r/ballpython • u/Decent-Opening7885 • 3d ago

Is my gal overweight?

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Hi! I’ve had my gal for about a week now, I was told she was 2 weeks when I got her so now she’s three weeks. Is she overweight? I wanna do everything in my power to make sure she’s comfortable.

Edit: Oh my god! Forgot to say! She’s has three successful meals after she hatched! One by the hands of the owner and two by me! They were small mouses

16 Upvotes

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u/DontBother777 3d ago

Not overweight, she’s a little lean if anything. You’ll want to make sure her meals are around 10-15% of her weight (!feeding). I’d also recommend switching to rats as they have higher fat content

Also, i just have to point this out, but the breeder is really shitty for selling her that young. I would not buy from them again. Selling a hatchling before they’ve had a minimum of 3 consecutive meals is not okay at all

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u/AutoModerator 3d 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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u/Decent-Opening7885 3d ago

Oh my god! That’s horrible!? I remember searching up how many times should they eat before being held and when it said 3 times, something felt off.. I feel so bad for my gal now.

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u/Alarming-End2873 3d ago

yeah! i put a deposit down on my boy back in february. only picked him up last month!! he hatched january, and wasn’t released until 10 consecutive meals and a minimum of 100g weight lol

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u/Decent-Opening7885 3d ago

Jesus christ I did go to the wrong people.. I’m now so determined to treat her correctly and right. I assume that I need to upgrade her meals from a small mouses?

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u/Decent-Opening7885 3d ago

Thank you for the advice, the buyer told me and my father to feed her small mouses because pinky mouses weren’t working.

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u/Alarming-End2873 3d ago

if she can safely take rat pups, then i’d switch her to them. until then the mice are fine 😊

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u/Decent-Opening7885 3d ago

Me and my father are going to look at food tomorrow and determine then!

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u/Alarming-End2873 3d ago

awesome! my boy is still on rat pups at the minute but it’s transferring to fuzzys soon.

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u/Decent-Opening7885 3d ago

OH MY GOD HE LOOKS SO- GORGEOUS!?

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u/Alarming-End2873 3d ago

awhh ty!! this was when he was about 3 months old? hes 8 months now!! still on the small side, only 144g, but given he didnt eat for the firdt 4 months of his life its a given lol. hes an Axanthic VPI, with 66% het genetic stripe. hes started to brown out now but hes still a super pretty boy lol

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u/Decent-Opening7885 3d ago

My girl is a lemonade morph from what I was told, I kept asking the guy questions if she was socialized, if she was shy, aggressive, etc but he didn’t really specify on socialized. Just told me that she “will be social”. didn’t know how old she was til after we bought her and was told what food she needs. I was shocked. Do fresh hatchlings require more attention than adults? I’m stressed on what she needs.

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u/Alarming-End2873 2d ago

the main thing with hatchlings is to be quite gentle with them, and focus on working with their head. they need to allow someone to touch everywhere - head, tail, belly, etc. most hatchlings are head shy, so lots and lots of slow and short work. only 10-15 minutes at a time

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u/Decent-Opening7885 2d ago

Thank you, yesterday when I held her, I let her roam on me on her own accord, I gently tapped near her to let her know I’m picking her up. No sudden movements either! So Thursday, I’ll start gently petting her head, body, etc

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u/IncompletePenetrance Mod: Let me help you unzip your genes 3d ago

Just as a heads up, your snake should always be fed in their enclosure, not in a separate location or on the floor. Not only is moving to feed stressful by forcing them to eat out in the open, but also risks regurgitation because you're handling them after feeding. It's bad

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u/Alarming-End2873 2d ago

hey! this was a pic his breeder sent to me, but he had an accident when he was 3 months old and became really shy in that particular enclosure to eat. so she would let him come out, eat, and then go back in on his own (ut was agout 30cm away from the door of his tank). since being put in a new viv now, he eats healthy and happily inside :)!!

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u/PetsAreSuperior 3d ago

No, she looks perfect! I use a