So I have had one of my ball pythons for almost a year now and she still won’t switch. What I mean by that is that I have Been trying to switch her from live to frozen. I have tried everything from leaving it there until morning and tons of other stuff. I’m tired of feeding her live and just need some help if any of you guys have tips based on past experiences
How old is she, and is she eating rats or mice? Sometimes, no matter how hard you try, it isn’t possible to get them to switch to f/t. Some snakes are just extra picky. That is one thing you have to be prepared for when you get a snake.
If you’re giving in and giving it live before it’s been without food for a couple of months, you’re not going to get it to switch. Their metabolism is heroically efficient so until you actually make it hungry (which depending on body condition can take several months), it has no incentive to switch.
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I like the heat method, either put it in a plastic bag submerge in hot water right before you feed, not while defrosting it. Or a blow dryer, or laying it on some heat tape for just a few minutes prior to feeding seems to help some reluctant feeders. Take the advice from @ballornothing first wait till it’s definitely good and hungry then try this heat method, hope it helps.
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I have a similar problem: a baby BP who was already taking FT and who I am trying to encourage to eat now that he lives with me. The breeder advised me to get the rat up to the 80s F with warm water, pat it a little dry, then use the tongs to grab it by the scruff area on the back of the shoulders and offer it like that.
If this doesn’t tempt him, I plan to try offering scented FT rat, then FT mice. FT Mice is still feeding regular, and we can switch off mice a little later after he gets into the habit of eating.
Have you tried braining or splitting? Basically you either use a pin to poke a couple holes in the skull of the rodent, or use a sharp blade to slice open the skull directly before offering it. That’s how I got my sand boa on f/t after she’d been fed live for nearly a decade with her previous keeper (though sand boas are typically less picky than ball pythons, it still took a few weeks of trying before she finally ate f/t). If that doesn’t work, you can try making a small incision in the abdomen of the rodent (some snakes seem more enticed by brain smell, others by the smell of abdominal innards). Also make sure you’re warming it up to something close to a living body temperature. I usually aim for at least 95F, especially with a snake that’s picky and/or new to f/t. I heat them up by submerging the rodents in hot tap water, though other people have had success using things like heat mats and blow dryers.
It might be helpful if you listed the methods you’ve already tried, just so we’re not suggesting things you’ve already tried without success.
As @ballornothing said, you may need to let her go several months without eating before she’ll be hungry enough to be enticed by f/t, regardless of how you offer it. And there’s always a chance that she’ll never make the switch. That’s a chance you take with any snake species, but ball pythons in particular are notorious for being picky eaters and turning up their noses at new/unfamiliar food offerings.
We waited 4 months before giving her live which is painful to me just because I hate having to treat a snake like that
Thank you I will try those methods just because of how desperate I am to get this to work
But isn’t it super unsafe to feed live medium rats because of there teeth. And that is what she is supposed to be eating. Also I love Andromeda she is a beautiful snake
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Always watch the snake if you use live. You can hold the rat with hemostats so it won’t be loose in the cage. Alternatively you can try fresh kill
I feel you. When I took in my sand boa, I didn’t think to ask how her previous keeper had been feeding her until he’d already brought her to my house. When he said he “just threw em in there live,” my heart sank, because I’d already committed to taking her, but I HATE feeding live. It was such a relief when she finally took her first f/t mouse, because I wasn’t thrilled about the prospect of having to feed her live for the rest of her life (I would have done it if necessary, but I wouldn’t have enjoyed it). Fortunately the braining technique eventually worked. It did take several tries though, so don’t get discouraged if it (or any other method) doesn’t work right away.
I hope you eventually have some luck getting your stubborn girl switched over!
So long as you keep an eye on the snake and rat, there isn’t a huge danger. The rat might bite your snake while it is wrapped, but it won’t do nearly as much damage as you would think. My BP got a bite from her last live meal when she missed the face and it healed up with a few sheds. As @banereptiles said, you can keep a hold of the rats tail with tongs so it doesn’t move much. Fresh killed is also an option and could work.
And thank you, Andromeda is small and mighty.
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