Always Hungry

[lafasta]

Hi everyone,
I have a feeding question that I'm hoping you can all help me with.

I have a female normal that weighs 188g and I currently feed her once a week with 1 rat pup. I started weighing her rats to meet the 10% to 15% of her weight rule. So that would be 19g to 28g per rat. I actually only feed her on rats that are 15% of her weight now because the 10% size just wasn't enough for her.

Since the last 2 feeding, I've noticed that after only 24 hrs she has become active again. I usually give her 48 hrs to digest her food, before handling etc. Today I went to check on her after about 36 hrs after feeding and she had her head sticking out of her hide. As soon as she saw me she started tracking my movements and tracking my hands. She was flicking her tongue and coming out of her hide following my hand movements like she was hoping for food just like how she acts when it's feeding time. She looked just like she does when she's hungry. This is the 2nd week this has happened.

In you opinions, do you think she could be hungry again after less than 2 days? Should I increase the rat size to a bigger size, or feed her 2 smaller rats to equal a bigger weight? I thought 15% of her body weight was the top end for food size but it doesn't seem to be enough for her. I would increase the size of the rat but don't want to risk it being too big and its getting stuck.

Any advice or info on how you feed you bp's would be much appreciated!

Thanks again all!

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[Crowfingers]

I would continue the 10%-15% rule, feeding too much or too often can lead to regurgitation and that will cause all sorts of trouble. My boy is 550 grams and when I first got him (135 g) he was always hungry two days after eating. I had him on a "feed every 5 days" schedule, and have just recently move him to a 7 day schedule...now he does not act hungry until 3 or 4 days after eating. At her age she would be fine eating every 5 days, just not more often than that

[AKA Dave]

She may just still be in feed mode. It takes a couple of days for that to run it's course with smaller snakes. At least that's been my experience.

Dave

[Coluber42]

I've noticed that when my snake has a messier meal (like, the mouse got wet when it was defrosting, or it bled some) and dragged it around before managing to swallow it, he often stays in the food mood and hovers intently right around that spot, instead of ambling off to his favorite spot again. I suspect that the smell of the mouse has just gotten spread around more than usual, so the spot where he ate still smells like food. If I spot clean that area, he settles down and goes back to his normal business.

In general, with the amount and frequency that you're feeding, I see no reason to feed more, even if she's acting like she wants it. She's not going to be underfed (unless she has tapeworms or some other internal parasite that is stealing her nutrients, but that's a separate issue). Lots of animals will happily follow their instinct to eat way more than they should if you let them, ourselves included. That's because in the wild, the food supply is limited and getting it may be difficult, dangerous, energy intensive, etc, and you might not know where your next meal is coming from. So you take whatever comes your way, and your instinct makes you highly motivated to find food. Animals in the wild basically do not get obese; they don't have the opportunity.
But the same instincts that motivate a wild animal to take risks to get enough to eat aren't really the healthiest thing to listen to in a situation where there's essentially an unlimited food supply. Just because our pets will eat whatever we give them and ask for more doesn't mean they actually need it.

[EL-Ziggy]

Your snake will be just fine on your current feeding regiment if you're happy with it. I wouldn't increase the prey size but you could try feeding her every 5-6 days instead of once a week. That's how often I feed my younger or undersized critters

[chilliscale]

What they said. Don't over do it. I have a few that do that and will eat 7 days a week if I let them. When I have a surplus of smaller rats I will sometimes feed them 2 x a week but shouldn't make it a regular thing every week

[lafasta]

Thanks so much everyone! As always, you've been so helpful She's been a great feeder since the day I got her so I guess I should just be happy she wants to eat.

The one comment about the "messier meal" could also be part of the problem as well. I always try to keep the rats as dry as possible because a wet meal just doesn't seem appealing to me, lol. What I didn't think about was spot cleaning the area where she ate after she was done. She always likes to eat right outside of her hide(s) and the lingering smell at the opening of her hide could be why she remains in feeding mode for so long. I'm going to try replacing the substrate in that spot after feeding and see if this helps.

Thanks again for all the great tips! There's always something new to learn.