Juvenile ball pythons would do well with one adult mouse instead of pinkies. Adult ball pythons, however, should be fed between two to five adult feeder mice at a time. This really depends on the size of the adult as well as the snake’s appetite. Many average-sized adult ball pythons do well with three mice at a time.[1]
What Weight Should I Feed My Ball Python?
If you are not sure what size prey you should buy online, look for feeders that are 10-15% of your ball python’s body weight. So for example, if your ball python weighs 400g, then you would buy feeders that weigh between 40-60g.[2]
How Much Should I Feed My Snake?
Smaller or younger snakes usually eat twice each week, while larger, more mature snakes typically eat once every week or two. Female snakes approaching breeding season can be fed more frequently.[3]
What Should I Feed My Ball Python
Ball pythons, like other snakes, eat varying sizes of prey depending on how big they are. Smaller and younger snakes may eat large crickets, but should ideally be eating pinkies and fuzzies until they grow larger. Adult ball pythons will eat adult mice and rats when they get big enough.Feb 24, 2022[4]
What Food Is Best For A Ball Python?
Ball pythons can eat only rats or mice for an entire lifetime, but they also love to spice up their diet in captivity and feed on other rodent species such as hamsters, gerbils, and other exotic breeds. Young ball pythons should only be fed with large crickets, fuzzy mice, and pinky mice until they grow into adults.Jan 16, 2022[5]
What Else Can You Feed A Ball Python Besides Mice?
What do ball pythons eat besides mice? Ball pythons in the wild eat a wide variety of rodents aside from mice, and they also eat small birds. In captivity, you can try to feed them any appropriately sized, commercially bred rodent. This includes domestic mice or rats, multimammate mice, gerbils, and hamsters.Jun 17, 2022[6]
How Much Should I Feed My Ball Python?
You don’t need to feed a ball python every day. Generally, smaller or younger ball pythons need to eatevery five days, while larger ones usually eat once every week or two. As they get older you feed them more at one time so they don’t need as many feedings.Jul 7, 2021[7]
Do Ball Pythons Prefer Live Food?
Ball pythons are obligate carnivores, which means they need to eat whole animals in order to get the right nutrition. Frozen prey is generally considered optimal because it’s convenient and unlikely to injure your pet during the feeding process.[8]
How Often Should A Ball Python Shed
Like other reptiles, ball pythons shed their skin regularly as they grow. A healthy ball python should shed its skin in one piece once every 4-6 weeks or so. As they prepare to shed, the scales will loosen, and you may notice its eyes turn blue and opaque.[9]
How Long Can Ball Pythons Go Without Shedding?
Once again, Ball Pythons typically shed every four to six weeks. That shedding tends to last two weeks at most. Knowing when to anticipate the shedding phase can help you care for your Ball Python during this awkward and stressful time.Jul 26, 2022[10]
How Long Does A Ball Python Take To Shed?
A python who is eating regularly and living in a warm environment sheds about every four to six weeks. In the wild, a python who hibernates or is less active in the colder months will shed only about once during the winter.[11]
Why Is My Ball Python Not Fully Shedding?
There are many problems that can contribute to shedding problems or incomplete sheds, but the most common problem in inadequate humidity levels. Other factors include skin infections, injuries to the skin (including old scars), parasites, malnutrition, and inadequate heating or lighting.[12]
How Do I Know If My Ball Python Is Shedding?
Ball python shedding signs1Dull coloration.2Pink tint on a belly.3Silvery sheen on the skin.4Dull eyes, bluish coloration.5Loss of appetite.6Unwillingness to come out or be handled (even aggression at a later stage when eyes are covered)7Lethargy.8Spending 1-3 days in a moist hide, and generally hiding all the time.[13]
How To Increase Humidity For Ball Python
How to Increase Humidity in Ball Python TankEnsure that the enclosure is well heated throughout. … Use a large shallow water bowl that will maximize atmospheric exchange and increase humidity. … Partially cover some of the ventilation holes. … Use a high-quality absorbent substrate. … Mist the enclosure regularly.[14]
How Do I Raise The Humidity In My Snake Tank?
5 Ways to Increase Humidity for Reptiles1Spraying the enclosure. The most common method of increasing humidity in the enclosure is to spray the enclosure. … 2Including a water bowl on the warm end. … 3Moving water sources e.g. large pools or waterfalls. … 4Absorbent bedding and decorations. … 5Foggers and humidifiers.[15]
What Happens If Ball Python Humidity Is Too Low?
Anything below 45% humidity for a long period of time can cause shedding problems (e.g. stuck shed). If a ball python cannot properly shed its skin, this can cause several health issues: It can result in patches of stuck shed, particularly on the eyes, which can cause problems with vision.[16]
What Is The Ideal Humidity For A Ball Python?
Ball pythons seem to prefer humidity levels of 50 to 60 percent. Maintaining proper humidity will allow your ball python to shed properly.[17]
Is 45 Humidity Good For Ball Pythons?
Ball pythons need some humidity to maintain proper respiratory health and to shed their skin correctly. In the wild, average humidity ranges roughly between 45-75%, with dips down to 30% and spikes up to 90%.[18]
How To Tell If Ball Python Is Stressed
14 Signs That Show That Your Snake Is StressedLoss Of Appetite.Weight Loss.Rubbing Their Nose Against Objects In Their Tank.Hissing.Striking.Attempting To Escape. Make Sure To Check The Following To Keep Your Snake From Escaping:Tail Rattling And Vibration.Regurgitation.[19]
How Do I Know If My Ball Python Is Unhappy?
