Opinions please!
PHLdyPayne, if this document is generally considered OK, I'll e-mail it to you with any revisions to see about making it a "sticky" during the continuing hatchling season. Maybe it will cut down on some of the "my new baby that I got yesterday still wont eat" posts...lol.
Title: Do’s and Don’ts for starting reluctant feeding hatchlings
While many imported (captive hatched) and captive bred baby ball pythons feed voluntarily shortly after their first shed, some do not. Almost without exception, poor feeders are the direct result of some aspect of their captive management. While each snake is an individual, the following methods are considered “standard” methods for starting baby ball pythons. While some people may use other techniques, here are some tried and trued “dos” and “don’ts” that should get your babies feeding. Remember that as individuals, some animals will feed despite poor husbandry…but some require perfect conditions to thrive.
Do – house your baby balls individually. BPs housed communally will often be stressed, and stressed animals will not eat.
Do – provide a hide. While many of my adults breeders do just fine without a hide, babies seem to absolutely require one. A small, tight fitting hide works best.
Do – set them up very simply at first. Paper towel substrate, water bowl, and hide only. If you decide you want a more naturalistic enclosure, just wait until they are feeding before you do that.
Do – make sure your temps are within an acceptable range. While there is some debate about what a perfect temp for a hatchling BP is, you can’t go wrong if the temps are somewhere in the mid 80’s. I shoot for 84-86 degrees F. Within reason, humidity is not terribly important for feeding issues.
Do NOT – handle your babies AT ALL until they have established a strong feeding pattern. You have to resist the urge to “play” with your new babies.
Do NOT – even try to feed them unless they have been set up for at least one week in a proper environment as mentioned in items 1-4 above.
Do – feed them in their enclosure. While some hobbyists like to feed outside a snake’s normal enclosure, this really isn’t necessary. In the case of a baby BP, this will just stress them out (Imagine being snatched out of your home in the middle of the night, dropped in a bizarre and strange place…are you going to want to eat?).
Do – try to feed at night or in the evening. BPs are nocturnal.
Do – offer live prey (debatable, but…). In my experience, a PK or FT rodent as a first meal rarely ever works. Also, with BPs being timid, go for a rodent with limited mobility for a first meal. A spazzy “hopper” mouse can be very scary to a hatchling BP. I like to use “crawler” mice for a first meal. These are larger than a fuzzy but smaller and less active than a hopper. Also, a crawler can be introduced into your baby’s enclosure and left over a period of time with no danger to the snake.
Do- offer colored prey (again, debatable). From my experience there is a clear preference from some babies for colored prey.
If you follow this list of simple “dos and don’ts”, the vast majority of baby BPs will begin to feed on their own. Some may wait a few weeks…this is normal. Don’t be alarmed if a baby hasn’t taken his first meal, even at an age of 4 to 5 weeks old. Be patient.
