From what I've understood, the "minimum" weight for breeding a male is around 500g - and I was hoping Toby (my pastel) would reach that by my birthday, October 20th. Not for any particular reason, just seemed like the perfect date to introduce him to Mona. Anyway, he's been growing like a weed, and reached his goal weight over a month early! Mona's ready to breed now, but I'll still wait until October so he can plump up some more.

A couple of questions about his weight... first, is this really a good weight to start breeding? And how do I know if he's producing sperm plugs? I tried pressing (very lightly) on his vent area, but didn't really know what to look for. Also, what would you recommend feeding him at this point? I'll put in a picture with my hand for perspective, and his current weight is 522g. He's been getting 3 adult mice weekly, just because my others are all on mice - should I get a small or medium rat instead? Here's my big boy:

(FYI, my hands are average-sized woman's hands)






And this one just because it's cute... LOL