Breeding Male not eating regular sized meals!

Has anybody else had this problem? How do you break your male of this problem? My breeding male has taken on this problem now. Idk y but my breeding Spider male is now not accepting his normal sized meals of a medium sized rat and will only consume a mouse. That so far is the only thing I can get him to eat. I was like really?!? Since I have been breeding my male he has been eating with no problems and now he has stopped. oh but he will eat a mouse, why is that?

Can somebody please tell me why?

Your breeding males are eating? Good for you.

(Really, that's the answer, lol. Breeding males often don't eat at all until spring. Many males stop feeding in November, and don't start again until March or April).

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Originally Posted by WingedWolfPsion

Your breeding males are eating? Good for you.

(Really, that's the answer, lol. Breeding males often don't eat at all until spring. Many males stop feeding in November, and don't start again until March or April).

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This. My albino won't touch food during the winter.

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Originally Posted by WingedWolfPsion

Your breeding males are eating? Good for you.

(Really, that's the answer, lol. Breeding males often don't eat at all until spring. Many males stop feeding in November, and don't start again until March or April).

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I know they quit, but I just think its kinda silly a 1000 gram male eating mice. Guess its better than nothing.

Do you have any breeding males right now?

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Originally Posted by Dabonus

This. My albino won't touch food during the winter.

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Have you tried a mouse :D

I'd be jumping up and down he's eating anything !

Most of my boys go small meals during breeding season, but just to show how contrary they are my confirmed mouse eating pied male switched to rats now that he's a man.:rolleyes:

Gale

Yep, I have 5 males breeding this year, and 3 not breeding, and not a single one of them has touched food in over a month, lol.
I usually offer smaller than normal prey during the breeding season. The males like smaller prey if they decide to eat anything, because they can digest it more quickly, it doesn't take a lot of metabolic effort to digest, and it doesn't weigh them down. They're ready to cruise and find more girls.

I have 3 males up to breeding size. 1 of them is breeding this year. 1 was a very underweight rescue. The one that's breeding hasn't eaten in almost 2 months. The rescue has taken 2 meals from me and the other one will ONLY touch live rats. So yes, be excited that your male is eating at all with any regularity.

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Originally Posted by angllady2

I'd be jumping up and down he's eating anything !

Most of my boys go small meals during breeding season, but just to show how contrary they are my confirmed mouse eating pied male switched to rats now that he's a man.:rolleyes:

Gale

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My male IS a rat eater thats the thing, and for a solid month of breeding he was eating. Then poof he wasn't! I still had him as my main breeder between 2 females so I know keeping him with some sort of energy if you will needs to be there. I did fatten him plenty before breeding season don't get me wrong, but my now he is def. showing signs of wear. Idk what made me throw him a mouse, but he took it and now he's eating again, yay!!!

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Originally Posted by Scaleyz

I know they quit, but I just think its kinda silly a 1000 gram male eating mice. Guess its better than nothing.

Do you have any breeding males right now?

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I have females around 4000 grams that will eat nothing but mice ( good thing I breed my own rodents ) and they do just fine.

also my male clown breed 6 females and all had clutches and never missed a meal. also a mouse eater.

you better be careful, it might be hard getting him to switch back to rats after breeding if he gets use to eating mice.

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Originally Posted by WingedWolfPsion

Yep, I have 5 males breeding this year, and 3 not breeding, and not a single one of them has touched food in over a month, lol.
I usually offer smaller than normal prey during the breeding season. The males like smaller prey if they decide to eat anything, because they can digest it more quickly, it doesn't take a lot of metabolic effort to digest, and it doesn't weigh them down. They're ready to cruise and find more girls.

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So I figured out the trick to keep my male breeding and eating and didn't know it, lol
I'm just hoping for my (2) females to give me some viable eggs, this being my first year breeding :D.

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Originally Posted by KatStoverReptiles

I have 3 males up to breeding size. 1 of them is breeding this year. 1 was a very underweight rescue. The one that's breeding hasn't eaten in almost 2 months. The rescue has taken 2 meals from me and the other one will ONLY touch live rats. So yes, be excited that your male is eating at all with any regularity.

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I only have the one male this season that is up to breeding size and he stopped eating for 2 months, and he started looking really thin, so I offered him a meal (mouse) and he snatched it up really quick. I don't care about having to swap him over to med. rats again later, I just want him to continue eating through the season so I can breed him to my Pastel. Then I will be :D

At least they are eating ;)

Honestly medium is pretty large prey especially fir a male I would recommend smaller prey if you want your males to eat with consistancy.

I never offer anything bigger than 55 grams rats to my males and they pretty much eat year round at least fir mist if them.

Remember when breeding season is here it's not unusual for mature males to go off feed which is why it's very important to monitor them closely and pull them out of rotation if necessary if they lose too much weight during breeding season.

Sent from my Kindle Fire using Tapatalk

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Originally Posted by Deborah

At least they are eating ;)

Honestly medium is pretty large prey especially fir a male I would recommend smaller prey if you want your males to eat with consistancy.

I never offer anything bigger than 55 grams rats to my males and they pretty much eat year round at least fir mist if them.

Remember when breeding season is here it's not unusual for mature males to go off feed which is why it's very important to monitor them closely and pull them out of rotation if necessary if they lose too much weight during breeding season.

Sent from my Kindle Fire using Tapatalk

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Well said! My mature male spider was very plump in the beginning when I first started placing him back and forth between the 2 females, and as I pulled him out for a rest from one female to the other I would offer him a meal and for awhile he was eating then he stopped. Once he stopped he was still locking with the 2 females and I noticed the weight dropping off him. Had I not monitored and pulled him when I did there could have been problems.

I now have him started on another breeding project with only one female and he is eating mice steadily so lets see how long it lasts :D

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Originally Posted by Scaleyz

Well said! My mature male spider was very plump in the beginning when I first started placing him back and forth between the 2 females, and as I pulled him out for a rest from one female to the other I would offer him a meal and for awhile he was eating then he stopped. Once he stopped he was still locking with the 2 females and I noticed the weight dropping off him. Had I not monitored and pulled him when I did there could have been problems.

I now have him started on another breeding project with only one female and he is eating mice steadily so lets see how long it lasts :D

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How much weight loss is "dropping off"? With meals as large as medium rats, a good portion of that could just have been the ever-present meal that he was finally able to digest and poop out. :)

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Originally Posted by Annarose15

How much weight loss is "dropping off"? With meals as large as medium rats, a good portion of that could just have been the ever-present meal that he was finally able to digest and poop out. :)

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When Stitch started he was a rather not fatty, but very plump male. After breeding steadily with the 2 females and still offering him meals but smaller meals he was losing weight, noticeably he was losing weight. The locks he would be in would last 1 1/2 days at a time then he would be out of lock with that female for only maybe a few hours before he would lock with them again. Determined I guess. My guess is a combination of the two, the offering of smaller meals and the locks lasting so long.

That is my guess, if you have any other info. for me please share it :D