Switching to rats?

I know this is up for debate and there are many opinions out there, but when is a good time or weight to switch to rats? My bp is currently eating 1 normal mouse a week and has never refused a meal. She may have lost interest at one point but if i pick it back up and shake it again, she will strike it and gobble it down.
I have heard that feeding rats is more nutritious and want to get her over as soon as i can.
I did a weight in the day before feeding and she was teetering between 210 and 211. The mouse weighed in at 26 grams and is about the right size (in terms of the largest part of her body).
If it is not reasonable or safe to switch her over now its not a big deal, as I have about 20 mice in my freezer. Just wondering what the general consensus was for switching was.

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Originally Posted by Brokenangelr

I know this is up for debate and there are many opinions out there, but when is a good time or weight to switch to rats? My bp is currently eating 1 normal mouse a week and has never refused a meal. She may have lost interest at one point but if i pick it back up and shake it again, she will strike it and gobble it down.
I have heard that feeding rats is more nutritious and want to get her over as soon as i can.
I did a weight in the day before feeding and she was teetering between 210 and 211. The mouse weighed in at 26 grams and is about the right size (in terms of the largest part of her body).
If it is not reasonable or safe to switch her over now its not a big deal, as I have about 20 mice in my freezer. Just wondering what the general consensus was for switching was.

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You can switch over any time you want. Sooner the better in my opinion. All of my snakes have been on rats since their first meal at hatchlings.

Rats have a higher fat content. But other than that, the nutritional value isn't much different from a mouse. However, feeding rats saves you time and effort. You can feed one rat instead of multiple adult mice in a single meal. And that's basically the biggest benefit.

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Originally Posted by Brokenangelr

when is a good time or weight to switch to rats?

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Right out of the egg! All of our balls are started on appropriate sized rats. From their first meal onward. Mice, in my opinion, are a waste of time unless you absolutely cannot get them to eat anything else.

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Originally Posted by Brokenangelr

If it is not reasonable or safe to switch her over now its not a big deal

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Young rats that are the same size of the mice you're feeding are by far safer than mice of the same size. However, all feedings, both live and f/t must be done responsibly otherwise both can be dangerous to your snake. :gj:

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Originally Posted by AK907

Right out of the egg! All of our balls are started on appropriate sized rats. From their first meal onward. Mice, in my opinion, are a waste of time unless you absolutely cannot get them to eat anything else.



Young rats that are the same size of the mice you're feeding are by far safer than mice of the same size. However, all feedings, both live and f/t must be done responsibly otherwise both can be dangerous to your snake. :gj:

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I agree, well said.

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Originally Posted by AK907

Right out of the egg! All of our balls are started on appropriate sized rats. From their first meal onward. Mice, in my opinion, are a waste of time unless you absolutely cannot get them to eat anything else.



Young rats that are the same size of the mice you're feeding are by far safer than mice of the same size. However, all feedings, both live and f/t must be done responsibly otherwise both can be dangerous to your snake. :gj:

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X3 I feed mine rats as soon as I can :)

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Originally Posted by AK907

Young rats that are the same size of the mice you're feeding are by far safer than mice of the same size. However, all feedings, both live and f/t must be done responsibly otherwise both can be dangerous to your snake. :gj:

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I have heard many different terms for young rats (hoppers, fuzzies, pinkies). What size rat would equate properly to a normal mouse?
Even though I do feed f/t, I monitor the whole feeding. One reason, its cool to watch. Second reason is because sometimes she seems to get disinterested in the food item, so I pick it up and offer it again (always with tongs :P ).
I still have a ton of mice in my freezer but would like to switch her over soon, or try to at least. Maybe I can try to find someone else that lives in my area that could benefit from them :D

Small rats, or rats that have just been weaned off their moms are going to be the closest size to a mouse. Commonly called "Weanlings, x-small, or small rats" in pet stores.

