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Did anyone try..

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  • 09-16-2013, 01:20 PM
    Louie
    Did anyone try..
    It may sound bit offensive to some of people here but did anyone in the forum breed rats for their snake's feed?

    "Snakes don't bite. Just humans."
  • 09-16-2013, 01:33 PM
    MootWorm
    Are you asking if people here breed feeders? If so, then the answer is most definitely yes. I'm not sure why that would be offensive, snake food needs to come from somewhere :) I'd rather be 100% on thr quality and health of my feeders.
  • 09-16-2013, 01:35 PM
    Neal
    Yea plenty of people just breed rats/mice for their snakes. Though it's probably not very beneficial unless you have a few snakes.
  • 09-16-2013, 01:39 PM
    Stewart_Reptiles
    I produce a few thousand feeders each year :gj:

    Why would it be offensive? :confuzd:
  • 09-16-2013, 01:51 PM
    decensored
    Yeah I used to breed Rats and ASF for my Ball Pythons. A lot of people with moderate collections will often try it, and a lot of people find that it's not worth the time and energy. Breeding rodents can be a lot more involved than ball python breeding. I was supplying a few other people too and basically my feeders were costing me nothing - but took up about 20 hours a week to maintain. I worked it out and I was paying myself about $3.00 an hour. It's easier for me to just order in bulk and not think about the rats, or have to deal with the escapes.
  • 09-16-2013, 02:20 PM
    don15681
    Re: Did anyone try..
    when I buy rodent block it's 800 to 1200 pounds at a time. not for my pet rat. :D
  • 09-16-2013, 02:34 PM
    satomi325
    I breed my own rodents. I enjoy my rats immensely. They are very cute, loving, and I have a lot of fun breeding & caring for them just as much as I do my snakes.

    I like to breed my own feeders because I know they get quality care and food, so I know my what goes into my snakes and ferrets(who are also raw fed). It's also cheaper for me to breed my own rodents than buy from others. P

    Check out the feeder rodent section of the forum. We like to discuss breeding practices, husbandry, and maintenance there.
  • 09-16-2013, 02:36 PM
    S.I.R.
    Re: Did anyone try..
    We only feed our animals the rats we breed. By doing this, we can ensure the healthiest food possible for our animals. I buy our bedding and rat feed in bulk(pallet at a time). Several places will sell you feed wholesale without buying such a large quantity. It does take quite a few hours a week, but is well worth it! Plus the rats I sell to others pays for ours and most of the food.
  • 09-16-2013, 02:36 PM
    Freakie_frog
    We breed our own rodents for feeders. At one time we were producing a couple of thousand a week.
  • 09-16-2013, 02:41 PM
    spcstarkey
    the feeders i breed pay for them self so i can feed my snakes for free so it works ok in the end
  • 09-17-2013, 07:51 AM
    Hardt
    Re: Did anyone try..
    Yep, we breed rats and mice for our reptiles and several other peoples reptiles too. One of my kids don't share the snake enthusiasm as the rest of the family, but when it comes to the rodents,our entire family is right there working right along side of each other. That's family quality time right there, lol
  • 09-17-2013, 07:57 AM
    Hardt
    Re: Did anyone try..
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by don15681 View Post
    when I buy rodent block it's 800 to 1200 pounds at a time. not for my pet rat. :D

    That's about what we get also, about every 3 weeks. I tell you, the wife's muscles are growing fast, lol (jk)
  • 09-17-2013, 08:02 AM
    ROACH
    Yep I breed Rats.
  • 09-17-2013, 08:05 AM
    Hardt
    Re: Did anyone try..
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by satomi325 View Post
    I breed my own rodents. I enjoy my rats immensely. They are very cute, loving, and I have a lot of fun breeding & caring for them just as much as I do my snakes.

    I like to breed my own feeders because I know they get quality care and food, so I know my what goes into my snakes and ferrets(who are also raw fed). It's also cheaper for me to breed my own rodents than buy from others. P

    Check out the feeder rodent section of the forum. We like to discuss breeding practices, husbandry, and maintenance there.

