ASF rats are the BOMB!!

[rexrem]

I can't believe it! I have a year old female pastel that only has 23 meals in her lifetime. That's less than 1 meal a month. She is sooo picky that she only eats one hopper mouse a meal since her 4th month . I tried giving her rat fuzzies and she's afraid of it. For the past 5 months her weight was between 400-500g

I tried everything with no avail. I got my asf colony earlier and tried feeding her an adult sized asf. She got spooked and went inside her hide when I opened her tub so I thought she will not eat. I also gave her a mouse the other day and she didn't even bother. I placed the asf inside her tub and turned off the light and in 10 seconds..... BAM! She struck hard and ate an adult asf the size of a medium rat like candy!

[llovelace]

congrats

[rexrem]

Thanks!

[LadyOhh]

ASFs have their uses, but the colonies I have worked with were mean as snot.

Congrats on the feed, however!

[rexrem]

Thanks H! I heard they are mean that's why I used leather gloves when cleaning. There were pinkies already and I didn't want the mom to get pissed. They never bit me so I guess I got lucky that these guys are not the asf's from hell

[Redneck_Crow]

When ASFs become more widely available as frozen feeders, I might consider switching my picky mojave over. Right now, they're relatively expensive when I can locate them as frozen feeders and it's less of a pain for me to make the weekly trek out for a live rat for Miss Persnickety. I wish RodentPro would start carrying them because they do come to the local monthly reptile sale.

I'm glad that your girl is feeding better.

[rexrem]

Thanks! Why don't you try starting your own colony with 1 male: 3 females if you can find live ones in your area? They take longer to grow as breeders but once they breed, they are breeding machines. I just got 22 pinkies from one female and I got 10 breedable females. I plan on just growing up the pinkies to size and freeze them for lateruse since I only have one picky eater.

When ASFs become more widely available as frozen feeders, I might consider switching my picky mojave over. Right now, they're relatively expensive when I can locate them as frozen feeders and it's less of a pain for me to make the weekly trek out for a live rat for Miss Persnickety. I wish RodentPro would start carrying them because they do come to the local monthly reptile sale.

I'm glad that your girl is feeding better.

[Redneck_Crow]

Thanks! Why don't you try starting your own colony with 1 male: 3 females if you can find live ones in your area? They take longer to grow as breeders but once they breed, they are breeding machines. I just got 22 pinkies from one female and I got 10 breedable females. I plan on just growing up the pinkies to size and freeze them for lateruse since I only have one picky eater.

The reason I don't is plain and simple. I have 5 snakes, and 4 of them slam f/t rats with gusto. They are doing great--a couple of them are even a little too fat.

I'm not going to put up with the work and stink of a colony for one picky little princess. I'm certainly not going to take a chance that the other ones will become picky by feeding them ASFs. The picky snake will eventually get with the program and eat f/t rats or f/t ASFs (if they become available here) or she will be replaced by another mojave who isn't such a gourmet. I'm not even willing to go the live rat route indefinitely.

[rperry03]

ASFs have their uses, but the colonies I have worked with were mean as snot.

Congrats on her eating, try and switch her food up like every 3rd feeding throw a regular rat in there unless you will always have asf's available.

I have 3 breeding asf colonies and 5 total. One colony is simply a feeder colony. Of the 5 only 1 female has ever bit me, and a 1.1 breeder is actually so scared that they both run to the other side of the tank and I can pet their babies. But for the most part I can place my hand in the tank and pick up a group without even a nibble.

[jasbus]

If you breed only your nice ASF's eventually you will have stock that is just as nice as rats. I do occasionally get a nip from one of mine, but not very often. They are all hand tame, and I have hundreds of them... The mean ones are the ones' that get a short life in my shop....
When I clean my feeder bins out(50-75 in each bin), I literally scoop up as many as I can with both hands, and I never get bit...