Hope this helps

MICE

Sm. Pink 1-2 grams
Lg. Pink 2-4 grams
Peach Fuzz 4-6 grams
Fuzzies 5-8 grams
Hoppers 8-12 grams
Sm. Mice 11-16 grams
Med. Mice 15-24 grams
Lg. Mice 24-28 grams
XLg. Mice 30 grams+

Rats:
Rat Sm. Pink 3-8 grams
Rat Lg. Pink 5-12 grams
Rat Fuzzies 10-20 grams
Rat Pup 20-30 grams
Rat Wean 30-45 grams
Rat Sm. 40-80 grams
Rat Med. 80-150 grams
Rat Lg. 140-200 grams
Rat XLg. 190-250 grams

Thanks to everyone for their speedy replies!
Next week I will look into rats. If she does not take the rat, is it best to wait a week and try again? She has been an awsome eater so I am hopeful that her switch over will be easy, but I won't put my money on it until I see it. I've seen plenty of the tales of the switch from mouse to rat.

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Originally Posted by RestlessRobie

Hope this helps

MICE

Sm. Pink 1-2 grams
Lg. Pink 2-4 grams
Peach Fuzz 4-6 grams
Fuzzies 5-8 grams
Hoppers 8-12 grams
Sm. Mice 11-16 grams
Med. Mice 15-24 grams
Lg. Mice 24-28 grams
XLg. Mice 30 grams+

Rats:
Rat Sm. Pink 3-8 grams
Rat Lg. Pink 5-12 grams
Rat Fuzzies 10-20 grams
Rat Pup 20-30 grams
Rat Wean 30-45 grams
Rat Sm. 40-80 grams
Rat Med. 80-150 grams
Rat Lg. 140-200 grams
Rat XLg. 190-250 grams

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Nice chart! This helps a lot thanks!

Mine ate mice until she was 300gm, then she got her first small rat and took it without any problem. Like yours, she never refuses a meal, so hopefully you will be as lucky as I was. :) The switch isn't ALWAYS a frustrating nightmare. Just... a lot of the time, apparently. :rolleyes:

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Originally Posted by RestlessRobie

Hope this helps

MICE

Sm. Pink 1-2 grams
Lg. Pink 2-4 grams
Peach Fuzz 4-6 grams
Fuzzies 5-8 grams
Hoppers 8-12 grams
Sm. Mice 11-16 grams
Med. Mice 15-24 grams
Lg. Mice 24-28 grams
XLg. Mice 30 grams+

Rats:
Rat Sm. Pink 3-8 grams
Rat Lg. Pink 5-12 grams
Rat Fuzzies 10-20 grams
Rat Pup 20-30 grams
Rat Wean 30-45 grams
Rat Sm. 40-80 grams
Rat Med. 80-150 grams
Rat Lg. 140-200 grams
Rat XLg. 190-250 grams

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This. :gj:

You did forget one...

Overweight spoiled rotten pet rat: 450-700+ grams :banana:

ASAP...the longer you wait to switch them over, the harder it will be. And once you have successfully converted, don't feed any more mice.

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Originally Posted by RobNJ

ASAP...the longer you wait to switch them over, the harder it will be. And once you have successfully converted, don't feed any more mice.

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This is the plan. I think I will be buying online for a little bit. The next expo isn't until next month and my local pet shops don't sell smaller that small rat :(
Oh well. Bring on frozen ratcicle delivery! :P

She will get a mouse this week, since I do not have the funds to purchase the rats yet. And she will probably get a rat next week while they are shipping.
Soon it will be time to find another home for my freezer rodents. If you live in Northern VA you may be in luck if you have any animal that eats frozen normal mice :D

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Originally Posted by AK907

This. :gj:

You did forget one...

Overweight spoiled rotten pet rat: 450-700+ grams :banana:

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:rofl::rofl: I left that out because I would never feed my daughters Suaka to a snake she weighs 654g atm :rofl::rofl:

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Originally Posted by Brokenangelr

This is the plan. I think I will be buying online for a little bit. The next expo isn't until next month and my local pet shops don't sell smaller that small rat :(
Oh well. Bring on frozen ratcicle delivery! :P

She will get a mouse this week, since I do not have the funds to purchase the rats yet. And she will probably get a rat next week while they are shipping.
Soon it will be time to find another home for my freezer rodents. If you live in Northern VA you may be in luck if you have any animal that eats frozen normal mice :D

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I would thaw the rat with a mouse to get the rat to smell a little like a mouse just incase your snake prefers rats. Hopefully the switch will go easily for you :)