power feeding?

a small medium ranging from 100-120 gms. its not a large meal once you space out the feedings.;)

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Originally Posted by Adam_Wysocki

The only scientific study I have ever been able to find related to power feeding was one done at USC 20 years ago with fruit flys ... as far as "power feeding" a ball python, I honestly don't believe that it can be done.

-adam

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There is a lot of info on the benifits of caloric restriction on many species (primates, mouse, nematode, insects, yeast, etc.)......if limiting calorie extends life you could see how "powerfeeding"/"overeating" could shorten lifespan.....

However, I dont know if similiar work has been conducted in reptiles.

I also agree with the idea that is almost impossible to "powerfeed" most snakes......they have such good regulation of appetite and long-term energy intake that it acts an anti-obesisty mechanism.....this is why JAred Diamond uses burmese pythons to study the physiology of appetite regulation. They regulate their appetite over longer periods much more efficently than most mammals......this is why "powerfeeding" is likely to make your animals go off feed for extended periods of time (in the winter usually?) Because they do this....and this is why it easier to make an obese rat over an obese snake.....

Whether cycles of "powerfeeding then going off feed for extending periods" has any long-term helath consequences-->I have no idea. I would think it would be much easier for the snake breeder to keep a weekly regular feeding schedule for all snakes in the collection rather than trying to keep track of who and when their snakes started hunger strikes.

Has anyone ever had their snake (ball python,etc) been dignosed as "obese"? Ethier way it seems that the frequency of obesisty is lower in these animals....

i havent weighed my bp yet. but id say he's almost a year old. i bought him for 60 bucks from pet bizarre and i know thats not the price of a baby. so im not quite sure how old he is.

Sorry I'm confused. How do you decide the approximate age of a snake based on it's purchase price? Even weight and length won't always give you that answer but it's at least a tad more informative.