Feeding Question?

[DiverDown]

I dont know the exact age of my BP,but he is young Appx. 2ft fully stretched out. I have benn feeding him 2 fuzzies every 7 days. He has gotten a little bigger since i bought him and seems very healthy and satisfied. Should i be feeding him more or is that enough? he doesn't seem big enough to take a small mouse. Whats everyone's opinion on this?

[BigKenjDogg]

2 feet? That's 24 inches. Imo, he should be on adult mice at that stage, because it's recommended that by 28 inches, he should be on small rats. Of course, it all depends on the particular snake, but you would really be surprised at what they could put in their mouths.

[BPnewbie]

how do you go about feeding your bp 2 fuzzies?

do you feed him one, let him take it in for a while...then give him a second serving?

If that is what you do, typically how long do you wait before seconds?

[DiverDown]

I wait about about 5min for the second one.

[led4urhead]

If you can get your bp on just one prey item, i would definitely suggest you do so. It is better for them in the long run. One correctly sized prey is better for the digestive tract and when he/she gets bigger one rat is better for them, nutrition wise, than multiple mice.

[SheSkweezes]

Our BP is 37" and 1 year and 4 months old...she/he (thought/proven) eats live mice..depending on size, from 2 to 5 at a time..we raise our own. Lucy was 17 inches when we got him and has also eaten rat pups, but not anything bigger. He seems great, looks great, sheds great, and eats only about once a month now, down from the every 2 week frequency in the spring.

[DiverDown]

he is actually 16 1/2 to 17 inches long fully extended (not 2ft.....sorry)
is he big enough for an adult mouse?

[SheSkweezes]

seems to be a little guy,,, when Lucy was that small he ate about 3 fuzzies, one right after the other, live, every 5 to 8 days

[led4urhead]

DiverDown .. just make sure that the mouse just as big, or just a very tiny bit bigger or smaller than his girth and you're good to go. If its too big, then you're bp either wont take it or could regurge it. If its too small it wont make much of a meal. Make sure you get to pick out your mouse personally. Do you feed live, pre-killed, or f/t?

[JamminJonah]

The general guideline is to feed prey slightly smaller than the thickest part of your snake. My buddy is about year and three quarters/ two years old and feeds on small rats... I would say look at the thickness of the mouse and just be sure that it is slightly smaller than the thickest part of your snake. Feeding one prey item rather than two is a good idea because digesting two mice is much harder on the digestive tract than digesting one. Glad to hear that your BP is a good feeder though