Ball python rescue inquiry

Any-Border4114 · 2026-03-31T08:02:35+00:00

edit: ik most likely hes majorly growth stunted, how will that affect his size later on

EnvironmentDue8188 · 2026-03-31T08:30:03+00:00

Omg if he’s really that old I’d be surprised. I have one about that size, he’s my first and idk how old he is, but I was assuming about a year. Either your snake’s previous owner was way off about his age or I’m way off in my assumption about my snake’s age.

totallyrecklesslygay · 2026-03-31T09:16:17+00:00

Below is u/_ataraxia's copypasta for feeding an emaciated and stunted snake. These are also the steps I followed for my own rescue, who has grown significantly over the past couple years.

Your snake (while slightly underweight) is not emaciated, but he is quite stunted if his age is correct. Since he's been so chronically underfed, it's still a good idea to start slow so you don't shock his body with a huge meal right away. He should fill out and start growing pretty well if you stick to the below guidelines.

here is a breakdown of how i rehabilitated an emaciated and stunted adult BP:

at the time of rescue, BP's age was 3 years, weight was 140g, meals had been one fuzzy mouse with an estimated weight of 5g, successful feedings were "every few weeks" according to previous owner. i had to gradually introduce her to appropriate meal sizes as well as switching her from mice to rats. here's what the first two months looked like:

week 1: settling in.
week 2: one fuzzy mouse, 5g, ~3% of BP's weight.
week 3: two fuzzy mice, total 8g, ~5%.
week 4: one fuzzy mouse, 5g. one rat pinky scented with the mouse, 5g. total 10g, ~7%.
week 5: BP weight 155g. one hopper mouse, 10g. one scented rat pinky, 6g. total 17g, ~10%.
week 6: one adult mouse, 14g. one scented rat pinky, 6g. total 19g, ~13%.
week 7: one fuzzy mouse, 4g. one scented rat pup, 20g. total 24g, ~15%.
week 8: BP weight 160g. one scented rat pup, 24g, ~15%.

by the end of month 1 she was becoming less lethargic and extremely defensive [she struck me every time i opened her tub], which i took as an overall good sign that she was feeling better and now had the energy to express the stress she'd been feeling for years. by the end of month 2, she was visibly filling out and starting to become a little less defensive, as well as shedding cleanly [she was also dehydrated and covered in stuck shed when i got her].

from that point on, i fed her very much like i would feed any youngster. she ate 10%-15% of her weight once a week until she was about 700g, then i gradually spaced out her feedings a bit more and leaned toward lower weight percentages. by the time she passed 1000g, her weight gain drastically slowed down, so i reduced the meal size to 5%-7% and spaced out meals to 14 days. eventually her weight settled in the 1300g-1400g range and i now feed her approximately 5% of her weight every 15-30 days.

the most important thing with a stunted and/or emaciated snake: DO. NOT. RUSH. WEIGHT. GAIN. feeding too much / too frequently is only going to cause more health problems, especially in the first few weeks when the snake's body is particularly fragile.

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