feeding.. on demand?

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Originally Posted by AshleyB

thus why we all have opinions :gj: what ever works for *you* works for you.. but my snakes will never ever see the eyes of a rat so long as we have pet rats, and as it sits right now we will for a long time to come, if the snakes can thrive as well as they can on mice instead of rats thats what were going to do.. its not hurting the snakes to eat mice and i can sleep at night knowing my snakes arent eating the animals i care about, best of both worlds

thanks for your input :gj:

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Glad to be of service! :sweeet:

Mice grow nice big healthy balls also!!:D

:D thanks Justin

Yup all pucky, they will get just as big on mice. My lil guys i feed every four days, personally i dont like to feed multiples at one time so i just feed more often. This is advice i recieved from my breeder, this is what he does and has no problem getting to breeding weight just a fast as feeding rats.

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Originally Posted by JASBALLS

With a Ball python Yes! Thats how I do it ..

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I'm glad to see some new ideas being thrown around however unorthodox they maybe :gj:

I think, just like kids, BP's should be fed more often when young, because of the rate of growth. At the same time, I have several animals that would eat on the hour every hour if I let them. Fatty butt snakes. :P

I feed my WC girl 2 (maybe 3) weaner rats a week (that is a rare occasion she would get 3), she is solid hard muscle, and poops regularly. She is always hunting, on a hair trigger during the day, prowls incessintely at night.

Would I feed my other girls the same amount? Heck no, they would get FAT!
LOL, different metabolisms, different snakes, different feeding behaviors.

It's just a very good rule of thumb to feed one rat (or a few mice) on a schedule. Some snakes need more, some need less.

thanks for the comments and suggestions everyone!

they all have been very helpful

Jas, have you had any problems with regurges or fat snakes because of this? This is how I figured I should feed, since that is how I feed myself. I might start doing it from now on.

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Originally Posted by WellyBelly

Jas, have you had any problems with regurges or fat snakes because of this? This is how I figured I should feed, since that is how I feed myself. I might start doing it from now on.

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No, I monitor there weights once a month. And if one looks to "fat" They go a week with out food.. I'm not power feeding them..

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Originally Posted by JASBALLS

No, I monitor there weights once a month. And if one looks to "fat" They go a week with out food.. I'm not power feeding them..

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Despite what some people will say, John feeds his snakes "naturally". In Africa a ball will eat 10 times what we feed them as babies here. They are opportunistic feeders and will eat to grow to reduce their risk to predation and increase their odds at breeding. I only feed my adults once per week and babies get a meal every 4 days. I'd feed more if I had the time and was not buying all my feeders:)

Neil Golli

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Originally Posted by JASBALLS

No, I monitor there weights once a month. And if one looks to "fat" They go a week with out food.. I'm not power feeding them..

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Great post :) I am all for feeding your snakes as it feels right. I hate to say "feed every 5, 7, 9 days" on the dot.
My feeding regimen varies so much that I can't really even post exactly what it is. Like, my '07 Pastel gets food roughly every 4-5 days; then I might go a week without feeding her like Jas says, if I think that it's getting to be too hefty for her. Now my adults are completely different; roughly, my girls eat once a week but like I said, if one is getting too fat, I lay off. This makes me want to knock on wood, but almost exclusively, my snakes do not go off feed. I never feed during shed times though because it just seems logical that the snake is already under stress and in a compromised state, and I like to leave it alone until shedding; to each their own on that.
With people just starting out, I do think that a feeding "regimen" is good. Like, feed every 7 days, etc. Why? People who are starting out have not really gotten a feel for the snake yet.. it is hard to explain.