Signs Your Snake Is Worried1Sudden Movements. Rather than the slow, almost lethargic, movements of a content snake, a worried one will make sudden movements and may not rest for long periods. … 2Submissive Posture. … 3Looking for Escape. … 4Hissing Noises. … 5Eating Disorders. … 6Tight Grip. … 7Striking.[20]
How Do You Calm A Stressed Ball Python?
How to Calm Down a Snake1Move Slowly. Quick movements can frighten snakes and send them into fight or flight mode. … 2Good Behavior. Snakes typically react to handling with fear or, if they are calm and relaxed, curiosity. … 3Guide, Don’t Restrain. … 4Cutting Your Losses. … 5Provide a Comforting Home.[21]
Do Ball Pythons Get Stressed Easily?
If your ball python starts striking at you, anyone else, or anything in its environment that isn’t prey, then it is very stressed. This is a defensive behavior used in snakes that are feeling threatened.[22]
What Makes A Ball Python Stressed?
The two main causes is too much handling and problems with the setup. Such as incorrect temperature and humidity, or too much open space. Ball pythons like a more cluttered enclosure than an open one. An enclosure that doesn’t make the snake feel secure can cause stress on the snake.[23]
How Do You Sex A Ball Python
Probing uses a slender metal rod to determine a snake’s sex based on the placement and size of its reproductive organs. If the rod inserts only a short distance into the vent (toward the tail), the snake is female. If the rod goes further, it’s male (the extra distance suggests the presence of hemipenes).[24]
How Can You Tell The Gender Of A Ball Python?
The vet will insert a small metal probe into the cloaca and measure how far he can safely insert it toward the tip of the tail. In male ball pythons, he can insert the probe farther than in females. For a popping test, he presses on either side of the cloaca to see whether male genitalia pops out.[25]
How Do You Sex A Ball Python For Beginners?
You can look at the shape and length of the tail to help you decipher whether or not your snake is a male. Males will have a tail (the portion of the snake starting after the cloacal opening) that is thicker and longer than their female counterparts.Jul 12, 2021[26]
What Is The Rarest Ball Python Morph
The 12 Rarest Ball Python MorphsSunset Ball Python Morph.Acid Ball Python.Scaleless Ball Python.Dreamsickle Ball Python.Banana Mimosa Ball Python.Piebald Ball Python.Lavender Albino Ball Python.Highway Ball Python.[27]
What Are The Most Expensive Ball Python Morphs?
Lavender Albino Ball Python
The most expensive ball python in the world is always going to be whichever morph is newest and rarest. At one point, the lavender albino ball python was just such a morph. One sold for $40,000, making it the highest known price paid for a ball python to date.[28]
What Is The Coolest Ball Python Morph?
Bumblebees are one of the coolest and most colorful ball python morphs. They were created by cross-breeding pastel and spider morphs. As a result, you have eye-catching colors and an intricate pattern.[29]
What Is A Super Morph Ball Python?
By. Jul 27 2022. The Super Pastel ball python morph is a unique type of the pastel gene with extreme yellow coloration. The name is derived from the fact that they are extremely light in color and have a clear pattern. They’re typically accompanied by blushing, which makes them stand out even more![30]
Resources
[1]https://mercurypets.com/how-many-mice-should-i-feed-my-ball-python-solved/
[2]https://reptifiles.com/ball-python-care-guide/ball-python-feeding/
[3]https://vcahospitals.com/know-your-pet/snakes-feeding
[4]https://www.thesprucepets.com/feeding-ball-pythons-1239265
[5]https://a-z-animals.com/blog/what-do-ball-pythons-eat-a-guide-to-their-diet/
[6]https://www.terrariumquest.com/ball-python/diet/
[7]https://pets.webmd.com/feeding-a-ball-python
[8]https://reptifiles.com/ball-python-care-guide/ball-python-feeding/
[9]https://reptifiles.com/ball-python-care-guide/ball-python-diseases-health/ball-python-shedding/
[10]https://petkeen.com/how-often-do-ball-pythons-shed/
[11]https://animals.mom.com/long-ball-python-shed-10594.html
[12]https://www.thesprucepets.com/incomplete-sheds-in-reptiles-1239394
[13]https://www.lizards101.com/ball-python-shedding-stages-signs-problems-eye-caps/
[14]https://reptile.guide/ball-python-humidity/
[15]https://www.reptilecentre.com/blog/2020/02/5-ways-to-increase-humidity-for-reptiles/
[16]https://www.everythingreptiles.com/ball-python-humidity/
[17]https://reptilesmagazine.com/ball-python-care-sheet/
[18]https://reptifiles.com/ball-python-care-guide/ball-python-humidity-temperatures/
[19]https://reptilecraze.com/signs-that-show-that-your-snake-is-stressed/
[20]https://petkeen.com/how-to-tell-if-snake-is-happy/
[21]https://animals.mom.com/calm-down-snake-10358.html
[22]https://thepetenthusiast.com/ball-python-happy-and-stress-signs/
[23]https://aminoapps.com/c/reptiles/page/item/stress-in-ball-pythons-and-how-to-prevent-it/z6gj_gV4hwIY6r14EBL6pJzZDDrvoZ8kJ73
[24]https://reptifiles.com/ball-python-care-guide/ball-python-diseases-health/ball-python-sexing/
[25]https://animals.mom.com/determine-ball-pythons-gender-2570.html
[26]https://www.thesprucepets.com/how-to-tell-sex-of-snakes-1239488
[27]https://petkeen.com/rarest-ball-python-morphs/
[28]https://petkeen.com/most-expensive-pet-snakes/
[29]https://www.reptiledirect.com/ball-python-morphs/
[30]https://petkeen.com/super-pastel-ball-python-morph/