    So much truth in your response. We started breeding rats and mice for our own snakes. We enjoyed breeding the rats so much we started to spend more time on the growing side of the feeders. The snake side is growing fast, but not as fast as the rodents, lol
  • 09-17-2013, 08:08 AM
    Wes
    I keep a small group of 2.4 breeder rats for hatchlings and picky eaters. They are really fun to work with but i definitely couldn't breed rats on the level that some of these guys do.
  • 09-17-2013, 08:09 AM
    Hardt
    Re: Did anyone try..
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Freakie_frog View Post
    We breed our own rodents for feeders. At one time we were producing a couple of thousand a week.

    We are not even close to a couple thousand a week, but working on it at a couple hundred a week, lol
  • 09-18-2013, 02:15 AM
    Louie
    Re: Did anyone try..
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by S.I.R. View Post
    We only feed our animals the rats we breed. By doing this, we can ensure the healthiest food possible for our animals. I buy our bedding and rat feed in bulk(pallet at a time). Several places will sell you feed wholesale without buying such a large quantity. It does take quite a few hours a week, but is well worth it! Plus the rats I sell to others pays for ours and most of the food.

    Yeah, this is the reason why I want to try to breed rats. To be honest, I think it will be very interesting project to do. Except the fact that I only have one bp haha :p yet by knowing that my feed will be clean, healthy, and "fresh" is just simply nice.

    "Snakes don't bite. Just humans."
  • 09-18-2013, 03:02 AM
    jporter617
    yes, i breed rats, mice,and asf's and i believe in doggy bag dog food from tractor supply! 12.99 for 50 lbs!!
  • 09-27-2013, 11:17 PM
    D&G
    Re: Did anyone try..
    I breed rats to feed my ball python. I started the rats one year ago and it's growing so fast I can't keep up. I'm going through 500lbs of feed a week, lol.
  • 10-17-2013, 09:01 PM
    4theSNAKElady
    Re: Did anyone try..
    I used to breed the norways, but now I only breed ASFs and pygmy mice...they don't stink half as bad.ASFs will feed any size snake we have, and if we need a few larger norways, we just go pick some up at a friend of ours. Since I switched to food hoppers, I also save soooo much money on feed for them! A 50lb bag now lasts me more than 6 months for two colonies of 1.5 and a growout tank of ASFs. I love it!
  • 11-29-2013, 10:32 AM
    Dev_DeCoste
    Did anyone try..
    If you enjoy breeding rats as much as you do snakes- you ever find it hard to let a BP eat one? Lol I know it's an odd question :p

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by satomi325 View Post
    I breed my own rodents. I enjoy my rats immensely. They are very cute, loving, and I have a lot of fun breeding & caring for them just as much as I do my snakes.

    I like to breed my own feeders because I know they get quality care and food, so I know my what goes into my snakes and ferrets(who are also raw fed). It's also cheaper for me to breed my own rodents than buy from others. P

    Check out the feeder rodent section of the forum. We like to discuss breeding practices, husbandry, and maintenance there.




    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
  • 11-29-2013, 12:13 PM
    satomi325
    Re: Did anyone try..
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Dev_DeCoste View Post
    If you enjoy breeding rats as much as you do snakes- you ever find it hard to let a BP eat one? Lol I know it's an odd question :p


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

    I've been breeding rats for a few years now. At first it was very hard to feed off something that you've raised since birth. But I'll be honest, I've become somewhat jaded or desensitized since then so I'm not as attached to most of the babies or grow outs as I was when I first started. I also stopped naming my breeders after my second generation because that was one of the issues that I had. There was just too much attachment and sentiment for certain rats. My first generation batch of breeders all retired as my pets. They lived in a furnished large cage with hammocks, a wheel, and stuff like that. To be efficient, I can't keep everyone. I can't turn all retired rats into pets. Its impractical and unrealistic. So I stopped naming the rats and giving them 'play time' out of the racks.

    And when feeding, I always feed off the ones I don't favor as much first and my more favorable ones last, just in case I want to hold it back. But there is only so much that you can hold back. But at this point, I don't really feel bad about feeding the rats any more. I've bred and fed off hundreds of my rats, and its something that you get used to.

    And when you breed, you understand and realize all of this. You can't save everyone if you want to be as efficient as possible and keep your snakes fed. And while I still enjoy playing with my rats, I know that they're meant for food. I understand that they're livestock bred with the purpose of feeding something else. But at least I know that they live good lives until the time of death. I give them quality care and that's what's important to me.

    Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk 2
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