Increasing food size?

[m00noodle]

I've been feeding my bp a weaned rat once every 10-14 days. I took him to the vet for a check-up a few weeks ago and she weighed him at 624 grams, which she said is a good weight for his current size. I asked her if I should feed him larger rats and she said that I should instead feed him two weaned rats at the same rate that I've been feeding him. My bp however, is a very slow eater and I feel like I've read that feeding multiple prey items in one feeding can be stressful for the snake. Basically, I'm asking for a second opinion. Should I increase the food size or double the amount of rats, and should I retain the same feeding schedule that I've been using?

[dakski]

I disagree with your vet. I would feed one appropriate prey item every 10-14 days as you are now.

I use the chart below as a guideline for food size, but not food frequency.

I would be feeding your guy 1 small rat every 10-14 days. Unless he gets huge, that should be the largest food item he needs. My female BP, Shayna, is about 1,900G and 8 year old. She happily eats a small rat every 14 days, except in the winter when she usually fasts.

Some snakes do okay with multiple food items, but generally, BP's do fine with one appropriate sized food item. The exception to this is if a BP refuses rats and prefers mice. Then they have to eat multiple mice at a time to get the same nutrition and calories as one rat.

[Craiga 01453]

I also disagree with your vet and agree with Dakski above.

It's always preferred to offer one appropriately sized prey item rather than multiple, especially with species that can be finicky like BPs.

My adult males both get a small rat every 10-14 days, and both eat reliably year round and maintain a healthy body structure.