Feeding Question - Good Problem to Have

[ckuhn003]

I never thought I’d be asking this question since I have one of those picky adult BPs who barely eats and when he does it’s always a drop and come back later.

Well for the past four feedings, he’s been aggressively pounding small rats and acting ready to go on non feeding nights. I’ve been offering every 14 days and was wondering if I could try every 7 days to take advantage of his newly found appetite. It be nice to pack on some weight finally (700 grams).

It’s been years since I’ve seen him act like this


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[303_enfield]

Me, I would keep with the 14 day feedings. That's what my BPs are on. Happy, active an hungry is good. Overfed is just a fat rock.


The ones I have that go off prey will do it in the dead of winter. Husbandry can be perfect but the snakes just know.



Good luck!

[ckuhn003]

Me, I would keep with the 14 day feedings. That's what my BPs are on. Happy, active an hungry is good. Overfed is just a fat rock.


The ones I have that go off prey will do it in the dead of winter. Husbandry can be perfect but the snakes just know.



Good luck!

Appreciate the response. I was just hoping to put some extra weight on since he's been hovering around the 600-700 gram range for two years now and I know this voracious appetite won't last long

[bcr229]

Keep him on the same schedule, they just go through cycles.

Heck I have a female who has been a confirmed live ASF only feeder for years suddenly start taking f/t rats last month. SMH I will never figure these guys out!

[EL-Ziggy]

I might not feed every 7 days but I see no problem with going to a 10 day schedule for a while if he's eating well and you want to take advantage of his new found voracity.

[ckuhn003]

I might not feed every 7 days but I see no problem with going to a 10 day schedule for a while if he's eating well and you want to take advantage of his new found voracity.

You know this is all your doing Ziggy! You show up at the house and all of a sudden my non eating BP starts pounding rats. 4 in a row!! You are welcome back anytime

[Craiga 01453]

You know this is all your doing Ziggy! You show up at the house and all of a sudden my non eating BP starts pounding rats. 4 in a row!! You are welcome back anytime

I might go to ten days as well, but only if he's actively looking for food and displaying "hunting" behavior. With my BPs I just let them "tell" me when to feed by watching their behavior at night. This time of year they're still eating about every 10 days, but with the cool weather coming it'll be every 14 days(ish), sometimes a few days longer.

Ziggy, wanna swing through MA and work your magic on Juice?? Next time you're out and about doing grocery shopping or whatever simply take a teeny weeny detour, I'm hardly out of your way

[CloudtheBoa]

My bp would go through those "gotta eat everything in sight" modes after a particularly rough fast period. I always just kept him on his usual schedule, and after a few months he'd settle down. If I were to pump him full of food when he was asking for it, all that'd do is continue his cycle of feast and fast where he'd fast for 4-6 months with just a couple meals in between. So I kept his food intake steady to keep his appetite steady.

[dakski]

Late to thread here, but here's a thought.

Maybe he's pounding the rats because small rats are a great size for him and the two week duration is perfect as well.

Small rats are a great size for him and probably will be for life.

Shayna gets a small (F/T) rat every other week and she's 1,880G. When I offered her medium rats, which she can easily take, she would skip meals, and rarely struck. She would sometimes just pull the rat in her hide and eat. However, when I switched to small rats and kept the same 2 week schedule, she would still fast in winter, but the rest of the time, she pounds the rats. I had to fight her off the tongs two weeks ago. She struck so fast and so hard.

Additionally, and may sound counterintuitive, but she's gained weight since being on small rats vs. medium rats the past two years.

Her previous (dry) weight was about 1,770G. She would skip meals and start fasting sooner in winter. Now on small rats, she barely misses a meal unless in shed, and has put on another 100G or and she's 8 now.

It's hard to starve a BP giving them an appropriate meal every two weeks.

I know you want to take advantage of this new found appetite, but it's possible, trying to do so will have the opposite effect.

I'd keep him on small rats every two weeks. He knows what he needs. As long as you offer small rats every other week, he will eat when he needs to and probably still fast when he doesn't. He's a BP.