Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have a subadult male ball python that I "rescued" from being let go in a golf course. The owner said he was raised on live fuzzies and mice, so I have a small colony of mice right now.

What I am curious about is: If I wanted to switch him over to eating fresh-killed or fresh-frozen meeces, could I do it? What is the success rate with this? Are BPs set in their ways about what they eat?

If you can feed the live with tongs, then you have a good chance of being able to switch him over. If he will take from the tongs, then he won't really know the difference. If you have to let the mouse loose in the tank with the snake, then he likes the hunt, and it will be a lot harder to convert. Good luck.

Also, when you do try to convert remember to bring the thawed mouse's temperature up a little. I use a Hair Blower, and then move the mouse around in front of him with Tongs. Good Luck, and I am sure you can eventually get him going like this.

Here is my basic problem: My BP used to love live mice. Snapped them up as soon as I put them in the cage. I expected him to go off feed over the winter and we went through a cooling period.

However, now that we are trying to feed him again, he is suddenly head-shy. He shows interest in eating, but as soon as the mouse jumps or shifts a little, he hides his head or tries to retreat altogether.

He's only 16 days from his last mouse, but as a mammal myself, I have a complex that creatures should eat more often than that. I know I am being paranoid.

I have had two males in my life that have gone up to 9 MONTHS without eating! Keep trying every week, and one day he will eat when he feels like it. If he gets too skinny you might need to assist feed which I don't recomend, and in worst comes to worst you might even need to force feed which is really stressful on the animal and I also don't recomend, so make sure he has proper heating, humidity, a place to hide, and only open the enclosure to change water and offer food. Basically just leave him alone so that he gets comfortable in establishing HIS house, and when an intruder comes in he should nab it up. Good luck, keep us posted.
Matt Z.

Thanks for the reality check. I know he can go forever without eating, he has before. It is the sudden head-shyness that bothers me.
I got him "second hand" and he has had some damage done to his eyes, I think from the previous owners attempting to remove stuck monocles. As a result he often retains the monocle after a shed unless I soak him every day for a week or two before his shed. I think it is this eye condition that sometimes throws him off his mice. He will wander around his cage, literally bumping into things with his head, until he finds his hide.