Feeding my 3-foot BP enough?

[MikeyDubz]

Hello.

My BP is 3ft long and about 5 inches around at her thickest point. I've been feeding her live mice about once every 8 days since I got her about 18 months ago.

She seems fine, her last shed went well, and has never had a problem striking then eating the mice.

My question is, Is one mouse every 7-10 days enough for her for now? And if so, at what point should I increase it to two mice, or small rats? Thanks in advance.

I've included a current image of Penelope.



Here is an image from about a year ago.

[KatStoverReptiles]

A prey item slightly larger around then she is at her widest point every 7 or so days would be my suggestion.


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[Jessica Loesch]

same here. and i would move to rats soon, as it is easier as they are younger to switch, unless you want to start feeding multiple rats.

To gauge yourself, weigh the food and then the snake, and if the food is about 10-15% of the snake's weight in grams, you're good most of the time.

[crepers86]

I agree starting it on rats. I have been reading more and more lately that its good to start bps on rats as early as hatchlings... Pinkies and small baby rats, yours looks like its ready for a small rats though

[piedplus]

I agree, mine did much better once I switched to rats. I also agree with the 10% to 15%, can't go wrong with that! On frequency, I like to watch their behavior. They'll either sit still & watch a spot in the cage, like their waiting to ambush something, or they'll "burrow" under the paper, like their trying to root something out. Last winter they ate every week or two. Now their eating every 3-4 days! The little pigs! I assume feeding will drop off when cooler weather hits.

[piedplus]

PS - Penelope's a very pretty girl! Looks nice & healthy.

[iCandiBallPythons]

A prey slightly larger than the widest part of the bp is fine, a bp that size I would suggest offering 1 small rat once per week.

[MikeyDubz]

Thanks for the quick responses.

I've not fed small rats to any pet before, is it still relatively safe to feed live prey? I know there is a small risk of the prey biting Penelope, but she has been pretty good about taking out her prey the moment they come close. I of course watch to make sure she takes her food, every time.

If I need pre-killed prey, how should I go about that? Never had to do that before.

Penny's appetite thanks you in advance :-)

[Ghosted]

In regards to pre-killed, I know that some places will actually euthanize the rat for you. The place that I go to offers that option.

[angllady2]

I feed live to all of my snakes.

Yes, there is always the possibility of a bite. Even the most vigilant keeper can't prevent every single bite from live prey. What you can do is watch her carefully, keep a set of tongs handy in case you need to intervene, and try not to freak out too badly if she does get nipped.

Most of my snakes get a "bite" on a regular basis, however none of them even damage any scales. To me those don't count. Now one that damages scales or even bleeds is not out of the question, but I've never had that happen in my two years of keeping. I will say I've had to stick tongs in the mouth of a few rats who were the victim of poor strikes to keep them from chewing a hole in one of my snakes, but that is few and far between.

If you are at all nervous, go ahead and try her on P/K. If the place you get your food will euthanize for you, go that route. Doing it on your own is difficult. CO2 for a single rat is not very practical, and cervical dislocation takes a strong stomach. Not to mention cervical dislocation is next to impossible on any rat that's much bigger than a large mouse, and a failed attempt results in an extremely unpleasant experience. Trust me on that one.
You can also stun a rat, with a fairly hard thump to the back of the head, but that's not always an easy thing to do either, and it really only works up until the rat reaches about twice the size of a large mouse.

Bottom line, only you can decide what is best for your snake, but I don't think you will have any issue with live rats. And you will be amazed at how quickly your girl will grow on rats.

Gale