Questions about rack size & Final Feeder Size

[thefnshow66]

Hey everyone,
I have a few questions that hopefully anyone can answer for me.

1) I Have the RBI 32qt sweater box rack with the dividers for my BP's. They are all under 200 grams, so they are only using half the tub right now. What weight do you recommend i should remove the divider so they can have the whole tub to themselves?

2) I have 4 male BP's and i hear everywhere that a 32 qt is the final size for males but you can only add one hide. I worry later on that they won't have enough room to move around even with one hide in there so If i ever happen to get the 41 qt for them, is two hides still possible for them in that size tub with room to move around?

3) What would be the final meal size for an adult male BP? I heard that you should only feed them medium size rats once a week but i like to get more opinons. I know they are thick body snakes but i don't want to be over feeding them to the point where they get fat.

Any answer would be appreciated.

[jglass38]

Hey everyone,
I have a few questions that hopefully anyone can answer for me.

1) I Have the RBI 32qt sweater box rack with the dividers for my BP's. They are all under 200 grams, so they are only using half the tub right now. What weight do you recommend i should remove the divider so they can have the whole tub to themselves?

2) I have 4 male BP's and i hear everywhere that a 32 qt is the final size for males but you can only add one hide. I worry later on that they won't have enough room to move around even with one hide in there so If i ever happen to get the 41 qt for them, is two hides still possible for them in that size tub with room to move around?

3) What would be the final meal size for an adult male BP? I heard that you should only feed them medium size rats once a week but i like to get more opinons. I know they are thick body snakes but i don't want to be over feeding them to the point where they get fat.

Any answer would be appreciated.

Hey there.

1. I use 32qt RBI racks for most of my collection. I have some 500-600 grams snakes in divided tubs. You could probably go to 800 grams before having to move them to a full 32qt.

2. In my opinion a 32qt tub is perfect for all but the largest female BPs. One hide in a rack system is fine. The rack is enclosed on all but one side and gives them the security they need.

3. I don't feed larger than small rats to any of my Balls. It's just not necessary in my opinion.

Hope this helps!

Jamie

[Fearless]

1) & 2) I think a 32 qt tub is plenty big enough for males, I only use 41 qt tubs for the females that will be breeding

3) What would be the final meal size for an adult male BP? I try to feed everyone small also, a few of my bigger girls get mediums when I have a few extra that get that big, but for the most part smalls are all I try to feed too

Hope that Helps

[thefnshow66]

thanks for the replies
So how often do you end up feeding your adult males with the small rats?

[SGExotics]

Hey everyone,
I have a few questions that hopefully anyone can answer for me.

1) I Have the RBI 32qt sweater box rack with the dividers for my BP's. They are all under 200 grams, so they are only using half the tub right now. What weight do you recommend i should remove the divider so they can have the whole tub to themselves?

2) I have 4 male BP's and i hear everywhere that a 32 qt is the final size for males but you can only add one hide. I worry later on that they won't have enough room to move around even with one hide in there so If i ever happen to get the 41 qt for them, is two hides still possible for them in that size tub with room to move around?

3) What would be the final meal size for an adult male BP? I heard that you should only feed them medium size rats once a week but i like to get more opinons. I know they are thick body snakes but i don't want to be over feeding them to the point where they get fat.

Any answer would be appreciated.

I would remove the dividers at around 500 grams... & yes, using 2 hides in a 41 qt would be fine because even though it uses up a bit of space, bp's don't like to move around too much, they would rather curl up in a corner and feel more secure. Im building a 6 shelf rack using 41 qt for my adult breeders, i would have used 32 qt but i couldnt find them anywhere, and my adult female bp's can barely fit in 28's... and for my 1000 gram adult males, i usually feed large mice to small rats, and for my massive 2500 gram male, i feed 1 med. once a week (he doesnt even get a bulge)...

So Hope This Helps ,
Brandon

[Shrap]

Hey everyone,
I have a few questions that hopefully anyone can answer for me.

1) I Have the RBI 32qt sweater box rack with the dividers for my BP's. They are all under 200 grams, so they are only using half the tub right now. What weight do you recommend i should remove the divider so they can have the whole tub to themselves?

2) I have 4 male BP's and i hear everywhere that a 32 qt is the final size for males but you can only add one hide. I worry later on that they won't have enough room to move around even with one hide in there so If i ever happen to get the 41 qt for them, is two hides still possible for them in that size tub with room to move around?

3) What would be the final meal size for an adult male BP? I heard that you should only feed them medium size rats once a week but i like to get more opinons. I know they are thick body snakes but i don't want to be over feeding them to the point where they get fat.

Any answer would be appreciated.

