A new member question about f/t

[whitewolf]

Hi,
I'm new here and I do not have a BP yet. I've been looking around, but it seems as though most breeders only feed live to their hatchlings. One breeder said, when asked, that many of his customers feed f/t and said I could switch it to f/t if I wanted to (as if it was an easy task that I could easily do). I refuse to go to a pet store.
However, based on my research, it seems it might not be this easy. I know they are picky, but since I don't own one, I can't base this on my experience.
So my question to all the experienced owners here is, how easy or hard is it to switch a hatchling to f/t? Do they imprint when they are young? Would it just not be worth it to try to do so if it is eating AT ALL? I have dealt with non-feeders and regurgers in corn snakes and had no problem switching the really bad feeders from live anoles to f/t. To people have done this before with corn snakes, would it be more difficult than this? Thanks in advance. Sorry for the super long message, I'm a newbie.

[Mochelem]

It all depends on the snake, I have 6 ball pythons, 5 of them will eat just about anything you put in there live, F/T rats or mice. I have one girl that wont eat anything but live, she just refuses. You will just have to see what your snake prefers. If you only have one snake feeding live is not a bad idea, it doesnt cost much... The reason I feed f/t is to save money...

[whitewolf]

It all depends on the snake, I have 6 ball pythons, 5 of them will eat just about anything you put in there live, F/T rats or mice. I have one girl that wont eat anything but live, she just refuses. You will just have to see what your snake prefers. If you only have one snake feeding live is not a bad idea, it doesnt cost much... The reason I feed f/t is to save money...

hey thank you so much for responding. 5 out of 6 seems promising. So it sounds like they can be switched over, but like with any species, there's always that one or two that won't at all due to individual preferences?

I'm trying to see if a majority of BP's will take f/t or if the majority of them take only live. I was hoping for replies from different people as well to determine how common it is. Your reply alone is still very helpful though, so thank you

[dr del]

Hi,

Why not ask which ever breeder you decide to buy from to do the switch to F/T for you?

I think most of them would be willing to do that wouldn't they?


dr del

[starmom]

It has been my experience that a breeder will switch them from mice to rats, but not all breeders can do the f/t switch because they raise their own rodents.

That said, I have only one snake right now who is eating live mice. All the rest are eating f/t rats with no issue. If she continues to stay on mice I'll just need to deal with that- and find a less expensive outlet for live mice

So, I guess I'm suggesting that most snakes can be converted to f/t and from mice to rats. A few, though, don't seem willing...

[Tosha_Mc]

In my experience most hatchlings will take f/t for a first meal -- a few require a live feeding or two before switching but switch readily after being started off. The very few that don't take to f/t are usually the picky feeders -- few and far between but they are the ones that will be mousers or fasters or just require the extra work no matter what they are feeding on.

[stangs13]

Welcome!!
My ball was bought only feeding live as a hatchling, as soon as i got her I fed her a f/t rat, and she took it right away. Good luck!

[dr del]

Hi,

It has been my experience that a breeder will switch them from mice to rats, but not all breeders can do the f/t switch because they raise their own rodents.

Really? It seems it would be far easier to convert a live rodent into an F/T rodent than the other way round.

They may not want to take the time to kill and freeze etc but they have the ability in most cases I would think.


dr del

[starmom]

Hi, ..Really? It seems it would be far easier to convert a live rodent into an F/T rodent than the other way round.
dr del

[waltah!]

It definitely depends on the snake. All of my snakes will eat live or f/t, except for one bp that will only eat live. My baby burm took f/t as his first meal, so i'd say it's an individual thing. Good luck, and i'm glad you came to ask questions before your purchase.