. She was just under 3 feet when i got her. If i had to guess maybe a lil over a year possibly 2 years. Anyhow it is now August. She ate for me the first time in July. She has shed 4 times since I had her but has only eaten once. I dont think this is normal behavior. She is now close to 4 foot in length.

 

[crpy]

imo. this is not abnormal for ball pythons. They occasionally go off feed for long periods even a year or so, ime.

Oopps, yeah this post is related to feeding only

 

[JohnEDove]

The repeated shedding without feeding does sound a little strange to me. Could you supply us some details on your husbandry practices with this snake?
Is it possible she has an old injury that is healing or mites?

 

[halfwaynowhere]

can you describe your husbandry? Ball pythons can be very picky eaters... What size enclosure is he in? What kind of substrate? What are your temps/humidity? What kind of heating are you using?

 

[Mushroom Spore]

Fasting is pretty normal, and yes I've had a couple sheds with no meals accepted by the snake in between. Is she actually losing any weight? Is the line of her backbone visible? My own snake's current record is something like eight months and he hardly lost weight at all.

Also yes, what's your husbandry and do you know if the snake was wild-caught or captive-bred?

 

[BigDaddyJ]

I got her off a reputable breeder. She was captive bred. I have her in a very large 110 gal aquarium. when i got her the breeder notified me that she had eatin a medium/large rat. When she ate for me thats what i gave her. She hasnt lost any weight. She looks very healthy. I use a heat lamp and uv light during the day and nothing at night. However i have a heat pad on the underside of the aquarium under a hut for her in case she would need heat at night. At the basking end my temps range between 85-90 degrees and at the non basking end around 80 degrees. I use aspen shavings for my substrate.

 

[Mushroom Spore]

You sound good, although you don't actually *need* the UV light. Some ball pythons get nervous in too-large enclosures, but unless yours starts losing weight you're probably fine.

Again, since she isn't losing weight, you're good.

 

[Mina]

Ball pythons are the G. rosea of the snake world. My adult fasted for almost 6 months. During that time he drank, peed, shed, was active, looked good and had no obvious weight loss.
I was horribly worried, so I talked to a friend who breeds them, he said as long as it was still drinking, peeing, shedding, looks good, no wheezing, clean eyes, nostrils and vent, it is fine and is just being a BP.
He compared them to spoiled children. He said they eat what they want, when they want it, and if you don't have what they decided at the particular time they want to eat, they just won't.
On another note, you could try different prey. We have 8 snakes, and the fasting male BP was eating small rats, we were feeding and my husband, just out of curiosity, offered the big BP a sm mouse meant for one of my rosy boas. the BP immediately struck and ate it, and followed it with 2 more.
I didn't understand then and still don't, but apparently he decided he wanted mice.

 

[BigDaddyJ]

So i tried a small mouse as u stated and behold she snatched it right up. Thank you for the tip. I find it to be weird as can be seeing as how she always had small rats before but whatever. I will rest easy tonight know she has a full belly....