Rats over mice? And question about breeding them as feeders

[Achilles.10.7]

I plan on only breeding one or the other as feeders for my 2 males that are viscous eaters and I'm getting a female that i think is already eating rats. So my first question is what is better to feed them rats or mice? I think my two males will switch really easy and i have two 10 gallon sized tubs on my rack i could use, but would that be good to hold rats, or is it too small and better for mice maybe?

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[thinkbig317]

Rats all the way. They will eventually out grow mice anyways.

[Achilles.10.7]

Thanks I'm going to try switching them to rats first and if they don't refuse it then I'll start off with 1.1 rats and if that works out then I'll get another female if needed

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[satomi325]

Rats are way better to breed. Mice stink so bad.
One mouse will stink up a freshly cleaned enclose within a few hours and smell worse than an entire rack of rats 5 days after their last clean.

10 Gallons are too small for more than 1 rat. It might be alright as a maternity enclosure for a birthing female and newborns, but not as a permanent home for more than one adult.

[Crazymonkee]

Omg mice smell horrible!!!
My pet rat barely smells, of course she's only one. My 2 asf's don't smell at all


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[NYHC4LIFE8899]

I definitely take advice from Satomi,knows her stuff!!!!

[MootWorm]

Definitely rats. They smell better, grow bigger, are easier to handle (IMO) and if you have excess, you can sell them off for quite a bit more than mice. You can get a big tub from walmart or target to house them, that 10 gal won't go very far if you're breeding.

[Stewart_Reptiles]

A few things to take in consideration

1 Once your BP are adults it will be easier and more convenient to feed a single prey which make rats a better choice.
When it comes to breeding mice have a stronger odor but it can be controlled.

Rats cannot be kept in a 10 gallons tubs and even mice will rapidly be over crowded as they will produce every 3 weeks.

When you want to consider breeding my suggestion is to build a rack that fit your need (breeders, weaned animals, holdback)

Remember that rats have a rapid growth rate and since your litter will average 6 to 12 babies and you only have 2 snakes I would suggest to switch your snake to F/T, and euthanize rats when they reach proper weight so you never have rats that have outgrown the ideal size.

I breed both but I also breed snakes so having mice is essential for me to get hatchlings started, in your case you need to consider everything.

[Achilles.10.7]

Thanks everyone, the smell was another question i had and i actually thought rats would smell worse but im glad im wrong because i have the rack in my room so that would be the deal breaker. The rack i made i can always make bigger, and i made it to hold two different sized tubs 41 qt and 19 qt so could i use the 41 qt for 2 females and babies, one 19 qt for a single male, and another 19 qt for young ones i plan on using as feeders so they dont get over crowded with the females? I'll post a pic of the rack now to get an idea.

[Achilles.10.7]

Heres my rack i made from pvc
The top two are the 41 qts and bottom two are 19 sorry i actually over estimated the size they arent those arent the same as ten gallons but would it be okay for just one male adult rat? And if theyre to short i can still buy deeper ones that are the same length and width. I originally planned to use the 41s for my two males when they get bigger
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