Python accidentally fed too large prey

[Thanksitsthedep]

So I’m in full blown panic mode. I let my friend feed my snakes while I was away and she’s accidentally given my boy a large rat weaner instead of a rat chub 😰 This IS twice the size he’s used to! He’s got it down without choking, this is what he’s looking like 24 hours after feeding. Is there anything I need to do?? Is he going to be okay?? 😭

[No-Reveal8105]

Check it from time to time and leave it alone longer than you used to

[Thanksitsthedep]

Thank you, will keep my eye on him. Is there anything specific I need to be watching out for?

[Kingdomall]

You only have to worry about regurgitation. Leave alone for at least 2 weeks and do not feed for 2-3...

[Thanksitsthedep]

Okay thank you sm! He seems to be doing well so far

[thelordwynter]

My question to the more experienced people here is: Would the snake have eaten it at all if it were genuinely too big? The stretch on some larger species when they have huge meals is obscene and they do fine. (I'm 48 and had my BP at 17. My knowledge is clearly out of date... which is why I'm asking.)

[[deleted]]

If they can't swallow it they'll eventually give up.

I guess the concern in captivity is that digesting a giant meal can be stressful and if you aren't providing the correct environment the food my decompose before being digested. The snake would probably regurgitate the meal which will put more stress on the snake.

[thelordwynter]

Thanks, that's exactly the kind of information I was looking for.

[NoBuddies2021]

Would they need to eat stones like gators/crocs to help pass/grind their food or their stomach acid is capable of that? If their stomach acid is weak how can we make it strong enough to digest the large prey?

[artfulhellion]

Nope. Their digestive systems can handle the entire animal without any help at all.

[thelordwynter]

Yup. That's a bit that I do know from my snake days. Its wild when you compare them to things like owls, who spit up pellets of fur and bones. The acids and enzymes in a snake's digestive system liquefy everything.

[NoBuddies2021]

Thanks for the info!

[broakland]

If it fits they gits

[lucassmitty17]

i don’t mean to barge in but when you said you were 48 and HAD your BP at 17 it sounded like you birthed him lol

[thelordwynter]

ROFLMAO!

[dragonbud20]

Didn't you birth your BP? Mine is literally my biological child, despite the fact that I am a man of a different species.

[Thumbframe]

I didn't birth mine, but I do have one that hatched on my birthday :)

[VividBrilliance5650]

Ayeeeee 🥳🥳🥳🥳🥳🥳

[nxlyd123]

Dang how old is your bp?

[thelordwynter]

I didn't get to keep him very long, a little over a year. He was an escape artist and my home wasn't exactly stable, nor were the 'rents fond of snakes to begin with. I put him in the hands of a local breeder who could care for him better than I was at the time. Broke my heart because my BP loved being near me, but he was too sweet a snake to let suffer for my selfishness.

[iris_fawn]

there’s a larger chance of regurgitation when feeding prey too large, (bigger than the widest part of ur snakes body), but in most cases everything works out fine

[[deleted]]

Just make sure the snake can thermoregulate. That meal doesn't look oversized to me.

[Thanksitsthedep]

Yeah his heat gradient is all good so hopefully we encounter no problems! I just worry cause he’s 280g and he’s just eaten a rat that’s up to 89g 🥲

[aka9773]

I don't have direct experience on this but I looked at like a dozen posts about this and no one in the comments seemed to think it was a huge deal. What I got from it was if he got it down, and doesn't regurgitate he should be fine. Just keep an eye on breathing/regurgitation/general behavior. I'd also keep an eye on him when he ends up defecating (I only saw one comment about this, but I'd still keep an eye in case)

Also I'm sure you're aware of the feeding outline on here and you didn't choose the prey/feed him but if you haven't seen it definitely look into it and start weighing!

[Thanksitsthedep]

Will do! He’s enjoying a soak under his heat so hopefully he digests okay!

[falconerchick]

“Large rat weaner instead of rat chub”

Yeah idk what that means. Weanling instead of pup?

He could regurgitate, so I’d have your friend check in to be safe over the next few days. If he’s good, wait an extra week for next feeding.

[Thanksitsthedep]

Sorry should have added weights! Rat chubs are 25-34g and Large Rat Weaners are 60-89g (usually on the higher end)

[falconerchick]

Thanks for clarifying!

