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A King and a Ball--and a little advice?

Sweetseraph

Sweetseraph

New member
I've had these guys for a little bit now, but my camera was hiding on me, so I wasn't able to post pictures until now. These are my first non-corns. :)

As such, I'm not so familiar with how a King and a Ball should look, in terms of body condition. The King seems like she may be a little heavy. In the first picture, you can see how her spine is indented instead of being level with or even slightly higher than the surrounding flesh. Would this indicate she's a little heavy? She's 991 g.

As for the Ball, I really have no clue, but if anything he might be skinny. He's got this weird triangularness going on, but is that just how they normally look? He's 828 g. Thanks for any input!


0.1 California King-Bella (she came with that name!)


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0.0.1 Normal Ball Python


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The BP looks pretty good to me. If the Daytona vendors' BPs are any indication they all have that triangular thing going, and they have little tiny necks and thick chunky midbodies, and he sure looks that way to me.
 
Both look fine to me. My kings got that indentation along their spine, and so does my boa. I think it has to do with musculature...

Anyhow, both snakes appear normal, however, pictures are not always the best way to go. If there is any doubt, you would be better off finding someone local with knowledge for opinions. It's easier to judge health in person...
 
tyflier said:
Both look fine to me. My kings got that indentation along their spine, and so does my boa. I think it has to do with musculature...

Anyhow, both snakes appear normal, however, pictures are not always the best way to go. If there is any doubt, you would be better off finding someone local with knowledge for opinions. It's easier to judge health in person...
Click to expand...

Muscular lean humans have that indentation along their spine. It's a groove in between the spinous processes (the part of the spine that sticks out toward the skin of the back) and where the back muscles attach to the sides of the spine.

Good advice all around Chris!
 
Thanks guys! I'm used to my lean little corns, so the king looked huge to me. The ball I knew is a chunkier snake, but still wasn't sure just how chunky he should be.
 
Hey Sweet,

One thing to remember feed the Cal. King first. She smells whose corns on you and she will dig in(bit). I would wash my hands after touching the Cal. king because my corns almost seem nervous if I do not. It am just be me think it also.

Before I forget nice looking king.

Love the Fatman
 
I was told she was around 3 years old, so she really seemed huge for that age. She was fed 1 or 2 mice every week, but I'm hesitant to give her 2 mice a week if she's too big already, so I've been giving her 1 every 7-8 days. I sort of intended for her to be my "garbage disposal", but not at the expense of her health. So I'm just going easy with her for now. She's definitely a very enthusiastic eater!
 
Sweetseraph said:
I was told she was around 3 years old, so she really seemed huge for that age. She was fed 1 or 2 mice every week, but I'm hesitant to give her 2 mice a week if she's too big already, so I've been giving her 1 every 7-8 days. I sort of intended for her to be my "garbage disposal", but not at the expense of her health. So I'm just going easy with her for now. She's definitely a very enthusiastic eater!
Click to expand...

She's a Cali King. She will likely eat anything you offer every day, if you let her. They grow big, fast, and while 900+ grams does seem a bit large for a 3 year old snake, it isn't unheard of in the Cali king species. I've seen bigger, believe it or not...

I don't think you're risking her health by feeding her weekly, or using her as a garbage disposal, but I think you're right in switching her to 1 mouse a week, instead of 2...
 
I think with most snakes, the rule of thumb is that, at rest, you shouldn't be able to see any skin between the scales.

Very nice individuals you've got. :D
 
Both look pretty good to me although you do have a large king. Stretched scales is a good indicator or fat pockets. In general I only feed my adults every 2-3 weeks.I personally think we over feed our captive snakes. If you study their digestive tracts, they are not designed to have food in them all the time. They should be empty part of the time. Just because they poop doesn't mean they are crapping their last meal. I have a copperhead that hasn't eaten in over 2 months and she is still pooping small amounts. Obviously they aren't empty after one week.
 
MegF. said:
I personally think we over feed our captive snakes.
Click to expand...

I agree and that's what I'm afraid of doing, but I only have experience with corns and I feed my adults every 14 days. I know kings are enthusiastic eaters, so she's going to seem somewhat hungry all the time. Her scales aren't stretched, so I guess she's not fat. Maybe I will experiment with stretching her meals a little further apart, maybe up to 10 days and see what she thinks of that. ;)
 
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