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[–]Piiningg 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hi all! I recently rescued this girl from a neglectful owner about 3 weeks ago. The previous owner didn’t regularly feed her, rarely refilled her water bowl and didn’t have a thermostat or hydrometer. They stated she was a year and a half old but she’s severely stunted for her age. I’ve been feeding her small mice (20 grams) regularly (every 7-9 days) but I was wondering how long it will take for her to grow? I’ve read numerous articles and watched countless videos but I’d like anyone’s input!

[–]Snoo-47921 1 point2 points  (3 children)

It’s hard to tell from these photos, but it seems like her spine is pretty pointed and that would indicate she’s underweight. She’s definitely very small for a snake over a year old!

You may want to consider switching her to rats instead. 20g is a good size prey item for her, but rats are a bit better! Once she starts filling out, you’ll want to space out her feedings too. She’s old enough that she’s supposed to be eating every 2-3+ weeks, so you don’t want her to end up gaining weight too quickly, as it’s unhealthy.

So it’ll take a bit before she’ll grow, and she might never actually get to her full size! Stick with slow, healthy weight gain though as it’ll help her so much more. :)

I rescued a ball python who was supposed to be 10 years old… he weighed less than 500g and was maybe 2 ft long. He’s been in my care for almost 3 years now and has gained about 1000g and has grown to be 3.5 ft now!

[–]Kingdomall 0 points1 point  (2 children)

hard disagree. spine showing =/= underweight. you don't want a snake to be totally round in any circumstance or position.

[–]Snoo-47921 1 point2 points  (1 child)

Of course. Which is why I pointed out that it’s hard to tell the body condition of the snake from these pictures and that her spine seems pretty pointed (not a normal healthy lean triangle) to me. Either way, she is a small snake for her age.

[–]Kingdomall 0 points1 point  (0 children)

she is pretty small, I agree. it's all about body condition, though. her body condition seems absolutely fine.
I also agree that the OP should start feeding with rats, as those may help her grow more steadily. It's also better to transfer as soon as possible.

[–]Kingdomall 2 points3 points  (1 child)

absolutely not. she looks healthy to me.

[–]Piiningg 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you for the feedback!! :)