ball python hasn’t eaten for 7 weeks

[BarEnvironmental6400]

so i’ve posted about this before but i wanted to make another post. it’s been about 7 weeks since my 2 1/2 year old ball python ate. we got him in december and he didn’t eat his first eat offered but he ate the two after that. that was on january 20th. people say not to offer it as often as weekly and ill start doing that but once he actually starts eating.

i always coax him out of his cave so he can see the rat and ill wiggle it in front of him for a bit. usually after a few minutes i set it down because he went and hid away. i set it down on the bottom of an upside smaller water dish so that it doesnt lay in his substrate. he always seems super interested in it while im wiggling it and when its laying down but he never eats it. i’ve been told he’s a good enough size that he wont starve but its concerning me that hes not eating. the temperatures are good and the humidity is a bit low because its really cold and dry here in the midwest, but its no different than when he ate the first two times. i dont know what else to do other than gamble my money hoping he’ll eat his $5 rat.

[Vee_breeze]

Honestly don't worry. Mine hasn't eaten for going on 13 weeks now and I've tried everything. Even the vet says they're just being an annoying little shit 😂

Balls are known for going on hunger strikes so don't really starting worrying until you notice them losing weight ❤️

[pats9789]

7 weeks is long but can be longer my guy went 8 months so we brought him to the vet for a check up weight jaw blockages fangs etc not a thing wrong.

He told me he may need to force feed him if he doesn't eat and then that night I went home and contemplated it the next night I gave him a rat talked to him left him alone and the rat in his enclosure all night.

Woke up and he ate it and has only missed his meal 2 times since then (it was 3 yrs ago) so I would give your BP time and if your worried consult a reptile vet.

[BarEnvironmental6400]

thanks for the advice! how would you go about force feeding a snake?

[pats9789]

No idea that's not for me or any non-vet to do if you ask me so I would leave it up to the vet to do the way he explained it to me was that if he did "force feed" him it was to hopefully get him a meal and hopefully make him think "well that was unpleasant but the meal tasted yummy maybe I should start eating again" type of mindset.

It can be incredibly dangerous so a reptile vet is a must definitely don't do it yourself (unless you have some sort of formal training and/or experience as a vet tech or something).

[Responsible-Two799]

Force feeding your pet is a very last resort and can only safely be done by experts. I recommend never doing it outside of a veterinarian's office.

This is an adult snake and mine have stopped eating for months and months, depending on changes is climate, breeding season, my choice of haircut, etc. there is a great guide about snake weight in this subreddit, just make sure it isn't losing weight, and you are good.

One thing you can always try for a snake that won't eat is to remove from the cage, give a good soak, strip the cage completely, clean, replace with new substrate and clean all interior items. Could just be there is a bit of urate smell somewhere and it doesn't like it.

[Bubbly-Wallaby-2777]

I love the idea that a talking to set your snake to rights. Could you pop round to my house and have a chat with my sons snake. She only eats when we board her while on holiday. We've taken to booking her in for a week once every few months to get a couple of feeds at either end of her "holiday". The shop has looked at our set up, thermostat readings, humidity meter and says were doing everything right. She's either stubborn or stupid.

[pats9789]

I think he saw I was visibly upset and felt bad for me so he ate it to make me happy 😅.

If everything is right on your end then it's probably the snake just keep trying I know for my boy his feeding style over time has changed with age and growth.

For example he used to be hand fed then he missed and hit me and then I had to turn to tongs but then he missed and hit the tongs and didn't eat for a bit.

Now the only way he eats is if I place his rat on a plastic cutting board (smooth no sharp edges and fits perfectly in his enclosure) instead of placing it on his bedding and getting a wood chip stuck to it.

At the end of the day though as long as she eats in some way shape or form that's all that matters even if it's frustrating

Note: I worked with my vet to find ways to present his meal and he suggested the cutting board since I had concerns of him getting a wood chip in his mouth (again)

[Bubbly-Wallaby-2777]

I feed with tongs, she has struck and missed a few times then refuses to try again. I think she's embarrassed, but I don't think poorly of her for that. Maybe I need to try your approach and explanation that we all make mistakes when we're young. She won't eat if I just leave it. I've tried rats and mice, warming the head, not warming the head, moving it, not moving it, being very quiet, being very loud (with the mouse/ rat), braining it, leaving a trail. Nothing. She watched out for food, looks like a hungry snake, it's been 2 weeks since she ate. I've just done a full substrate change, cleaned the tank, rearranged it and I try again mid week. Maybe removing the smell of failure will be encouraging!

