Receiving Your New Ball Python

Dickson Royals ensures that all ball pythons available to buy has had at least three meals before they are listed for sale. This eliminates the stress of you trying to make your new ball python eat their first meals.  After receiving your ball python, it’s crucial to allow them a brief period of adjustment in their new habitat, but only a few hours are necessary before you can attempt your first feeding. You can often start things off right by attempting to feed immediately after your new baby arrives during that first evening.  Remember, for your new arrival everything has changed.  This complete change in surroundings can trigger a fear response in your new baby.  When a ball python eats, they feel vulnerable so they can be hesitant to eat.  We recommend attempting your first feeding on the first evening after arrival.  This will actually help with the acclimation period by reenforcing to the ball python that eating is safe.  If you can get this first feeding successfully done in the first day, it will reduce stress, allowing your snake to become more comfortable in its new surroundings. 

Choosing The Right Diet

Selecting the appropriate food for your ball python is essential to ensure successful feedings. For baby ball pythons, live rat fuzzies are recommended, although mouse hoppers can also be offered. It’s advisable to start with live rat fuzzies for the first few feedings, as they closely resemble the snake’s previous diet. If live is not available in your area, frozen thawed is acceptable even on the first feeding. Ensure the temperature of the frozen thawed rat is between 96-100 degrees. Ball pythons have heat pits around their mouth and if the temperature off the rat is too cold or hot it could discourage them from eating.  Dangle the prey in front of your snake for a maximum of 45 seconds.  If the snake does not take it, leave the thawed rat in their enclosure overnight on the warm side.  Many times, the fuzzy will be gone in the morning.  If it is not consumed it is important to dispose of the rat.  Never refreeze or reuse prey items that have been left out overnight.  Baby ball pythons are perfectly able to consume a fuzzy rat on their first meal. Never offer a rat that has a girth than the biggest part of the ball python.

Feeding Failures

It’s not uncommon for a ball python to refuse its first meal after a significant change in environment. If your snake rejects the prey item, remove the prey from the enclosure and wait for five days before attempting another feeding. Avoid the temptation to offer food daily, as this can worsen the situation. Remember that ball pythons are not shipped until they have eaten at least three meals, ensuring they are feeding well before reaching your care.  Because of this your new baby ball python should have plenty of reserves to carry it through a couple of weeks with no food.  Be patient and do not attempt to over animate the rat while offering food to your baby ball python. Most of the time this will just scare them and prevent them from eating. It is better to hold it relatively steady while attempting to feed than to move it around.

Persistent Feeding Failures

If your ball python refuses a second feeding, follow these steps meticulously to encourage successful feedings: 

1. Offer Food at Night: Turn off all lights in the room during the night, creating a truly dark environment. This step is crucial, as ball pythons are nocturnal and respond better to feeding stimuli in darkness, but a dark room is not enough.  You must do this at night.

2. Introducing the Prey Item: Place a live rat fuzzy in the enclosure at night and immediately leave the room. Give your snake space and time to interact with the prey item undisturbed.  If you are feeding a rat fuzzy then leave the prey in overnight.  You ball python may come out to hunt several hours later in the still of the night.    

3. Be Patient about Observation: Resist the urge to watch through the glass. Allow your ball python to explore and “hunt” the prey item overnight without any interference.  Watching a ball python eat can be one of the most interesting aspects about keeping a ball python but now is not the time.  There will be plenty of time to observe your ball python eating after he has acclimated enough to start feeding regularly.  Glaring through the glass will only exacerbate the problem.  Leave the room!

4. Checking for Success: In the morning, look to see if the rat fuzzy is gone. Most times you will check in the morning to find that your ball python now has a nice lump.  If it has been consumed, you’re on the right track. If not, do not worry.  Your ball python will come around.  Remove it and wait another five days before trying again.  Attempting a feeding too often can dull the stimuli that a prey item has for the snake.

5. Alternate Prey: After refusing the rat fuzzy left in overnight, we suggest offering a live mouse hopper with small pieces of dog food placed in the enclosure to give the mouse something to eat. Mice will often start eating a shy snake quickly after determining that the snake is not a threat.  Given the choice between dog food and a snake, the mouse will always choose the dog food.  Ensure your snake’s safety by not leaving this prey item overnight, and check within an hour for consumption.

Feeding problems in ball pythons can be managed with patience, knowledge, and a strategic approach. Remember that every snake is unique, and some may require more time to adjust than others.