feeding gerbils?

hey guys i just seen on another forum that somebody was getting there bp to eat using gerbils.... is this like a normal thing to do or wa that guy just crazy??? lmao well anyways if so than whats the difference between a gerbil and a mouse? i mean there both rodents....


:D thanks for reading, Mike. H

I'd recommend against it unless you have a very cheap endless supply of them, some BP's won't switch prey items easily and a gerbil in my town is $12, they also don't breed and produce anywhere near as well as mice.

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Originally Posted by GoingPostal

I'd recommend against it unless you have a very cheap endless supply of them, some BP's won't switch prey items easily and a gerbil in my town is $12, they also don't breed and produce anywhere near as well as mice.

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yea there around the same price here but my bp wont eat and some people say that a gerbil is the best way to get your bp to eat.... she also wild caught... lol:D

Gerbils are their natural diet in Africa (not mice). It's a convenience/cost thing more than anything. As mentioned though, it depends what they're used to. Some simply won't switch and others aren't so fussy!

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Originally Posted by severe_bomber

Some simply won't switch and others aren't so fussy!

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thats what i was thinking about mine but.......i really hope she eases up on the pickyness because i cant aford a 10 dollar meal every week lol :confused:

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Originally Posted by Mrgbb

thats what i was thinking about mine but.......i really hope she eases up on the pickyness because i cant aford a 10 dollar meal every week lol :confused:

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I'd stick to mice and rats, honestly, like others hate stated it's a very expensive meal. Once you get your snake hooked on it, I really doubt your going to have an easy time trying to switch him back.

I've used Gerbils to get snakes to eat, and easily got them back on rats.
Mice are worse IMO

I prefer asf's though.

If you can get a hold of them, African Soft Furred Rats are also a natural food source for ball pythons and more widely available as feeders.

I wouldn't go with gerbils just because it is very hard to find a feeder supply of them. ASFs are very common feeders and many times picky ball pythons will only take them.

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Originally Posted by Kaorte

If you can get a hold of them, African Soft Furred Rats are also a natural food source for ball pythons and more widely available as feeders.

I wouldn't go with gerbils just because it is very hard to find a feeder supply of them. ASFs are very common feeders and many times picky ball pythons will only take them.

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VERY interesting! I didn't know about those! :gj:

Ask a pet store if you can have a pile of soiled Gerbil bedding. Scent your mice/rats with the bedding. Many times this will get your BP back on it's food. Don't feed Gerbils unless you have bunches of money and time.

Good Luck!
Jim Smith

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Originally Posted by severe_bomber

Gerbils are their natural diet in Africa (not mice). It's a convenience/cost thing more than anything. As mentioned though, it depends what they're used to. Some simply won't switch and others aren't so fussy!

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Gerbils are not from Africa. The gerbils in the pet trade are Mongolian gerbils. BP's do love them but they are not their natural food source.

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Originally Posted by pfan151

Gerbils are not from Africa. The gerbils in the pet trade are Mongolian gerbils. BP's do love them but they are not their natural food source.

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Yep. Apologies.

Didn't know about the African soft furred rats til reading on here. Not to mention shrews!

Also read mention of "striped mice" (whatever they are!) so perhaps their more akin to their natural diet than thought...

I'm quicky discovering there's a lot of duff info out there regarding snakes tho, so who knows! I should just stick to this forum and scrap the rest....

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Originally Posted by severe_bomber

Gerbils are their natural diet in Africa (not mice). It's a convenience/cost thing more than anything. As mentioned though, it depends what they're used to. Some simply won't switch and others aren't so fussy!

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Pet store Gerbils are NOT their natural diet. The animals sold as gerbils in pet stores are native to mongolia, not africa. However ASF's (african soft furred rats, also known as Multimammate rats) ARE native to the same range as ball pythons.

Oops, Pfan51 already beat me to it... Sorry about that.

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Originally Posted by severe_bomber

Yep. Apologies.

Didn't know about the African soft furred rats til reading on here. Not to mention shrews!

Also read mention of "striped mice" (whatever they are!) so perhaps their more akin to their natural diet than thought...

I'm quicky discovering there's a lot of duff info out there regarding snakes tho, so who knows! I should just stick to this forum and scrap the rest....

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And again, apologies! :oops:

My first BP years ago was a wild import. She was not interested in mice or rats, but I was able to get her on rats by asking the pet store to throw some soiled gerbil bedding in the box with the rat. By the time you get it home, it has picked up some gerbil scent. Have yor tried putting a pre killed rodent in a paper bag along with your BP and then placing the bag in the enclosure at around 7 PM and leaving overnight? It almost always works.

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Originally Posted by herpenthusiast

Have yor tried putting a pre killed rodent in a paper bag along with your BP and then placing the bag in the enclosure at around 7 PM and leaving overnight? It almost always works.

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wait are you saying i have to put the dead mouse/rat in the bag with my bp? lmao it sounds wierd but if thats acctually what you mean than i guess it cant hurt to try...:D

Sounds plausible to me, ultra pre-scenting :P

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Originally Posted by Mrgbb

wait are you saying i have to put the dead mouse/rat in the bag with my bp? lmao it sounds wierd but if thats acctually what you mean than i guess it cant hurt to try...:D

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Yes that is what he meant. It does sound kind of strange but it has worked for many people.

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Originally Posted by Kaorte

Yes that is what he meant. It does sound kind of strange but it has worked for many people.

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really? lol i feel kinda bad doing that to my snake also wouldnt it stress out the snake being in this little bag? i have a bag that the snake came in its like a burlap sack thing would that be good to use?

i would assume a pillow case would be fine

You can also leave the bag of bedding and mouse/gerbil/rat inside the open bag, inside the cage.
Let the snake smell it out and find the prey.

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Originally Posted by Laxhitman316

i would assume a pillow case would be fine

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wow i feel really dumb :rolleye2: i should have thought of that =] thanks now all i need to do is get a pre killed mouse/rat tommorow....its to late right now were i am i wish i knew how to kill a mouse without feeling bad for it.... i have one thats alivebecause she never ate it but i guess i can just buy a pre killed one.:8:

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Originally Posted by Mrgbb

i wish i knew how to kill a mouse without feeling bad for it....

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Walls are pretty hard. If it's in a bag, give er a swing.

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Originally Posted by rockhardchick666

Walls are pretty hard. If it's in a bag, give er a swing.

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You better be careful with that kind of advise. The rodent patrol will be on you for that statment. Don't ask me how I know.;)

Jim Smith

Haha, yes sorry. Hung over humor never really is.

CO2 doesn't seem that much nicer to me, either.

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Originally Posted by rockhardchick666

Haha, yes sorry. Hung over humor never really is.

CO2 doesn't seem that much nicer to me, either.

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Blasphemy, Blasphemy I tell ya! :colbert:

Jim Smith