TL;DR: Ball pythons eat exclusively whole prey frozen/thawed mice or rats sized to 1015% of the snake's body weight and offered every 57 days for hatchlings up to every 1014 days for adults. Warm frozen prey to 100105F before offering and wiggle it with tongs to trigger a feeding response.
Feed the right size and frequency Youll need to feed juveniles weekly and adults every 1-2 weeks, using frozen-thawed rodents that weigh 10-15% of your snakes body weight, matching the prey to your snakes widest body diameter.
In this article, well delve into the world of frozen-thawed feeding for ball pythons, comparing its nutritional value to that of live prey and exploring how it affects the environment.
To thaw frozen prey: Remove the needed number of food items from the bag. Put the frozen food in a sealed plastic bag and place it in a thawing container filled with cold water. The thawing container should only be used for preparing your reptiles frozen meals.
Thaw frozen rodents in a fridge overnight, and then you can heat them in a bag by inserting in hot water/under a lamp. Heating a thawed rodent to 100-105 F (37.7-40.5 C) is ideal for your ball python. Dont leave food items outside for too long, as it can lead to bacterial growth.
