Feeding 2 mice??

[Damian7]

What's the s.o.p. for feeding 2 mice in one sitting? Damian has skipped his last meal on last Wednesday and I'm flirting with the idea of feeding 2 live mice today. Can anyone give me some advice on this or is this unadvisable?

[xdeus]

There is no need to feed two to "catch up" if he skipped a meal. If he has been taking one mouse per feeding, continue to do so. With that being said, if your snake is getting large enough where one isn't enough, you can feed two by offering him one at a time. Let him get the first one down completely, and if he shows an interest in looking for another meal, put the other one in.

[JLC]

If they're dead already (either pk or f/t) I just put them both in and let the snake decide if they want to eat both.


If they are alive, then put ONE mouse in and see if the snake is interested. If it eats the first mouse with a strong response and then (after fully taking it in) starts looking for more food, drop the second one in. Again, watch carefully and make sure your snake is really interested in eating it. If after 15 mins or so it hasn't taken it, then remove it and house it until the next feeding.

That's what I would do.

[Damian7]

Thanks guys. I think I'm gonna give it a shot. He's big enough to eat 2. One barely leaves a lump. I tried feeding him a f/t rat for the first time last week and he refused.

[xdeus]

Thanks guys. I think I'm gonna give it a shot. He's big enough to eat 2. One barely leaves a lump. I tried feeding him a f/t rat for the first time last week and he refused.

You went from live mice to F/T rats? I'm not surprised he didn't take it. If you want to switch try going to F/T mice or live rat pups first.

Good luck!

[Damian7]

I went from live mice to f/t mouse once then tried the f/t rat. I just feel he will eat live mice everytime, so if that's whats working for me that's what i'm going to stick with.

[tigerlily]

Thanks guys. I think I'm gonna give it a shot. He's big enough to eat 2. One barely leaves a lump. I tried feeding him a f/t rat for the first time last week and he refused.

The object of feeding a snake is not to see a visible lump. That's just not a great way to feed bps. You want something that is the same girth as your snake. Just my .

[ARamos8]

I only feed two mice when I can't find the small rats (15 min. between each). Looking to start a rat colony because of this. Anywho, tigerlily is pretty much dead on about the buldge thing. A consistent routine is what matters most than feeding to see a lump. As far as feeding to catch up, no need to play catch up. They can fast for a long time.

[rabernet]

The object of feeding a snake is not to see a visible lump. That's just not a great way to feed bps. You want something that is the same girth as your snake. Just my .

Ugh, this lady was buying a rat today while I was picking up some mice for next week's feeding (I like to get them a week in advance and feed them well for a week). She showed them the girth of her RTB by making a circle with her hands. The rat she got was 2 x the girth. She commented that she was concerned about the size, because her snake's scales were stretching a lot on it's last feeding and a HUGE lump. The employee said "that's a GOOD thing - that's what you WANT to see, you WANT stretched scales, if you don't see it, the prey is too small".

After the day that I had, I could have knocked him upside the head, but knowing these guys like I do, I just walked away shaking my head. I've quit trying to educate them, they don't care to listen to me. At least the mice are healthy and I go on the day they get their weekly shipments in. I just leave satisfied that MY snakes are well cared for, and in the end, that's all that really matters.