Help Mites!!

[Bogertophis]

I thought every four days was a little quick too, but that’s what the shop was feeding him so I just tried to keep it consistent. I should have been more clear about getting used to me and my family. I’m the only one that handles it, and I wasn’t handling him much other than to move him to clean his cage. I’m hoping I can get this figured out. Thank you so much.

It also depends on exactly what you were feeding- rats or mice, & what size/age?

Younger rodents have very little bone mass & are very digestible. So if you were feeding rat pinks, he (or she) could have eaten them almost daily, same goes for mouse fuzzies. Most ppl start off BPs on hopper mice, and pre-killed (either fresh, by you, or frozen-thawed) are by far the safer option. Once mice or rats open their eyes, they will bite back in self-defense- but not before then. And the older they (rats or mice) get, the better they are at self-defense, which by definition means they'll bite & may injure your snake if his grip isn't quite right. Eating live as they do in the wild, sooner or later snakes get injured by their meals, & even if they "win" the battle, it's far better to prevent injuries. It's just easier to keep a snake healthy than to fix medical issues (not to mention cheaper).

Tip: when you get a new snake, feed the same thing it was successfully eating for previous owner. Rats & mice smell (& presumably taste) different, & while some snakes don't care, many have preferences, lol.