Prey Size?

So, my male bp currently weighs a little over 200 grams & is eating 2-3 adult mice per meal, depending on just how hungry he is. None of the pet stores in my area sell live rat pups or weaned rats. The smallest they have are small rats. I have seen the feeding chart (have it downloaded to my phone) and have been following it, but just wanted to get some general feedback. Should I continue to feed him the mice, or should I move up? My only concern is that I REALLY don’t think he’s big enough to devour a small rat yet.

Btw, he eats live although I pre-kill. F/t is a no go with him.


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Originally Posted by LivingDeadGirl

So, my male bp currently weighs a little over 200 grams & is eating 2-3 adult mice per meal, depending on just how hungry he is. None of the pet stores in my area sell live rat pups or weaned rats. The smallest they have are small rats. I have seen the feeding chart (have it downloaded to my phone) and have been following it, but just wanted to get some general feedback. Should I continue to feed him the mice, or should I move up? My only concern is that I REALLY don’t think he’s big enough to devour a small rat yet.

Btw, he eats live although I pre-kill. F/t is a no go with him.


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2-3 adult mice per meal??? Wow....I've never heard of feeding that many at one time. I have the same size BP as you and I fed him his 1st large mouse (22g) tonight after 4 weeks of mediums.

Damn, that guy can EAT! Give him a medal and try a small rat next time! He's a badass.:snake2:

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Originally Posted by ckuhn003

2-3 adult mice per meal??? Wow....I've never heard of feeding that many at one time. I have the same size BP as you and I fed him his 1st large mouse (22g) tonight after 4 weeks of mediums.

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Generally I only feed him two, but if he doesn’t have at least two than he becomes hungry again in about 3-4 days instead of his usual 6-7. He tends to also become aggressive if he is only fed one mouse, due to his still being hungry. And I know that you’re not supposed to overfeed, but I know I’m not over feeding because he still has good spine definition.


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If you are feeding a male 3 adult mice a week you are feeding too much, over feeding will either lead to long fast or fatty liver issues.

A 200 grams male does not need more that 1 adult mouse a week, because he can eat more does not mean he should or needs to.

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Originally Posted by Deborah

If you are feeding a male 3 adult mice a week you are feeding too much, over feeding will either lead to long fast or fatty liver issues.

A 200 grams male does not need more that 1 adult mouse a week, because he can eat more does not mean he should or needs to.

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As stated above, generally he is only fed 2 adults. 1 adult mouse per week most definitely does not fill up this snake. He won’t eat it if he isn’t hungry. Instead, he’ll constrict it and then let it lay there until it’s removed.


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As stated above that seems like an awful lot for a 200g snake. 1 adult mouse per week should be plenty.

I’m sure it does, however; the adult mice that I get are smaller than your typical adult mouse. Not to mention, not all snakes are the same.


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Originally Posted by LivingDeadGirl

Should I continue to feed him the mice, or should I move up? My only concern is that I REALLY don’t think he’s big enough to devour a small rat yet.

Btw, he eats live although I pre-kill. F/t is a no go with him.


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If you think he can't handle a small rat, don't bump him up. A 200g bp eating a small rat will probably do more harm than good anyways. You risk regurgitation with prey items that are too large.

If the adult mice are not that big, i would say you can feed him 2(not 3) per meal until he can take a small rat. No need to pre-kill, let him do it himself.

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Originally Posted by Dutti

If the adult mice are not that big, i would say you can feed him 2(not 3) per meal until he can take a small rat. No need to pre-kill, let him do it himself.

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I used to let him do it himself, up until he started getting bit because he struck at their butt.


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Originally Posted by LivingDeadGirl

I’m sure it does, however; the adult mice that I get are smaller than your typical adult mouse. Not to mention, not all snakes are the same.


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An adult mouse is an adult mouse it's between 20 and 29 grams if not than it's not an adult mouse and 1 adult a week is enough. When it comes to feeding they are all the same if you overfeed you will have the same end result.

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Originally Posted by KayLynn

If you think he can't handle a small rat, don't bump him up. A 200g bp eating a small rat will probably do more harm than good anyways. You risk regurgitation with prey items that are too large.

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That snake is nowhere near big enough to eat a small rat, a small rat is 45 to 85 grams. At that size they eat rat pup 20 to 29 grams the equivalent of an adult mouse.

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Originally Posted by Deborah

That snake is nowhere near big enough to eat a small rat, a small rat is 45 to 85 grams. At that size they eat rat pup 20 to 29 grams the equivalent of an adult mouse.

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I am aware, which is why I was suggesting not to bump it up since she seems faily aware that a rat that size is too big - unsure as to why it was a question to begin with if that's the case - and that a small rat would probably do more harm than good.

I should have been more insistant, but the "all snakes are different" attitude made me less inclined to inisist upon something she think of as ganging up on her.

Fairly* She might think of* sorry, running on fumes.

It was less of an attitude and more of just a general statement. All snakes are different, whether you guys want to accept that fact or not. They all have different personalities, so who’s to say that they don’t have different feeding capabilities as well?


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A small rat is for a 500g snake. At 200g he should be on rat pups. Weigh your mice and determine the ratio if you are feeding f/t. A small rat is way too big.

And yes yes all snakes are different but you are asking a question and we are answering. Not meaning to sound rude but when Deborah gives you an answer she is correct 99.9% of the time. And I only say 99 because not one person is perfect. And you are giving push back. Experienced breeders are telling you it's too much.

I owned basset hounds. They are notorious for not self regulating their food intake. If I would have allowed it mine would have ate themselves to death. in fact one got into dog food once and passed out in the bag from eating too much.

What do dogs have to do with snakes you say? Just because an animal looks or responds to continuous offerings of food does not mean you should continue to offer them food. It doesn't matter if it is a ball python or your own human child, there are proven guidelines for feeding ball pythons and for the health and welfare of your snake you really should follow them.