more cost effecient (headache ahead)

[shhhli]

Did a back search, and couldnt really find any... To me, It just seems ungodly expensive to raise rats (maybe a little less for mice) than to just breed.

I spent 34 dollars buying 8 weeks worth of food for 1bp 2baby corns and 1 adult corn, as compared to the 41 dollars i spent on two bags of rat chow and a big rat wheel for my boyfriend's rat and my new future breeder boy.

Could anyone help me out figuring if this is cost effecient?
Say for 1 adult bp its 1.50/rat totalling 6$ per month.
1 bag of Nutriphase was about 5$ (2 lb bag) that will last me... i have no idea how long...

Is there anyone that 1) knows how long a 2lb bag would last 1.1 pair of rats and then how long the babies would take to reach size to feed a smallish adult ball python?
I can work on the rest of the math myself.

In 3 years I will have 3 snakes eating large mice, two eating small rats, 3 eating weanlings, and probably one more maybe eating large mice/small rats. Would you suggest my own colony or buying pk?

[Shelby]

Well first of all, Nutriphase is junk.. no good for rats, and second of all it's EXPENSIVE junk.

See if you can't get a big bag of mazuri lab blocks.. or harlan teklad lab blocks, but those are harder to get if you can't buy them in bulk.

If not.. go the dog food and grain mix route. MUCH cheaper than nutriphase, and a lot healthier. There's a sticky thread at the top of this forum that has Becky's rat food recipe. I've used it for years and it's great.

Another thing is I buy huge horse stall sized bags of shavings for bedding. A lot cheaper than buying the little bags they sell for pet hamsters.

[shhhli]

Well first of all, Nutriphase is junk.. no good for rats, and second of all it's EXPENSIVE junk.

See if you can't get a big bag of mazuri lab blocks.. or harlan teklad lab blocks, but those are harder to get if you can't buy them in bulk.

If not.. go the dog food and grain mix route. MUCH cheaper than nutriphase, and a lot healthier. There's a sticky thread at the top of this forum that has Becky's rat food recipe. I've used it for years and it's great.

Another thing is I buy huge horse stall sized bags of shavings for bedding. A lot cheaper than buying the little bags they sell for pet hamsters.

I have lab blocks- I couldnt remember the name of the bag but petsmarts' site looks like what i got. The woman I talked to keeps rats herself and said it was eaten more than the alternative brand she had.

What type of shavings are they? The kind we have atm is supposed to be safe for them and came in a massive block in a bag. I know there's a feed & tackle store and havent thought of that alternative.

Edit: A bag of labblocks along with the Nutriphase. Woman suggested Nutri because the alternatives were being picked over so much.

[Ginevive]

Here are our numbers!

Feed: $8 per month. I got a few huge bags of whole corn, mixed it with lab blocks, and there you go.
Bedding: $6 a month for a large bale of shavings.
Wood to chew on (untreated) free. Our landlord had his woods logged, and scrap maple abounds here.
So that's $14.00.

Now I spent that just last week, getting three rats at Petco for my larger BPs; usually I grow the rats and plan ahead but this time I ran out and had to give in and buy some.. fed all my smallers to the new pastel and Luna

So all in all, it costs me $20.00 (including tax) to raise rats per month; as opposed to over $20 per week if I were buying them!! The half hour a week that it takes to clean doesn't even faze me.

[Laooda]

Not to mention, you can guage the size of the feeders at home better.... I've always got something "between" sizes... So you can get bigger pups if needed etc....

[Shelby]

They're pine shavings that I use. I've never had a problem with them.. but I would not get cedar.

[SnakeySnakeSnake]

If you find good prices on everything, raising rats is way cheaper, plus you know they are quality that way

[SnakeySnakeSnake]

They're pine shavings that I use. I've never had a problem with them.. but I would not get cedar.

Yup, just shop around for pine.... Ive tried about 8 different kinds, and the best by far is the laboratory grade stuff I get from Harlan Teklad... i wouldnt mind sleeping on this stuff!

[SatanicIntention]

Gin, I hope you aren't feeding whole corn to the rats. Dried corn can contain a mold which carries aflatoxins, which can kill your rats over time. Especially with the weather we've been having lately(no rain), the mold count has been exceptionally high and whole fields of corn can't be used because of it.

Being "corn-fed" doesn't make a rat, cow or horse better. It makes their muscles turn yellow and they get fat and unhealthy.

It would do them ALOT better to just feed the lab blocks and some of the mix I wrote about. Tri-colored pasta, oatmeal, cheerios, chex, off-brand total, dried split peas, dried lentils, puffed wheat, puffed rice, dry brown rice, granola, etc. is a much better diet and cheaper for you.

I know I wouldn't want my snakes eating an animal that was fed only corn and corn-based lab blocks. Not too healthy in my vet tech's eye as I've seen what it can do to an animal.

[Shelby]

Yeah I shopped around for pine.. and the stuff I have now is virtually dust free and stays fresh smelling for a good long time.

At $5 for a 7.5 (I think) cubic foot compressed bag you can't beat it! I also buy rolled oats and sunflower seeds in bulk at the feed store for excellent prices.