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I am in Los Angeles and a friend left their ball python with me for awhile. Where can I buy food? (rats?)?

I'm house sitting in Hollywood, I know nothing about this thing.. she left it on me unexpectedly and I'm just about ready to give it away on craigslist................ I know the thing hasn't eaten in about 2 weeks.. Where can I buy something for it?

Public Comments

1. Any pet store with feeder mice. Depending on how large the animal is. It is an art, feeding snakes...you have to know the snake. Alot of times they are very picky...
2. petco or petsmart usually sells them just ask one of the employees for help
3. Petco, that's where I got my rats, they have any kind of bait, dead or alive
4. Most of your pet stores sell pre frozen food don't worry though reptiles can go months without eating. And considering it is coming into our cold weather most reptiles go off feed.
5. just go to a local pet store. they should have mice
6. First off, did she tell you how to take care of it at all? It would be incredibly irresponsible for her to leave her pet with someone who knows nothing about caring for one. Do you have a phone number you can reach her on and ask advice about how to take care of the snake? Have you been keeping up with the snake's watering needs? Ball pythons need a full water dish every day, and to have their cage lightly misted with warm (not hot) water about every other day. Second, how big is the ball python? When buying a rat for it, make sure the rat is about the diameter around of the widest part of the snake's body. That is the quickest way to make sure you don't over/under feed it. They need to be fed about once every 10 days. Third, you'll need to kill the rat before you feed it to the snake. Rats can seriously injure ball pythons if they aren't dead before you put it in the snake’s cage. The most humane way to kill a rodent is by picking it up by its tail and smashing the head on a hard surface. If you use poison or whatnot, you can harm or kill the snake, and if your friend is anything like me, I'd never forgive someone who was supposed to watch my pet and killed it ;). Fourth, there are TONS of Petcos for you to get the rodents from in that area; here are the addresses for some ones that are close to you. If you don't know where they are off the top of your head, just Mapquest it and you should get the directions there. You said you were in Hollywood, right? I've included all of the Petcos within 10 miles of you, complete with phone numbers. La Brea 200 South La Brea Ave Suite C Los Angeles, CA 90036 323-934-8444 West Hollywood 508 North Doheny Drive West Hollywood, CA 90048 310-275-6012 Robertson 1475 South Robertson Boulevard Los Angeles, CA 90035 310-282-8166 Studio City 12800 Ventura Boulevard Studio City, CA 91604 818-506-6416 Burbank 3525 West Victory Boulevard Burbank, CA 91505 818-566-8528 Glendale 231 North Glendale Avenue Glendale, CA 91206 818-548-0411 Westwood 1873 Westwood Boulevard Los Angeles, CA 90025 310-441-2073 If you have any more questions or concerns about caring for the ball python, just add it in an additional note on this question, I'll make sure to check it and try to answer the question to the best of my ability. Good luck; I hope this helps!
7. Many petstores sell frozen mice and rats. As stated, feed an animal about as thick as the largest part of the body. Heat the rat or mouse completely in hot water to match the temperature of a live animal. If you have a pair of tongs I'd feed with those, otherwise, put the food item in a seperate box and then put the snake in there. If there's no substrate in the cage, you can feed inside that. 2 weeks is not a problem for an adult ball python. They can go months, so don't worry if you can't feed right away. I wouldn't feed an adult any more often than every 2 weeks anyway. Make sure you keep the cage clean, and change the water regularly. Other than feeding every couple of weeks and perhaps weekly spot cleaning of the cage, there's little else you need to do for a snake. They are very easy to care for. Ball pythons can be a bit picky about eating, so don't be surprised if it refuses to eat, and don't be alarmed. As I said before, they can go a very long time without food as long as they were at a healthy weight and have fresh water available to them.
8. There's a pet co on Downey or just go to a local pet store they should have rats.