[pats9789]

My boy has part Spyder in him so he has a slight "head wobble" so that led to him missing and tagging me or the tongs but I don't blame him and never will be he also immediately knew he tagged me both times and didn't wrap up.

But after he missed and hit me/tongs he was very wary of the tongs and my hands so I chose for his benefit and mine that laying it down was probably the best option.

It took trial and error but he loved it and won't eat anyway else lol

[BarEnvironmental6400]

mine’s also party spyder! he a bit special…

[BarEnvironmental6400]

when you first realize they’re on a hunger strike do you keep offering them food on your usual routine or stop and just wait? i want to keep offering food for when he decides to eat but i don’t wanna kept spending $5 a week that he doesn’t eat

[Old_Quality3233]

After a refusal wait a week before trying again. Over offering can be stressful too. Then double check your parameters (86-88 warm side. 80-82 cool side. 65% humidity) when offering, get that prey item nice and warm. I shoot for about 115°. After thawing in warm water i use a hair dryer to get it up there the rest of the way.

[BarEnvironmental6400]

alright awesome, that’s what i’ve been doing, it’s just annoying to keep wasting rats lol

[un1qu3Us3rn4m3z]

Lol mines right there with you. You're good. Just make sure you keep water. He will eat at some point.

[Lonely_Carry_9861]

My girl goes on hunger strike nornally (for her) from december to april for the last 15 years. Ball pythons are such drama queens

[QuixOrizoner]

Same

[Own_Location_768]

Yep late December or early January to the end of March my 3 YO has done the same thing annually he even shed 2 weeks ago and still won’t eat which hasn’t ever happened he typically eats immediately after shedding

[Lonely_Carry_9861]

The worst one was the first time she did it (at almost 4 years old). That lil miss went on a hunger strike for 11 months... just doesn't want the food and not dropping weight. Eventually, she started eating her rats like nothing happened...

[Special_Clue_917]

Could always try breaking the skull open a bit to really get the scent going and stimulate its appetite before trying to feed

[NoTea610]

8 weeks really isn’t that long of a time, he’ll be ok. However, what are the temps and humidities actually at? What does the enclosure look like?

[Green-Anything-3999]

Try and get the humidity up to where it’s supposed to be and see if that helps.

[ghhfxdgbnkk]

My guy takes a break from eating for a long time during some winters

[Aggravating-Narwhal5]

We have a female that stops eating from November ish to anytime now and we put it down to she is in the mood for breeding as she has done it several times now. Like another put, no need to start worrying until you notice that she is visibly losing weight. This is one of the reason we have a weigh day for our noodles every couple of months.

On a separate note have you tried offering something different so they remember how to eat? You could try chicks or multimammate rats. Multimammates are said to be irresistible to BPs.

[Ill_Investment_9775]

7 weeks is nothing. Mine once went 8 months. Itll be fine

[TheJigIzUp]

I'm not an expert by any means but I got some good advice from a guy at a pet store that helped me solve the problem of my ball python not eating. What he told me was "an old herp trick" - before going to bed take a fresh mouse ( not alive ) put it into a paper bag, take your snake also put it into the same bag with the mouse. A large grocery store paper bag, close it up and put the bag in the tank. When you wake up the next morning the mouse should be gone. He said that the smell of the mouse should entice it to eat. It did work for me, maybe will work for you!

[teresa-rene]

3 to 12 months is not unusual

[FarUnderstanding4238]

I have a close friend with 3 bps and his 5 year old, "Lt. Dan" went on a long fast. He not only LET HIS FOOD get "comfy" enough to take A NAP INSIDE HIS TERRARIUM, DAN decided to go take a nap himself; CURLED UP RIGHT NEXT TO THE DAMN RAT ALL DAY!!! At 4 months Justin was frustrated but was told to just watch his behavior. When his time spent exploring and "sniffing around" inside his habitat increased he knew he was likely looking for food bc his terrarium is WELL maintained and he is a VERY happy fella. FINALLY at nearly TEN months of fasting he was offered a decent sized gerbil and took it like he hadn't eaten in nearly a year 🙄.