So apparently, rats are a good thing.

I was nervous today. I was worried that Gene wouldn't eat the rat pups we brought home. They are much bigger than the fuzzy mice he was eating, for good reason. These look MUCH better, bigger, longer, basically full of nommy goodness. However, I've read horror stories that said some BP's ignored rats in favor of mice, so I was apprehensive.

I was wrong, and I'm loving it! With the mice, it took Gene a few minutes to wake up, check his surroundings, and even prepare to strike. I lifted his hide off of him so he would realize there was food present and his head shot up, his tongue flickered, and BAM!, he was striking and constricting. I ran to the store, fast forward 45 minutes later and I come home to find him curled up in his hide, not a care in the world because his belly is full. Yay! /backpat self.

wait till you see the growth increase compared to feeding mice:D

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Originally Posted by Paradox81

wait till you see the growth increase compared to feeding mice:D

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I can't wait, Paradox! I'm so exicted! Little kid at Christmas, that's me.

Awesome! Congrats I love non-picky eaters!!!

XDD My pastel Chalcomede was INSANE about her rat this week, but it took her FOREVER to eat the stupid thing. Kept going butt first and then for probably three minutes, was trying to down it hip first and going absolutely nowhere. The poor rat looked like it had been out in a downpour there was so much snake spit on it... When she finally got it down (I couldn't watch it was too silly) she looked pretty beat, but I was quite proud of her. I'd known she'd eat them earlier, but it was hard to get pups at the store. Think I'll be ordering some FT soon, whee!

Call me strange, but I actually prefer live. F/T just seems like too much of a hassle to me. To each their own though, of course. F/T would definitely be more convenient but if necessary I can buy a bunch of rats of a couple different sizes and keep them, I can make room for that. The cat is fascinated by the pups though..he seems to think they should belong to him.

Unfortunately, the pups we got were not weaned. We are feeding them through an eye dropper, infant formula. I've talked to someone on this site in the rat breeding forum as well as a woman that rescues and keeps rats and I've been given some pretty good advice. I'm hoping within the next few days, at least some of them will start to open their eyes and maybe start eating solids. Until then, they will be cared for regardless of their intended fate.

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Originally Posted by Quacking-Terror

Call me strange, but I actually prefer live. F/T just seems like too much of a hassle to me. To each their own though, of course. F/T would definitely be more convenient but if necessary I can buy a bunch of rats of a couple different sizes and keep them, I can make room for that. The cat is fascinated by the pups though..he seems to think they should belong to him.

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Feeding live is a hassle for me. Any day I want to feed my snakes, I have to drive to my supplier, make a purchase, drive back, attempt to feed, and if I have any refusals, what then? If I'm strictly a live feeder, then I'd have to prepare a setup and care for another animal.

I've had to deal with that crap for a few months now because of one animal that did not take f/t, however tonight she FINALLY took a few F/T crawlers. *HUGE SIGH OF RELIEF*

However, if I bred my own feeders all of that would be a non-issue. However, there IS work involved in breeding your own feeders. Time, space, and smell are all things that I factored into my decision to not breed my own feeders. I would save a bit of money, and F/T has its own drawbacks (thawing does take preparation), but for me I find greater overall personal value in feeding F/T than I do breeding my own feeders, which is the ONLY way I would feed live regularly to my entire collection.

Even if you breed your own feeders, you don't have to feed F/T to feed a dead prey item. You can pre-kill your feeders just before you offer them, and have all the safety benefits of feeding dead prey items without dealing with the time involved warming a frozen feeder.

Mainbutter, I understand perfectly. We purchase feeders every couple months, we get enough to last and they grow at a rate that seems consistent with snake growth. The mice we had didn't grow very big though. I'll have to keep an eye on the rats and see how fast they grow!

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Originally Posted by Quacking-Terror

Mainbutter, I understand perfectly. We purchase feeders every couple months, we get enough to last and they grow at a rate that seems consistent with snake growth. The mice we had didn't grow very big though. I'll have to keep an eye on the rats and see how fast they grow!

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Rats grow very fast.

I have been raising my own feeder mice and rats for over a few years now. I don't really do it for the cost factor. I know it is cheaper this way but it does take some time to clean cages and all of the other fun things that come with rodent breeding. The main reason I breed my own is because I know what they have eaten and that I am feeding healthy mice/rats to my snakes. I know it's not for everyone and I understand that. I feed some of my snakes live and some of them f/t. Just depends on which one likes what best. Ball pythons have always been a little picky. My boa's and GTP on the other hand will eat anything I put in their cage.