Hamsters used as food?

[jessie_k_pythons]

Im having a problem with the mice here that I buy being steralized. I have 2 hamsters now and I was wondering if I can use the babies as food for my BPs?

[Adam_Wysocki]

Im having a problem with the mice here that I buy being steralized. I have 2 hamsters now and I was wondering if I can use the babies as food for my BPs?

I would not. Ball pythons can be "imprint feeders" which means once they get a taste for a specific prey item it can be next to impossible to switch them to something else. Hamsters are not going to be the easiest prey item to come by weekly for the next 20 - 30+ years and once hamsters get to be adults they have a ton of fur and some very long sharp teeth which aren't always agreeable with ball pythons.

-adam

[jessie_k_pythons]

I fully understand but with mice prices what they arw and all of them and the rats being steralized what would my other options be?

[frankykeno]

Jessica why do you believe all the mice and rats you are getting have been sterilized? Did your supplier tell you this? Personally I've never heard of wide spread sterlization of feeder mice/rats but maybe I just missed this somewhere along the line. Where are you getting these non-breeders from?

[jessie_k_pythons]

A mom and pop place about an hour away from me. They are doing the doo but nothing is happening. All the mice were in the same cage(both males and females) and I asked how long they were with each other. I was told about a month. and there are still no babies. I asked where They got them from and they "couldnt disclose that info". Im thinking some lab. They are all albino. Every store near me (besides Petsmart) has only albino mice. And they all have the males and females in the same cage with no sign of any babies. I asked this store i just bought from about that as well and they told me they havent had any give birth. Rats in all the stores are the same. same male/females in the same cage, no babies and all are albino.

[JimiSnakes]

Have you tried Rodent Pro? They are pretty cheap and they are always having sales. Check em out.

[jessie_k_pythons]

I have but they dont ship live... and my snakes wont touch f/t

[jessie_k_pythons]

I dont think any one ships live.

[4theSNAKElady]

Put an ad in the paper entilted.."looking for pet rats/mice proven breeders...for science project!!" LOL...had to put the "for science project" part in there...you should get some bites off of that one....

[Adam_Wysocki]

I was told about a month. and there are still no babies.

Not enough time.

-adam