Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I've been stressed for a long time because I couldn't find any evidence that my ball python had defecated since October 31. I had completely cleaned the cage in December, and I found no feces hidden in the bedding. I've watched closely, and I've never seen any other evidence of feces. Admittedly, I've been coming to the conclusion that I was underfeeding her, but two months without defecation worried me tremendously. She has passed urine pellets a few times during this period. On Saturday, she passed both pellets and liquid. (Her timing wasn't exactly what I would have preferred, but I have old carpet.)

She's been in blue since I returned home from Christmas on Friday. At first, I didn't want to feed her until she shed, but I decided to give her a chance. I offered a mouse fuzzy outside her hide, and she took it quickly.

Tonight, I noticed a ball of some substance outside the hide and figured out that it was skin. I pulled it from the cage, but some was still attached to her. I waited to let her deal with the rest. Twenty minutes later, she had finished the shed and defecated. While the shed wasn't perfect, it wasn't bad. Her first shed was just a mess of confetti. Her markings have changed a little. A few markings on her back connected to markings on her side (unless I just hadn't noticed them previously). She's beautiful.

She appears to have grown tremendously in this shed. I'd never found her to be more than 14 inches long, but she's at least 17 inches long now. She weighs 125 to 130 grams (up from 105 grams when I received the scale on December 1). Pretty soon, she may not fit in my shirt pocket anymore. I don't know how old she is, so I don't know how these numbers compare. I'd love to hear what others think are normal weights and lengths.

Tomorrow will come early for me, but I'm happier about her health than I've been in a while. She's very active right now as I try to hold her and type. She feels stronger than she's been. I'll likely feed her tomorrow.

Thanks,

Bill
-----
It's not how many snakes you have. It's how happy and healthy you can keep them.

usuallyright b4 or after they shed they also defecate if they haven'tpoopedin alongtime(1-3 months is not uncommon)

Thanks for letting me know. I've been pretty worried about the fact that she hasn't defecated in two months. Several people have told me that three or four weeks isn't unusual, but I hadn't heard of three months being okay. I'm happy to hear that two months isn't that abnormal. I'm happier still that my ball python grew three inches and had a good shed.

Bill
-----
It's not how many snakes you have. It's how happy and healthy you can keep them.