Rescue help!

[Rysearc]

I have been out if the BP game for a while so I figured I would ask incase things have changed. I rescued a BP of of Craig's list the other day. He is in bad shape but not on the brink of death. He was dehydrated and really under fed. The day I picked him up the woman had fed him three feeder mice. When I got him home he drank quite a bit of water and after a few days does not look dehydrated any longer. My main question is how long should I wait before offering another mouse or two and how long after that. I do not want to gorge feed him. Just not sure how often food should be offered till he is back up to full weight. She had him in a small type shoe box with a heat pad and no light, food, or water. She said he he was three to four years old. I am not sure if tht I correct or not. He is about 2 1/2 feet long and very tame. She claimed it was a friend of hers and the friend provided proper care and handling. But the friend moved and she did not know how to care for him. I would say and I am no expert that he had not ate in a while. She claims she had him two months. I think longer. He was not so under weight that he was close to death. But he was far from where he should be. This is my first post here. My name is Ryan. Any help is appreciated. And sorry for any typos. I am typing on my cell!!!

[danrjc]

Any stuck shed? I'd give him a week at your place if you already gave him one and start with small meals

[Rysearc]

The only stuck shed is at the tip of his tail. Maybe a 1/8 of an inch but is already coming loose I have not messed with it. It is coming loose on its own. Thanks for the help!

[Annarose15]

Hi Ryan! An adult BP can be fed weekly, both for gaining weight and maintenance. You are right that too much, too fast can cause problems. In this situation, a digital kitchen scale will be your best friend (~$25 from Walmart). You can use it to monitor his weight gain as he gets back in shape. Since he is supposedly an adult, you might want to try to switch him to rats so you can just give him one small (50-80g) per week, instead of two-three mice. Check out the caresheet for setup help.

[Rysearc]

I will check that out. Thanks! I hope it has changed in my area in the last few years. I used to try to feed small rats, but they were hard to come by in my area.

[Flikky]

If you go on Amazon, a digital kitchen scale shipped is about 6 or 7$. Haven't ordered it yet but worth checking out imo

[Rysearc]

I have a small digital one that I can use. I will give that a shot.

[Austin C.]

Feeding it a small rat every week would be a good start, mice aren't as nutritious and you have to feed more than one at a time.