selling mouse eaters

i was just curious wat everyone's opinion on selling mouse eaters that refuse to take rats. would you sell one of ur snakes because it has become such a pain and expense to get it mice when all ur other snakes eat rats which are much easier to obtain. i was just curious wat everyones opinion was on this i have seen some for sale here and there and i also have one myself i consider selling.(if i was to sell it i would clearly state that it is a mouse eater which i think should be mandatory)

:confuzd: I know most people don't compare the commitment to snakes with the commitment to other pets like a dog. But I can't help but think....would I sell my dog because she had a sensitive tummy and could only eat expensive dog food? Nope.

To me, it's just part of the commitment I make when taking on an animal to care for. Some are a bit of a pain more than others. Some are a bit pricier than others. But it's all part of the package. I might make a concerted effort to get the picky eater switched to rats....but I would not insist on it doing so as a condition for me keeping and caring for it.

That's just me.

I don't think I could have said it better than JLC. Maybe there's a way to get him to take rats that more experienced people on the forum might be able to give you insight to.

ya i have tried many things scenting his cage, holding off on feeding for a week or two then trying a scented rat, he likes ASFs but then that goes back to the difficult to get category that rats are under. im trying everything i can to get him to switch i guess im just gonna have to be more patient and also not let any of my snakes every eat mice lol all but this one have switched over without a hitch mainly cuz they are pigs

I purchased an 07 picky mouse eater pastel female, she currently weighs around 700g. I have managed to get her to take rats & asf's, will she ever be a breeder? Who knows, it is what it is, I knew what I was getting in to, as frustrating as it can be at times I will not sell her off.

I have the same issue with one of my pastels, however she is the prettiest pastel I have so I just have to deal and hope she makes it to breeding weight.

not trying to "plug" but I would bet if you went to "the mouse factory" website and contacted Edna McQueen, she might be able to work with you on a combined order of rats for your less picky eaters, and mice for your picky one, that is, if you feed ft :)

luckily the snake isnt a female he is a male so if i have to feed him mice i will and just keep him right at 600 grams cuz i dont think he can get much bigger than that on mice and he should be able to breed for me next year we will see wat happens

Why wouldn't you be able to get a BP over 600 on mice? My male is over 2500 grams and never had a rat in his life, I can't get them locally. Getting a snake "up to weight" isn't a guarantee they are ready or old enough to breed anyways.

mice fed can get just as big as rat fed.... they have to eat more mice. and at 600 grams he should of been physically ready to breed quite a while ago.

Would I sell a snake because he is a mouse eater? No I have one like this and while he is for sale the reason is not him eating mice, he just no longer fit in my projects.

The advantage is that I breed both rats and mice so mice eater are no issue for me.

a week or two is not much time at all. My little baby ball took 4 weeks before she ate her first pinky, and I had to leave it in her tank overnight, Which is a luxury you cannot do with rats.

what size rats are you trying to feed? Have you considered trying to scent rat pups that are barely opening their eyes? Ide try that, and try once a week for about two months or so, eventually your snake will get the idea I would hope.

From everything ive read they can go over a year without eating, while that isn't desired, perhaps once your snake is hungry enough and feels safe enough attacking a rat pup and gets the taste in its mouth, maybe it'll see that rats not so bad afterall =D I myself would probably go about 3-4 months with this method before ide give up, unless someone wiser says to do otherwise.

My female pastel is a big pain she only eats mice but I fugured something out the other day I first fed her a mouse and after she got it down.i offered a rat and while she was still in feed mode she stuck constricted and ate a rat so thats my trick from now on we will see if it continues to work