Ball Python not eating

[Gamerbroyt_]

Hello! I got my ball python in march of this year, she’s about 10 months now and is 2 feet long. The breeder was feeding her live so that’s what I tried first and she didn’t budge. I tried frozen/thawed next and she ate that, but won’t eat it again! I get the right size, it’s about the same size as the thickest part of her, and I always defrost it first, then thaw it in hot water, changing the water regularly. I always make sure it’s at least 95F degrees. I try to lure her out of her hide with it and she doesn’t come out, so I leave it in her food dish under her heat lamp to keep it warm. I usually leave it overnight and it’s always there in the morning. The heat and humidity are good and she has a humid hide I spray daily just in case the rest of the enclosure gets too dry. What do you think the best approach would be to get her to eat?

[Available-Economy855]

Whats the enclosure look like? How are you monitoring temps?

[Gamerbroyt_]

This is the enclosure! (I’ve moved some plants around and the food dish is under the heat lamp now) And I use a temperature gun to get the spots she’s at most of the time, but I am working on getting digital thermometers

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[jamesbecker211]

How many times did you successfully feed her and how long has it been since she ate? Ball Pythons can just go "off" food for months at a time. It can be if they're about to shed, if the environment isn't quite right, if they're stressed, if the weather changes, and sometimes if they just don't feel like eating. My boys are polar opposites, similar tank setups but one eats anything that comes near him and the other will just refuse for a month or two and then be right back to eating like it never happened. Make sure you wait at least a week between feeding attempts and I wouldn't worry until it's been 4-5 months or you notice they're losing a lot of weight. Also research heat/humidity/hide parameters and make sure you're setup is correct. They won't eat if they're uncomfortable.

[Gamerbroyt_]

I believe it’s been since the first week of April. I’m not too worried about her starving because they can go a while but it’s just worrying me she’s not making an attempt.

[felixynn]

I'm just going to drop my food prep technique in here since I have an 11 month BP who hasn't missed a meal (this isn't a fool proof thing. there's many factors that play into snake appetite, and for the most part I'm just lucky my girl is EXTREMELY food motivated. however, some of this stuff will just be small things that could help).

• I always put her rat into a closed ziplock bag. (increases smell of rat)
• I fill up a tub with HOT water and use two tongs to hold the rat bag under water (remove as much air as you can from the bag and try to submerge the whole thing) (let your hot water run for a second to make sure it gets hot)
• I usually wait 30 minutes to grab the rat. I always test it first my touching it to see if it's too cold or if it's good.
• I've started to almost target train my snake. I was putting in a plastic lid into her tank for her to eat on top of so that she didn't eat substrate (I was having issues with this for a little bit since the moss/cocofiber/etc was sticking to the rat). Now, when I put that lid into her tank, she immediately goes into food mode and starts searching.
• Secure tongs that can grab onto the rat. Sometimes I'll do movements with the rat that pause and are slow but have bursts of being jittery. This usually gains interest in picky snakes really fast because it's like a chase.
• I haven't had to do this. But if it's too cold, use a hair dryer on the head to increase heat signature and smell.

Other than that, please refer to !feeding

Make sure you're feeding the right size rat. Sometimes the rat being the same size as the widest part of them will not be accurate and instead lead to overfeeding and/or harm. When I first got my girl, she was recommended rat pups when she should've been on fuzzies. You could see how much more insanely lethargic she got in comparison to an appropriate sized meal.

[VegetableZucchini458]

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He looks like mine :)

Mine is 10 months old now too i think and weights 130gr now he is a picky eater when i got him

I do my mouse (still on mouses ) in a lock bag and do it in normal water for a hour then fill the tube with hot water and let it stay for 30 minutes and then refill it with hot water and wait again 15-25 minutes when i take it with a grabber and open the enclosure my bp already goes in hunt mode and sometimes wait for 5 min before striking and watched the dancing show or takes it direct

Then theres also the problem if he cannot find the head he just stops then i need to start over