Any ideas as to a feeding size for a year old woma?

[Miranda2]

I got this girl 6 mnths ago and she was about 6 months then and 105 grams.The people were feeding her fuzzy mice and she was quite thin.I got her for cheap because they didnt want her anymore. Anyway Ive got her eating adult mice(F/T) every week, and she has doubled in size. I cant hold her anymore without her constantly trying to eat me she used to be rather calm.I now use a hook to redirect her head but I have to be on my toes or she will dig in.
Ive read a few things about fatty liver disease and dont want her fat but at the same time I would like to be able to hold her. So what and how often should she be eating? Im taking a guess that she is close to 250ish grams now.

[Prognathodon]

I last weighed my Woma in January, and he was 160 grams and he's been eating small adult mice. He's grown quite a bit, maybe as big as your girl, and just switched to medium adult mice - I go by eyeball, trying to go for about the size of the largest part of the body/big enough to show a lump, but not too big.

My guess is your girl could go up a size - my little guy has remained a complete sweetheart. The other thing is to make sure you use hand sanitizer between handling other snakes and her - IIRC womas will eat other reptiles, and my boy reacts defensively to "other snake" scent (as do the King snakes).


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[Miranda2]

Thanks.I was looking at youtube videos of womas and came across HLH woma python basics and his yearlings are huge and eating small rats.The mice I have are around 24 grams(rodentpro).I finally got her weighed today and she is 285 grams, but she was super cranky because I just put her in a new cage a few days ago. I had her in a tub before so its a big change for her. I do use hand sanitizer but that doesnt seem to deter her, she also goes for the hook sometimes, wiggling her tail all around.
Honestly I am only going by what the previous owner said that its a "she", could very well be a male I havent got a probe set and only know how to pop baby cornsnakes, lol..
Im hoping its just a phase and she calms down a bit. I think I need to change her eating routine too and not feed her off tweezers.

[Prognathodon]

The tail-wiggling/caudal luring is definitely a feeding behavior, sounds like she's hoping for food.

When you say not feed her off tweezers, I hope it's because you're going to feed off longer tongs or hemostats. Or do you have some other way in mind to introduce the prey without inviting a feed-response bite? My Woma has a fairly mellow feed response (for a Woma), and I still use hemostats.


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[EL-Ziggy]

I don't keep Womas but I do keep other Australian pythons. At 285g I was feeding them rat pups or rat weaners from Perfect Prey every 7-10 days. I think you'll see a growth spurt if you get your snake on rats as opposed to mice. My snakes seemed to grow faster on rats.

[Miranda2]

The tail-wiggling/caudal luring is definitely a feeding behavior, sounds like she's hoping for food.

When you say not feed her off tweezers, I hope it's because you're going to feed off longer tongs or hemostats. Or do you have some other way in mind to introduce the prey without inviting a feed-response bite? My Woma has a fairly mellow feed response (for a Woma), and I still use hemostats.


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No, I have hemostats, thats how I feed my boas. But I meant just leaving the food in a corner for her to find rather then dangling it in front of her,lol. I have always been one to dangle and make them work a bit for their food, especially with my corns. I think feeding is half the fun of having snakes but not if they are eating me.


El Ziggy unfortunately I just ordered from RP and didnt get their weaned rats, I got the Extra large mice because they are about the same weight but were on sale. She will have to wait till the next order or until she gets to small rats since I have those.

[BMorrison]

I feed weaned rats after 225 so I would go with pups for now. Womas are suuuuper easy to overfeed because they will eat continuously given the chance. However growing them fast gives them fatty liver. Appropriate spaces out meals (7 days) is perfect for a woma.


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[Miranda2]

She has turned into a monster since I moved her from a tub to a cage (half a t10)..She hits the glass, she bites the hook, I cant even change her water..She has three hides and I have to make sure I know exactly which one she is in or she will come busting out of one and tag me, the stick or whatever.I hope she doesnt hurt herself.
I have to remove her from the cage to change the water..With the tub it was easy to move her out of the way to change the water but reaching into the cage is not so easy. I can see I have a challenge on my hands.

[BMorrison]

She has turned into a monster since I moved her from a tub to a cage (half a t10)..She hits the glass, she bites the hook, I cant even change her water..She has three hides and I have to make sure I know exactly which one she is in or she will come busting out of one and tag me, the stick or whatever.I hope she doesnt hurt herself.
I have to remove her from the cage to change the water..With the tub it was easy to move her out of the way to change the water but reaching into the cage is not so easy. I can see I have a challenge on my hands.

Teenage phase.. they get cranky


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[Miranda2]

Teenage phase.. they get cranky


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I hope so. Hopefully she will learn not to be so crazy.

Im wondering if I should put her back in a tub. I cant walk by the cage without her striking the glass(she is in my bedroom so its quiet enough). And the the big problem is with half a cage is the sliding glass opens only on one side and she has already determined that is were she is going to camp out, waiting for it to open.
I get a T8 next week Im thinking the whole thing needs to go to her so I can always open the side where she isnt..Man she is so fast, way faster then a boa(at least mine, who are lazy).