Feeding Q

[I-KandyReptiles]

I got a 2500+ girly. When I got her she was supposedly eating f/t small rats. She refused every rat I tried to feed her with. I ended up switching over to live mice. (live norway rats are illegal to own)

The thing is, she won't take more than 2 adult mice in a sitting. Is it okay to be feeding her more regularly than say if she was eating an "appropriate" sized meal?

Right now I have her on a 5 day feeding schedule.

[Bigfish1975]

I had a group that I recently bought that were all mousers when I got them. I fed them a few mice and then started scenting rat pups with the mice and they started taking those. Now they take small rats without any hesitation. Hope this helps.

[Riv]

If they werent taking F/T rats, ideally the backstep would have been to live rats, but its not the worst thing in the world. Just maybe a little more work. I wouldnt worry so much about mutiple mice per feeding. Its generally considered best to have one larger prey item vs a few smaller prey items. In my experience, after that first prey item is swallowed their mindset changes over to defensive mode and they just want to hide. A lot of snakes ive tried to feed mutiple prey items just werent in the zone anymore by the time I offered the second. I would recommend making the switch to live rats your priority, then worrying about the number and size of prey items after that. Then of course F/T if you still want to persue it. Best of luck = )

[Annarose15]

If she was eating F/T rats, and that's what you want to feed her, then that's all you should offer. She might refuse for a few months, but she knows it's food, so she'll eat eventually. She could have just been off because she changed homes. Otherwise, feeding smaller meals more often is fine, just more of a hassle for you.

[I-KandyReptiles]

If they werent taking F/T rats, ideally the backstep would have been to live rats, but its not the worst thing in the world. Just maybe a little more work. I wouldnt worry so much about mutiple mice per feeding. Its generally considered best to have one larger prey item vs a few smaller prey items. In my experience, after that first prey item is swallowed their mindset changes over to defensive mode and they just want to hide. A lot of snakes ive tried to feed mutiple prey items just werent in the zone anymore by the time I offered the second. I would recommend making the switch to live rats your priority, then worrying about the number and size of prey items after that. Then of course F/T if you still want to persue it. Best of luck = )

I can't get live rats.

It's not an issue feeding mice as that's what all my bps eat. I'd love to feed rats, but none will take f/t.

I tried with her for a few weeks. F/t rats are expensive here.

I was just wondering if I could feed her on a 5 day schedule since she won't take rats.