Small Feeders

We've recently switched the ball pythons over to rats that are around 25-35g in size. We went to get feeders today and we got the last few they had and all they had were two 30g and two really small ones. They get these rats in as weanlings but these two small ones are definatly not weanlings. They are 18 and 19g. Far too small to be a meal for two of our ball pythons. They also seem really thin and bony like they haven't eaten in days (which they probably haven't since they were pulled from their mother too soon.)

So I was wondering, is it normal for small rats, around 1-2 weeks to be so bony and thin?

Also, would it be a better idea to keep the feeders till next week to get them to gain some weight before becoming food? Or should I just go ahead and feed them off. It just seems pointless to feed my snakes something that is skin and bones.

Honestly, I would find another supplier. Having small, malnourished prey items seems to be the trend with yours. If you aren't able to get correctly sized, healthy, well-fed, chubby rats every week, then you might want to go back to mice. At least you can buy the mice 10-20 at a time, feed them up, and then feed them off.

Oh, and weaned rats should be over 50g, if they are not, then there is a BIG problem. They should also be 4-5 weeks of age. Mine at that age, when I have a litter around, are usually over 100g and absolutely huge. They shouldn't be smaller than an adult mouse, like what you're describing. Baby rats are FAT, like baby bears or baby seal pups. Fat fat fat. If they are skinny, then they aren't getting the proper nutrition or they have a health problem.

Yea, the guy at the store didn't even know the rats had mites. I told him how I got rid of the mites on mine and he said he'd give it a try. He said they really only breed on a small scale so most of their feeders are coming in from another source. I really don't like it now that I've seen the rats. The mice tend to be fine but the rats that are malnourished is really starting to get to me. :mad:

So what should I do with these little guys. There is no point in feeding them off because it wouldn't really be much of a meal for my snakes. They would probably be pounding 35-40g rats if I let them but since they are just starting out with rats, 30g is all they get. Would it be ok to get the feeders to gain some weight and then feed them off?

If they are 1-2 weeks old they would need their mothers milk. Id either co2 them and despose of them( because how how they sound) or feed both to one of your snakes and then go out and buy some mice for the other.

Going out and getting more mice is a no for the rest of the week. Its a 30 min drive, both ways and we just got back. Gas is horrible here and the only day of the week we can go out there is Tuesday. All other petstores here are either bad petstores which I refuse to buy from (*cough* Perfect Pets/Pups *cough*) or they only sell f/t which my ball pythons don't eat.

I'm willing to try and feed them. We have puppy milk replacer.

Well we gave them some KMR and they sucked that stuff down like it was the first food they've had in days. I plan on feeding them in the morning when I wake up, a few hours after that and just before going to work. I will also be giving them lab block soaked in KMR and Becky's Mix. I feel so horrible for these little things. They are literally skin and bones. I am really wanting to talk to the store's owner about this. Although, it is my only source of feeders in the area but I will not stand for malnourished animals, feeder or not. I'll be taking pictures tomorrow of them. They each took 1 ml of KMR tonight. It was recommended on a site that rats near the weight of 18g take .9ml per feeding so thats what I'll give them for the next few days. I'm just so pissed about all of this. A store I trusted with mite infested rats and malnourished animals. :mad:

I'm sorry this has been a bad string of luck for you. Are their eyes open yet? I would try to feed them every 3 hours if I could, I know that when I was nursing kittens I had to get up and feed them every 3 hours. And for rats with their eyes not open I would do the same.

Good luck with them :( I hope they pull through for you.

A major difference I noticed from breeding my own and buying at the pet store is, the size. The weight in grams of my feeders are almost twice that of the pet store. Also babies are fat, especially around the 2-3 week age.

Once you get a colony going you will only need to buy from the pet store every few months, if at all.

Yes their eyes are open. They are so fragile looking. I will try and feed more often since they are so skinny. I'll get my fiance to do a feeding or two while I'm at work tonight. I'll take some pictures of them so you can see what I'm talking about. I'll take a picture of them next to Monk who is a a little older but far more chubby.

I got some pictures.

http://i144.photobucket.com/albums/r...NewRats003.jpg
http://i144.photobucket.com/albums/r...NewRats002.jpg
http://i144.photobucket.com/albums/r...NewRats001.jpg

Uploading comparison pictures now. Oh and both of the small ones look like that so I only took closeups of one. ^

http://i144.photobucket.com/albums/r...NewRats004.jpg

This is one of the small rats pictured next to Monk, who is a little older (by maybe one week) so you can see just how small the little ones are.
http://i144.photobucket.com/albums/r...NewRats005.jpg

The four that I picked up yesterday. Chip (new male we are keeping) and the three skinny ones.
http://i144.photobucket.com/albums/r...NewRats007.jpg

Wow, those are very small. Jay if you were around here, I would get you set up with some healthy rats so you dont have to go to this guy any more. That is pretty irresponsible on the breeders part to pull them much to early. There's hardly anything left to them!

Yea I've got steam coming out of my ears I'm so mad. I don't care if they are meant to be feeders. Animals should be treated with respect and care from the time they are born to the time they die. This is unacceptable and I will say something to the store owner the next day I have off. (Friday I think).

I'm going to be looking around for someone not too far from me who has rats to buy some good rats from to start my own breeding colony. I just found an old gift card from Christmas I thought I had lost and it has $50 on it. I'm going to use that to go and get materials for a rat rack.