can i feed mice or rats depending on what's available?

[recycling goddess]

i'm not asking about my ball python cause i know how they imprint on feeders... but how about my boas?

my hog island and my new surinam rtb - can i switch them back and forth depending on what i have available?

cause right now i have a litter of 6 baby ratties... we are keeping two females to breed but i thought i'd like to feed the other four as right now they are the size of a large mouse - but once the 4 are gone, can i go back to mice till i have more ratties available?

the reason i want to do this is because ratties are $7 each here :eek: and mice are only $1.75 - so it's too expensive for me to feed two snakes rats on a weekly basis.

obviously my ball and cornsnakes will stay on mice as a lifetime of mice are waaaaaaaaay less expensive than a lifetime of ratties.

[SatanicIntention]

I would think, because of a boa's wonderful feeding response and unruffable disposition, I doubt they would have a problem switching back and forth from mice to rats. I feed my boy every two weeks on live 4 week old, 1.5lb rabbits and he does wonderfully. He would eat a porkchop covered in hair though, I suppose, LoL. In the past, he has eaten rats, guinea pigs, rabbits, hamsters(disposal for the pet store he was at before twit #2 bought him from twit #1 and Jo rescued him from twit #2).

Live, pre-killed, f/t, mice, rats, guinea pigs, rabbits, it won't matter to the Boa, I'm sure. They're not like Ball Pythons who will only eat one thing(unless the Ball in question is my rescue Breth, who eats me out of house and home, she eats live mice, f/t rats, etc).

[recycling goddess]

thanks becky... i figured you'd know.

makes me feel better since i can use what i have available.

(thank goodness for jo rescuing him from twit #1 and 2)

[frankykeno]

As long as it's a healthy, appropriate prey item Aleesha I wouldn't particularily worry about it with a boa. As Becky says Rauri will happily eat pretty much anything. Heck Rauri used to hang out on our glassed in front porch with us and glare at the large squirrels that ran all over our yard in Michigan. I miss that big fella for cleaning up my own rat feeders that outgrow the BP's size ranges. Severus, Luke's yearling BCI, came to us a lifelong mouse eater. Took him oh about a nanosecond to switch over to eating rats LOL.

As your boas grow of course you're going to have to look to something much larger than mice (which will likely be pretty soon LOL they tend to grow like the wind at least Severus sure is and I don't think big Rauri is quite done growing either). The nice thing is you may find f/t rats to be a good option costwise as well as locating a meat bunny breeder nearby. I know neither Rauri or Severus seem to care whether it's live, f/t or p/k as long as it's dinnertime.

[recycling goddess]

well i'm not ready to think about bunnies yet... but i'm sure i'll be ready for it once it happens.

my little girl is over a year old and still very small. i was surprised she was over a year... i thought she was a hatchling!

[sweety314]

WTH!?!??? Where was I when you got your Suri, Aleesha???? Geeeeeeeeez


I've swapped Wrigley back and forth w/o any problems when we ran out of rat pups and had to do mice, and we've also gone between live and FT. He's eaten anything! At first I thought it was because he was older, but Petey has done the same thing when we ran out of FT rat pups, I had to give him a live mouse, and then a FT rat pup again......not a problem.

*knock on wood* So far, sooooo GREAT! No feeding strikes w/any of the boas...and I wished I could say that about the balls, but the good news is that after six weeks, Zeus ate this past Sunday. Whew!

What did U name her Aleesha??? Have U posted pics? I'm headed to the pic and RTB forums to look.

congrats on your newest baby!

RuLyn

[recycling goddess]

heehee, don't worry i just got her a couple days ago. she's fed and in her new enclosure. thank goodness for P.A.M. as we found a mite in her water dish!!! but her encl has been sprayed so they'll be toast!

she's the sweetest little girl and i just can't wait to handle her... but i know... a week. having a well adjusted stress free snake is WORTH the wait!

she's in my bedroom and gives me a little peek out of her hide whenever i come in the room... ahhhhhh she's so darned sweeeeeet!

did you find my post yet?

[sweety314]

Nope, not yet. It's the PITS not having a PC @ home....I have to wait until my breaks and then I get soooooooo far behind on my BP.net FIX! lol


I'm still searchin'


RuLyn

[recycling goddess]

here ya go:

http://www.ball-pythons.net/forums/s...ad.php?t=34760

[_BoidFinatic_]

I feed mice and rats to my boas back and forth and they don't seem to prefer either. I feed what I am breeding/have in the freezer.