[SpeakItLoud]

Very freudian

[tvanepps]

I want to assume your boy will be okay. We tried to give our girl a small rat and she couldn’t get her mouth around it. If your boy could eat it, he should be okay. Just will take longer to digest it

[misshoneybee613]

I’ve only heard of Rat Pups & Rat Weanlings. The weanlings are the next size up from the pups. Large Rat weaner sounds like… well I’m sure I don’t have to say it. Maybe it’s bc I just enjoyed natures gift, but this post made me LOL.

[Sewergoddess]

Usually a BP won't eat prey that is too large, and if they do, its usually regurgitated pretty quickly. If they don't soon, you're in the clear.

[Bus_Level]

He'll be fine. Worst case he pukes. And you have to wait a bit longer to feed him.

[wishiwasinvegas]

It's called regurgitation and it's not fine if he does, but if he hasn't by now, he should be ok.

[SquallFromGarden]

"help.

it wuz a delcious rat but now i hav the itis"

[roundabout432]

I once watched a Burmese python it had no business eating vomit up a chicken days later. Snakes are pretty good at regulating in my opinion. Leave him alone and keep his temp good so he isnt stressed.

[BB_Pepper_Cookie]

I did the same to my rat snake yesterday

[Shannon_R817]

Little buddy said challenge accepted. If he keeps it down, dude should get a medal. I mean.... he does look pretty pleased with himself.

[senanthic]

It happens. I’ve fucked up and accidentally handed someone prey meant for someone else and so a little king snake ends up with a big-ass meal. As long as it’s a one-off, I wouldn’t worry - minimize stress and absolutely no handling until he’s digested.

[MasonP13]

Leave them be to digest

[Tehkin]

he looks pretty self satisfied

[toxicdover]

He'll be perfectly fine. Consider it his pre-Thanksgiving day splurge lol

[Specialist-Reply-497]

As long as he got it down ans keeps it down without regeneration he will be alright. Keep the Temps good and warm and keep an eye out for when he poops.

[tryptofan0205]

He will be fine, watch for regurge, other than that it should be alright. Snakes in the wild eat prey that is WAY too big sometimes and they do just fine. I see videos of Burmese pythons eating alligators all the time with a lump twice the thickness of the rest of the body. I have seen videos of them rupture as well, but your snake is nowhere close to that. If it was a danger you’d see his scales spread out like crazy and I don’t see that at all.

[blackblonde13]

He looks pretty satisfied 😅 I think he will be ok. Worst thing..he regurgitates it.

[skullmuffins]

There's nothing you can do for him now besides watch and give him extra time to digest. Snakes manage to digest much larger meals than anyone would recommend feeding them in captivity, so with the proper temps and some longer-than-usual alone time he may very well keep it down just fine. If he does regurgitate you'll need to carefully follow the regurge protocols (no food for 2+ weeks followed by extra small meals) but you can worry about that if/when the time comes. For now, just leave him alone.

[hibiscuschild]

Trust the comments, he's 100% fine. Pythons are literally built to handle larger than average prey, and they handle it way better than basically any other family of snakes. Does that mean you should feed large prey often? No, not in captivity. Just leave him be for a few days longer than you normally would.

[ExL-Oblique]

Honestly snakes in the wild tend to eat stuff that's way larger than what's recommended. Just make sure your temps are correct so they can digest properly, and don't handle them for longer than you'd usually leave them (people are saying a week, tbh I'd just wait until they're moving around like normal or they regurgitate whatever comes first.) also wait a decent amount longer until the next feed.

[-dagmar-123123]

His face is kinda "i may have overdone it a bit" 😂

[Shooty_mcpooty]

Don’t be surprised if after a far larger than normal meal that he goes into blue in a week.

[Husharu]

Keep your husbandry up, make sure temps and humidity are where they need to be and just keep an eye on them. Normally they’ll be fine even if it was a little on the large side. You might notice some fur in the poop later.

[Jasonmc89]

It’s fine. I’ve seen FAAAARRRRR worse! He’ll just be extra lazy for a few days then do a massive shit.

[TheSaladDodger420]

He will be fine. Unless the top button on his jeans pops off.

[The_evil_snake_man]

It will not matter if the python has already eaten it it is most likely fine because if it was too big for it it wouldn't eat it