BP's weight and rat size

Do you guys follow a general rule of thumb when it comes to what sized rat you feed your BP when it comes to weight (grams)? Do you feed a certain sized rat until lets say 500 grams, then go up a size after 1000g?

I need to buy rats at the end of the month and need to know what size to buy in bulk. My male is 270 grams and my female is 650. He is getting too big for rat pups, so I am going to switch him to weened rats, and she looks like she can doesn't have a problem with the larger weened rats.

I know not to feed larger than the snake is wide.But is there any guide by grams?

Thanks,

10-15% of the body weight every 7-10 days.

My female weights 244g and she's eating small rats without a problem.


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There is no right or wrong answer. Most bp's wont attempt to eat something that is too big. A 270 gram can easily do a sm rat and your larger female, a smedium. I like to see lumps that takes 2 days to level out every 10-14 days. WE have a 300 gram that eats smalls with no problem

I just feed something that is slightly thicker than the thickest part of the snake. It would be too much work to do the math, or remember what size/age I fed each snake. You'll get to be a pretty good judge of how large of a prey item you need to feed your snakes.

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Originally Posted by mike41793

10-15% of the body weight every 7-10 days.

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x2

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Originally Posted by Mike41793

10-15% of the body weight every 7-10 days.

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3X

I tend to go a bit less with adults, about 7% or so. I can't imagine feeding a 244gm snake a small rats (60-95 gm) seems huge to me, my 330gm is eating large fuzzys or small weaned (30-40gm)

She was eating rat pups and she did not have a lump and I notices she would get hungry before feeding day so I switched her to small rats and she eats them just fine


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I feed a prey that is equal the girth size to hatchlings and juvies and nothing larger than 120 grams rats to large adult female and nothing larger than 75 grams rat to large breeder male.

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Originally Posted by Crz89

She was eating rat pups and she did not have a lump and I notices she would get hungry before feeding day so I switched her to small rats and she eats them just fine


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I am here: http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=25.707315,-80.285118
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You must be getting really small smalls! There is a large difference between suppliers this illustrates why 'small for this size snake and medium for that' is so misleading! weight or diameter works 'name' does not.

My 300 gm girl is about 1 inch in diameter and the small rats I usually get are at least 2 inches in diameter and have a skull that is 1 wide. There is no way she would even try.

I wonder this cause I feed my BP 15-20g mice, he's 210g but he's not really growing I got him last June I think and he was 120g then and he was a few months old I believe, am I doing something wrong?

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10-15% of 210g is 21-31g You are feeding a touch light, what interval are you using, 5 days?

this video from Justin Kobylka's youtube page helped me develop an eye for gauging the "appropriate" size of feeders once I started keeping multiple balls of different ages and sizes. if nothing else, it's a good visual aid showing the sizes of rats and the disparity that is inherent in the naming of sizes.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gFB3P...ure=plpp_video

5 to 7, the petstore small rats are to big, I need to find a supplier

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You should not be even thinking of small rats they are adult animals breedable rats usually too large for under 500gm typically you should be looking at rat pups still nursing animals or small weanlings but even then they can be quite big.

The small rats I buy are all about 5 inches long not including the tail. Much bigger than mice ever get. My supplier they average close to 75gm each. A good meal for my adult snakes, my biggest female usually gets two every 7 days she is 3700 gm. It is just easier to buy all one size than multiple sizes for me.

Pinks, fuzzies, Pups, weaned, small, medium, large, xl, xxl, xxxl. I think you are calling pups or weaned, small rats :)

The problem with names personally I like going by weight there is no guessing. But by eye is very close too by name as you can see is an issue.

I don't really go by weight, or name.

I just 'eye' it, and guage my snakes responses. So far, all of my snakes have been doing just fine.

Then again, to each their own, as long as their collection remains healthy.

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Originally Posted by kitedemon

You must be getting really small smalls! There is a large difference between suppliers this illustrates why 'small for this size snake and medium for that' is so misleading! weight or diameter works 'name' does not.

My 300 gm girl is about 1 inch in diameter and the small rats I usually get are at least 2 inches in diameter and have a skull that is 1 wide. There is no way she would even try.

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In the store where i get my feeders they label them as small rats but from what you are saying they must be weaned rats. Thank for clearing that out for me though, because i was a bit confused about the sizes :D