Underfeeding?

Hi. I'm worried I might be underfeeding my male albino bp? Every time I've fed him and put him back in his tub, he just wanders around like crazy like he's looking for more food. He doesn't settle down to digest for a long time. Does this mean he's not getting enough food? I've never really seen a bump on him after eating but I'm hesitant to bump him up to the next level.

I weighed him about an hour ago and he was 308g. I then fed him a 27g rat pup. He ate it quickly and I got him settled back in his tub... He's still wandering around.

I know the breeder I got him from was feeding rat weanlings but I find that term very confusing. I get my frozen rats from Petsmart and their sizes don't include 'weanlings'. They have pups, small rats, medium rats, large rats, jumbo rats... and then mice, but I know it's better to feed rats. And there's no chance I can get rats from a breeder. I've posted ads but there isn't one in my small city and I don't drive. Buying in bulk online isn't an option either as my paychecks are small and I can just afford the small packs.

Anyway, just looking for some insight on him. I think maybe he's not satisfied because he's used to larger meals?

Don't feed him in a separate container. Just feed him in his cage. You will find that he is more relaxed that way. Feeding him in his cage will not cause him to be agressive towards you. How big is your little guy? I ask this to help you determine what size meal you should feed him.

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Originally Posted by Tigerhawk

Don't feed him in a separate container. Just feed him in his cage. You will find that he is more relaxed that way. Feeding him in his cage will not cause him to be agressive towards you. How big is your little guy? I ask this to help you determine what size meal you should feed him.

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I don't know his length or anything. Just his weight. Right before feeding he was 308g.

Next week I will try feeding him in his cage.

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Originally Posted by hazzaram

Hi. I'm worried I might be underfeeding my male albino bp? Every time I've fed him and put him back in his tub, he just wanders around like crazy like he's looking for more food. He doesn't settle down to digest for a long time. Does this mean he's not getting enough food? I've never really seen a bump on him after eating but I'm hesitant to bump him up to the next level.

I weighed him about an hour ago and he was 308g. I then fed him a 27g rat pup. He ate it quickly and I got him settled back in his tub... He's still wandering around.

I know the breeder I got him from was feeding rat weanlings but I find that term very confusing. I get my frozen rats from Petsmart and their sizes don't include 'weanlings'. They have pups, small rats, medium rats, large rats, jumbo rats... and then mice, but I know it's better to feed rats. And there's no chance I can get rats from a breeder. I've posted ads but there isn't one in my small city and I don't drive. Buying in bulk online isn't an option either as my paychecks are small and I can just afford the small packs.

Anyway, just looking for some insight on him. I think maybe he's not satisfied because he's used to larger meals?

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Weaned rats are usually the stage between pups and small rats. They're usually around 35g to 45g each.

How often do you feed him? Every 5 days? 7 days?

If you aren't sure about moving up his food size, you can try giving him two rats pups. You might want to let him sit between feedings a couple of extra days (or more) if you do that.

He sounds fine. It's normal for a snake to hunt and be active immediately after eating. They are opportunistic feeders in the wild, and where they find one rodent there might be another. After a few hours they settle down somewhere warm to digest.

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Originally Posted by bcr229

He sounds fine. It's normal for a snake to hunt and be active immediately after eating. They are opportunistic feeders in the wild, and where they find one rodent there might be another. After a few hours they settle down somewhere warm to digest.

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My snakes do this whether I feed in the cage or in their feeding container. In the wild usually if they catch one rodent there are babies or a mate around as most rodents live in colonies. I think that's why they do that.

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Originally Posted by 200xth

Weaned rats are usually the stage between pups and small rats. They're usually around 35g to 45g each.

How often do you feed him? Every 5 days? 7 days?

If you aren't sure about moving up his food size, you can try giving him two rats pups. You might want to let him sit between feedings a couple of extra days (or more) if you do that.

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He's fed every Thursday night. Two rat pups seems like a lot... Gah, I'm so unsure! lol

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Originally Posted by bcr229

He sounds fine. It's normal for a snake to hunt and be active immediately after eating. They are opportunistic feeders in the wild, and where they find one rodent there might be another. After a few hours they settle down somewhere warm to digest.

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Ah, okay. This makes me feel better. He's just so different from my female. I fed her, put her back and she slithered into her hide and disappeared lol.

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Originally Posted by hazzaram

He's fed every Thursday night. Two rat pups seems like a lot... Gah, I'm so unsure! lol

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You don't need to do it. Keep feeding him what you're feeding him and track his weight. If he keeps gaining weight, he's getting enough food.

His weight is your determining factor. Is he gaining weight, loosing weight or maintaining? Sounds like your feeding him enough.

He is gaining. He started out st 294g when I got him. I've been keeping a little notebook on him.

Everyone does things differently. I feed small ones like yours 10% based on weight (30gm ish for yours) every 5 days. When they hit the 1000 gm mark I keep feeding the 10% but every 7 days and when they hit the 1600-1800gm mark they get less 3-6% every 7 days.