Mice vs. Rat feeders

So my Herp vet informed me that I should be feeding small adult mice versus rat pups to my 230 gram male since adult feeders are more nutritious than young feeders due to what they eat. Basically there is more calcium in adults because they are eating and not just taking in milk. Anyone familiar with this? I hate to get him on mice and then later have to feed more if he refuses adult rats later.... I am feeding 2 f/t rat pups every 7 days and he is eating great. Still have a lot left in that size since I went to the Sac reptile show and purchased them there.

That... seems kind of nitpick-ish to me. Mice and rats are both about the same nutritionally speaking. Rats may be a tinier bit healthier for them because they have a lower fat percentage than mice, but snakes can eat nothing but mice and be fine so long as they get enough of them.
Considering how quickly they grow, your snake will move up in prey size pretty quickly and feeding young vs. adult animals won't even be an issue.

Also, some snakes can become fixated on a particular food item. For example, if they get used to mice they might refuse rats if you try to feed them rats again later. That doesn't happen all the time, but it's something to keep in mind.

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Originally Posted by Dexterune

So my Herp vet informed me that I should be feeding small adult mice versus rat pups to my 230 gram male since adult feeders are more nutritious than young feeders due to what they eat. Basically there is more calcium in adults because they are eating and not just taking in milk. Anyone familiar with this? I hate to get him on mice and then later have to feed more if he refuses adult rats later.... I am feeding 2 f/t rat pups every 7 days and he is eating great. Still have a lot left in that size since I went to the Sac reptile show and purchased them there.

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Time to find a competent herp vet.

Find out how smart your vet is NOT, ask them to break it down gram vs gram per animal.
It does not matter what you feed as long as they eat.
For your convenience rats are always easier unless you want to feed multiple mice when your snake reaches adult size?
One small rat vs 4-8 mice in one feeding, I had a 1200g male pastel what would eat mice like hot wings.

Rodent pro has a link to a rundown of nutrient composition of whole prey, your vet is correct, baby animals don't have fully developed bones so less calcium, more fatty. There's quite a difference in various nutrient levels depending on age.

For example calcium percentages dry matter
mice, neonatal 1.17
mice, juvy 1.47
mice, adult 2.98

rat, neonatal 1.85
rat, juvy 2.07
rat, adult 2.62

However I haven't seen any evidence raising ball pythons on young rats will cause any issues, it's not a long term diet and the snake will be moved up to older animals.

Mouse, domestic
Mus domesticus 1.17 Neonatal, <3 g
Mouse, domestic
Mus domesticus 1.47 Juvenile, 3-10 g
Mouse, domestic
Mus domesticus 2.98 Adult or >10 g


Rat
Rattus norvegicus 1.85 Neonatal, <10 g
Rat
Rattus norvegicus 2.07 Juvenile, 10-50 g
Rat
Rattus norvegicus 2.62 Adult or >50 g


You forgot to include the weights

Quote:

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Originally Posted by PitOnTheProwl

Mouse, domestic
Mus domesticus 1.17 Neonatal, <3 g
Mouse, domestic
Mus domesticus 1.47 Juvenile, 3-10 g
Mouse, domestic
Mus domesticus 2.98 Adult or >10 g


Rat
Rattus norvegicus 1.85 Neonatal, <10 g
Rat
Rattus norvegicus 2.07 Juvenile, 10-50 g
Rat
Rattus norvegicus 2.62 Adult or >50 g


You forgot to include the weights

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they weigh around 20-30 g

My adult male is feeding on about 7adult mice a week and my baby female is on hoppers right now. They're both fine and healthy. I prefer to feed live (also my male decided he doesn't like f/t anymore), and feeding live rats makes me uncomfortable so it's just more convenient. Your snake should be fine with what your doing right now, if that's successful, it's healthy keep on with your current feeding plan.

7 a week? Lmao little piggy!

He definitely is a little piggy! But the mice at the pet store I go to do run on the small side so I'd rather be safe than sorry =) Since it's getting colder though I'll probably drop him down to a smaller number, at least through the months of November-February. (I live in Southern California where the cold never really comes)