1) I go as much by behavior as I do size/weight. Most of my Balls are switched over to 32s around 4-5 months. Once I switch them over I pay close attention to activity level, if they are thermoregulating and of course if they eating in the larger tub. If they dont eat inside of a month, are not really thermoregulating nor being active at all.... you know the larger environment is stressing them. Those that eat well and are utilizing the larger space stays in the larger tub. Those that dont go back to 15s. All snakes are different and will be ready at different times.

2) Some males my be fine their entire lives in a 32. Others may not. Again, it is all about individual behavior. I have snakes that wont eat in big racks like the 41s or the CB-70s. Put them back in their 32s and they eat like no tomorrow. And I have a some snakes that wont eat in 32s, but will eat like clockwork in CB-70s. There is no exact science with these critters. It is all about getting to know your individual animals.

Can you force them to live in 32s all their lives? Sure. Would some snakes do better in a larger enclosure? Absolutely.

All of my older girls are in CB-70 tubs (33" x 18"). It would be laughable to me to try and keep 3000-4000 gram snakes in 32s. All my older girls would be suffering in 32s, they would take up 80% of the tub.

As far as hides, if you are using typical plastic racks that is more or less one big hide. If you think about Balls in nature, they spend 75% of their lives underground in a burrow. Eating the occupants of the burrow and hanging out until the meal is digested and then moving on to the next burrow.

Now with that being said, some of my snakes do like a hide even in the rack. If that makes them feel safe and secure and happy... then so be it. I typically just put one hide in the tub, on the towards the front. I dont put one back by the heat. But most of mine dont use a hide even when they are offered.

I remember a few years ago I went and bought 15 of the 321 Boaphile cages. Thought, "hey my big girls will love having a full 3 feet by 2 feet floor space to utilize". Guess what? 12 out of the 15 snakes I put in those never ate in them. Never seen them leave their hides. We are talking 2 months before I finally gave up and returned them to their CB-70 racks. Whether it was the larger space or the big window in the front, they plain did not like being in those cages. First week back in the racks and most of the snakes ate. The second week they all ate. Go figure.

3) I feed small rats or adult ASFs.

[jglass38]

1) I go as much by behavior as I do size/weight. Most of my Balls are switched over to 32s around 4-5 months. Once I switch them over I pay close attention to activity level, if they are thermoregulating and of course if they eating in the larger tub. If they dont eat inside of a month, are not really thermoregulating nor being active at all.... you know the larger environment is stressing them. Those that eat well and are utilizing the larger space stays in the larger tub. Those that dont go back to 15s. All snakes are different and will be ready at different times.

2) Some males or females my be fine their entire lives in a 32. Others may not. Again, it is all about individual behavior. I have snakes that wont eat in big racks like the 41s or the CB-70s. Put them back in their 32s and they eat like no tomorrow. And I have a some snakes that wont eat in 32s, but will eat like clockwork in CB-70s. There is no exact science with these critters. It is all about getting to know your Individual animals.

All of my older girls are in CB-70 tubs (33" x 18"). It would be laughable to me to try and keep 3000-4000 gram snakes in 32s. All my older girls would be suffering in 32s, they would take up 80% of the tub.

As far as hides, if you are using typical plastic racks that is more or less one big hide. If you think about Balls in nature, they spend 75% of their lives underground in a burrow. Eating the occupants of the burrow and hanging out until the meal is digested and then moving on to the next burrow.

Now with that being said, some of my snakes do like a hide even in the rack. If that makes them feel safe and secure and happy... then so be it. I typically just put one hide in the tub, on the towards the front. I dont put one back by the heat. But most of mine dont use a hide even when they are offered.

3) Again that would depend on the individual snake. Can you force them to live in a 32 all its life? Sure. Would some snakes do better in a larger enclosure? Absolutely.

I remember a few years ago I went and bought 15 of the 321 Boaphile cages. Thought, "hey my big girls will love having a full 3 feet by 2 feet floor space to utilize". Guess what? 12 out of the 15 snakes I put in those never ate in them. Never seen them leave their hides. We are talking 2 months before I finally gave up and returned them to their CB-70 racks. Whether it was the larger space or the big window in the front, they plain did not like being in those cages. First week back in the racks and most of the snakes ate. The second week they all ate. Go figure.

Great post Sammy!!

[Shrap]

thanks for the replies
So how often do you end up feeding your adult males with the small rats?

I offer all my adults weekly unless I see a snake getting a little past plump. Then we will put that critter on a diet and feed only ever two weeks for a while. But most snakes are usually pretty good about missing meals on their own here and there that you do not have to worry about it. But you will always run across some that are just plain eating machines and you need to put them in check from time to time.

[thefnshow66]

thanks for all the replies
quick question, Do any of you happen to know if Rich from RBI does custom racks? I want to get another 32qt rack but instead of 4 tubs i just want to get two. I'm looking into getting a Orange Ghost and i'm debating if i wanna get a lesser plat. or maybe a pewter