4 month old BP what should she eat?

[Holly-Five-0]

Hey! I just bought my baby BP (piper) last Sunday. She had only ever been fed live prey before. I wanted to switch her to f/t because it bothers me to see their little bodies wiggle as they are being killed. I went to petsmart because I'm new at this and can't find any local feeder places around here in nc. I took Piper with me to use as a reference for what type of feeder to purchase. The "reptile expert" at petsmart convinced me to buy a pack of 6 frozen fuzzies (mice). I fed Piper one but she scarfed it down pretty quick and still seemed hungry so I gave her another and then another....lol I added up the grams for the fuzzies and total weight she consumed about 15-18 grams. I'm still waiting on my scale to be shipped to me so I don't know how much Piper weighs but I need to go ahead and purchase f/t feeders in bulk. I know she can handle (in grams) atleast 18. So does that mean I get her a small adult mouse? Or should I try for a little bigger? Like a rat pup? I know she needs to get on rats ASAP but I feel like for her first rat she would do better with one of the "pups". How big is too big? I know you are supposed to match it to the thickest part of their body but without a bunch of rats/mice in front of me I can't really determine that... Any suggestions? I don't want to over/under feed her. She is precious to me... Lol

[Morris Reese]

Her body weight is a big factor, but if you can't weigh her yet go by the largest part of her body. The rat or mouse should be about the same size around as the largest part of her body. If you think 18 grams is what she could handle I would say to buy rat pups in quantity and feed the smaller of the rats first. When you order quantity they will vary just a little in size. Just look at them and go for smaller ones first. Repost if you get to weigh her.

[Morris Reese]

By the way, I was at Wal-Mart last night. If you look over in the kitchen area you will find several food scales that will work very well. I found a NICE digital scale to weigh in grams for under $35

[Slim]

I've seen very few BP's at 4 months that couldn't take rat pups. Feeding them 10% of their body weight seems to work well for their first year.

[Stewart_Reptiles]

Age does not matter what you need to feed is a prey equal your BP's girth size (widest part of your BP's body).

A few things to keep in mind with a newly acquired BP is to feed the same type of prey for at least a few feedings (3 to 5) before attempting to switch. If the animal is fed live feed live before attempting to switch to F/T. Obviously switching is easier when done one step at the time, live mice to f/t mice or live mice to live rats.

[Holly-Five-0]

Her body weight is a big factor, but if you can't weigh her yet go by the largest part of her body. The rat or mouse should be about the same size around as the largest part of her body. If you think 18 grams is what she could handle I would say to buy rat pups in quantity and feed the smaller of the rats first. When you order quantity they will vary just a little in size. Just look at them and go for smaller ones first. Repost if you get to weigh her.

Cool! Thanks! Yeah I'll try the rat pups. I think I'm going to purchase them from layne labs... Are they reputable? Also I looked online at wal mart and saw the scales you were talking about. Kind of broke the bank when I got her and all the equipment to make sure she is happy and comfortable. Found a scale on ebay for like 13 bucks and couldn't pass it up.... Just means I have to wait a little longer to weigh her. She just seems so tiny... Also I have noticed she would rather be with me in my hoodie than in her tank. The temps are perfect range. She likes it in there but prefers hanging out with me... Is that normal?

[Holly-Five-0]

She switched super easy to f/t. Couldn't do live... Hurts my heart a little too much. She surprised me honestly, I thought it was going to be difficult to get her to eat on the 2nd day of having her not to mention feeding her something she wasn't accustomed to. But she gobbled it right up lol guess she was hungry.

[Morris Reese]

Cool! Thanks! Yeah I'll try the rat pups. I think I'm going to purchase them from layne labs... Are they reputable? Also I looked online at wal mart and saw the scales you were talking about. Kind of broke the bank when I got her and all the equipment to make sure she is happy and comfortable. Found a scale on ebay for like 13 bucks and couldn't pass it up.... Just means I have to wait a little longer to weigh her. She just seems so tiny... Also I have noticed she would rather be with me in my hoodie than in her tank. The temps are perfect range. She likes it in there but prefers hanging out with me... Is that normal?

If she seems tiny I would not order the pups. I have a BP that is 4 months feeding well on rat pups but she is a very good eater. She is on the large side for her age. You may want to try fuzzy rats and feed about every 5 days. If you got her from a pet shop she may have not been fed like she should. They don't feed like they should.

[Holly-Five-0]

I got her from an exotic pet store in the mountains. They breed. BPs and different morphs. They sold me her pretty cheap because she is partially a pastel? Lol her eyes are half green and she is brighter than a normal. But she didn't look thin, just small. Like a runt maybe? They said they fed her once a week a small adult mouse but I'm a newbie and didn't know the exact sizes of adult mice and there's a lot to choose from online... It gets pretty detailed which further frustrates me because it's harder to make a decision and then the anxiety of omg what if I chose the wrong size for her... Okay rat fuzzies then... Gotcha.

[MJT_23]

I got her from an exotic pet store in the mountains. They breed. BPs and different morphs. They sold me her pretty cheap because she is partially a pastel? Lol her eyes are half green and she is brighter than a normal. But she didn't look thin, just small. Like a runt maybe? They said they fed her once a week a small adult mouse but I'm a newbie and didn't know the exact sizes of adult mice and there's a lot to choose from online... It gets pretty detailed which further frustrates me because it's harder to make a decision and then the anxiety of omg what if I chose the wrong size for her... Okay rat fuzzies then... Gotcha.

Partially a pastel? No such thing she's either a pastel or a normal. But good she switched to f/t so easily for you