If you have bought a ball python as your new pet or thinking of getting one then this question may have come across your mind that what to feed them. Like can you feed eggs to a ball python? Or they should be given their natural diet of rats and rodents. I have seen many videos and have read blogs in which they feed eggs to their pet snakes. But should I feed it to my pet ball python? These same question baffled me for a long time. That should I feed eggs to my pet ball python? or not. After digging into this question here is what I got.
Do ball pythons eat eggs? Ball Pythons are not capable of eating eggs. Because, as an egg consists of an outer shell made of calcium, the digestive enzymes inside the body of a ball python are not able to dissolve the eggshell.
Even if it is physically possible for ball pythons to eat eggs they will choose not to eat.
As ball pythons are carnivorous, their diet mainly consists of meat which they get from eating rats, rodents, lizards, shrew, etc.
Even though in the wild ball pythons eats everything that they can overpower. As eggs do not consist of their natural diet you should not feed eggs to a ball python.
When I find this out that I should not feed eggs to a ball python. The next question that came to my mind was what if I feed them boiled eggs after removing the outer shell of the eggs.
Is it totally ok if we feed boiled eggs to a ball python? If not then why we should avoid eggs as food for ball pythons. I have covered everything you need to know throughout this article.
Can ball pythons eat boiled eggs
When I tried to feed hard-boiled eggs to my ball pythons while they were hungry. One of them flickered around the egg in curiosity but then wandered off. So after digging into the question. What I found is that ball pythons don’t consider boiled eggs or raw eggs as the food they probably want to eat.
Ball pythons are carnivorous and their natural diet consists of rodents, lizards, rats, and even some time they can feed on small birds.
Ball pythons do not consume eggs in any form either if it is a boiled egg or a raw egg. As boiled egg doesn’t fall under their natural diet, ball python will not attempt to prey on boiled eggs.
Ball pythons are too picky in terms of what they eat. They are more tend to eat live or pre-killed creatures that they can overpower in the wild or in captivity.
And it also turns out that boiled eggs can also be very unhealthy for other snakes too, even if you feed them to African Egg eating snake or Indian Egg Eater.
As snakes are not used to boiled eggs, the acid in their body will not be able to break down the food properly. That can lead to indigestion and the snake can even die.
While Some species of snakes do eat eggs in the wild. Also, there are some species that only consume eggs as their main source of all nutritional needs. But on the other side rattlesnakes, boas, pythons do not feed on eggs. And there is some substance to the reasoning that why it is not a good idea to feed eggs to a ball python.
Why you should not feed eggs to a ball python
Feeding eggs to a ball python could be the worst idea. And the reason is they are not adapted to such food, ball pythons do not consider eggs as their choice of food.
And even if they eat an egg due to starvation and are not able to regurgitate it, they will probably die.
While egg-eating snakes have a special set of vertebrae that breaks down the shell of the egg while processing its way down in the digestive tract. After this, they spit out the shell and digest the white and yolk of the egg.
Ball pythons have not developed such vertebrae that help them to break the eggshell. Due to this, it becomes nearly impossible for them to digest an egg.
Ball pythons get all the necessary nutrients from rodents and other small mammals they eat. So to include eggs in their diest should not be a thing you should properly think of. Further, I have mentioned that what all you can feed your ball python.
What can Ball Pythons eat?
While being in the wild ball, pythons can eat pretty much everything that they come across and one which they can overpower. Naturally, adult ball pythons diet mainly includes rats, rodents, lizards, shrew, gerbils, mice, chicks, small birds, etc.
While young ball pythons eat incests like crickets and small birds. Yes, especially male ball pythons also do eat small birds as they have an arboreal lifestyle.
Young ball pythons are more likely to strike on live prey as they get enticed by them. So if you own a young ball python than you can feed them live prey. While adult ball pythons are totally fine if the prey is dead.
While female ball pythons are a little bit fuzzier in eating if compared to a male ball python. As they go through different phases while getting mature to lay eggs.
Related Questions
Do ball Pythons eat their own eggs?
While many snakes in the wild eat eggs of other species like lizard, birds. and other reptiles. But it is an infrequent scenario where a snake eats its own eggs. It only occurs if the egg is deformed or it’s not too fertile to develop and hatch.
But Ball pythons do not eat their eggs instead they are maternal in nature; they protect their eggs by wrapping around them until the incubation process is completed.
Sometimes mother ball pythons even brood eggs of other pythons as of their own. And further, if we get into this deeper we found out that ball pythons cannot eat eggs at all.
Can ball pythons eat chicken?
Ball pythons can eat chicken, but it should not be fed on regular bases as chicken doesn’t consist of all the necessary nutrients that a ball python needs.
You should try to feed them raw chicken breasts or legs. But it should be done occasionally as ball pythons tend to eat the whole creature that provides them all the necessary nutrients.
While feeding chicken to your ball python make sure you avoid chicken bones as it turns out that chicken bones are too fragile and forms splinters, that can be harmful to your pet ball python.
What is the best time to feed a ball python?
The best time to feed a ball python is in the evening. As ball pythons are nocturnal they tend to be more active in nights. In their natural habitat, they hunt for food after the sunset. So if you feed them during the day time it will be against their biological clock. And the ball python probably would not eat.