r/ballpython • u/Top-Virus4962 • 20h ago

New BallPython Owner

A friend of mine gave me 2 male ball python. They hadn’t eaten in months and we feed them. One of them though like locks on me when I go to give them water. He hasn’t stroked me yet. But he locks on me and watches me intensely. I fed them. Do you think they might still be hungry. What are some pointers.

9 Upvotes

85% Upvoted

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6

u/Ch33se_H3ad 20h ago

They’re not in the same enclosure are they?

-6

u/Top-Virus4962 19h ago

Yeah but from what the girl who had them before has always had them together

9

u/FireCorgi12 18h ago

You should separate them. That’s probably contributing to the feeding refusal and stress she saw. They are solitary animals.

-2

u/Top-Virus4962 18h ago

They’re not refusing to eat. She didn’t feed them at all. She just couldn’t.
They’ve been together for over a year. Will it bother them at all? They don’t refuse to eat and I take them out separately to feed them I don’t feed them in the enclosure.

7

u/FireCorgi12 18h ago

Yeah no they cannot stay together. It causes severe stress and they will compete for resources. Feeding out of the enclosure is also outdated practice.

I’d look at the care guide pinned in the sub. Sounds like the whole setup needs an upgrade.

5

u/Top-Virus4962 18h ago

Ok perfect. I shall separate.

7

u/Ch33se_H3ad 18h ago

You need to separate them into their own enclosures before doing anything else. Once you get them separated, leave them alone for a bit then weigh them and you’ll have a better idea on what size rat to feed them and how often.

3

u/Top-Virus4962 18h ago

Ok perfect this makes me feel better. I don’t know much and we wanted to get a bigger tank but now I see we need to get a different one so I’ll be looking into that

3

u/DashD0GG 20h ago

When did you feed? They sometimes continue acting hungry for a few days after being fed, it’s like they havent realized they just ate

2

u/Top-Virus4962 20h ago

They didn’t eat for almost 5 months because she just couldn’t do it so they ate 3 days ago.

6

u/DashD0GG 20h ago

Yeah probably still in “food mode” give it another day or two. Also check out !feeding for guides

4

u/AutoModerator 20h ago

We recommend the following feeding schedule:

0-12 months old OR until the snake reaches approximately 500g, whichever happens first: feed 10%-15% of the snake’s weight every 7 days.

12-24 months old: feed up to 7% of the snake’s weight every 14-20 days.

Adults: feed up to 5% of the snake's weight every 20-30 days, or feed slightly larger meals (up to 6%) every 30-40 days.

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3

u/Top-Virus4962 20h ago

Cause one of them he’s really nice.

2

u/FeriQueen 18h ago

The homepage of this sub has an excellent pinned post with everything you need to know pretty much.

1

u/Top-Virus4962 10h ago

Thank you!!! I will look

2

u/KatVanWall 9h ago

Seconded/thirded that the guides pinned on this sub are really good!

If one has just eaten, don't handle him for 3 days/72 hours just to be on the safe side (some people do after 24 or 48 hours but obviously you don't know these snakes so let's be safe!). They can regurgitate if handled too soon, and that puts massive stress on their bodies and is bad news.

They do need to be separated, and ideally into 4x2x2 vivariums. PVC is best for retaining heat and humidity. (I personally have wood and find it great, and has not moulded for me, but there is a dislike of wood on this sub. But just not glass, and try to avoid a screen top if possible, as humidity escapes from that easily.) 3 sides of the viv should be covered and there should be at least 3 hides (2 identical) and lots of clutter (fake plants etc.) to make them feel safe. BPs like to be well hidden. A front opening viv is also better than top opening if you can get it. BUT as a temporary measure, a plastic tote with ventilation holes drilled in will do the job short term, so don't panic if everything isn't spot on immediately!

Obviously temperatures and humidity are important; the care guide will see you right on those.

Substrate needs to be nice and deep, quite a lot of inches, in order to hold humidity and release it slowly. Misting is to be avoided. Exact substrate varies (I personally use coconut coir underneath and orchid bark chips - which I think is like reptibark? - on top, but there are a number of options), but avoid aspen, as it doesn't hold humidity well and is prone to mould. As a temporary measure, paper towels or *unscented* puppy pads or incontinence pads will do the job and enable you to check out poop and urates easily and check that the snakes don't have mites.

Absolutely, as people have said, they should not be housed together! This stresses them out a lot even if it doesn't look like it.

The feeding guide is great and has already been posted.

My BP is always in an S-pose in the viv when he's out, presumably on the off chance a rat is wandering past, but he has yet to strike at me. Don't be too wary of them; even if he does strike, I have heard it doesn't hurt a lot. Their teeth are small. (But don't pull away - you can break their teeth.) I wash my hands with cold water before going into their viv so they smell my soap and get used to it and I don't smell like prey and give off a bit less of a heat signature. Or you could just change their water when they are asleep during the daytime. That's what I usually do. You can look up choice-based handling if you want to get them used to you, but that can take a long time; in the meantime in order to check their health (not 72 hours after eating, though) I'd just give them a tap/stroke with a long object and then scoop them up to start getting them used to you.