Power feeding?

[muddoc]

Since I guess I kind of fueled the fire resulting in the creation of this thread, I will post up my take on Power Feeding.

I saw a bit ago on another thread, that someone was asking; What is Power Feeding. I don't know that there is a definition, and I don't know exactly how I would put it into words. However, I guess power feeding can be described as feeding more than the usual or recommended food items.

With that said, I have been/am guilty of feeding more than the norm. I feed some (I say some, becasue not all, and certainly not any snake that I intend to sell) of my hatchlings every three days. This is mostly done to "important" (it's in the eye of the beholder) males that I would like to breed at 6-8 months of age. Once that animal gets to 500 grams, or once it stops taking 2 meals a week, I discontinue the increased feed rate. Many of the males that I attempt this with, will quit taking the secon meal a week near the 300 gram mark.
An explanation of why I think this is not harmful, and some input from other sources I have spoken with is as follows. I believe (and this has been reaffirmed by other breeders large and small) that evolution has programmed these animals to grow as fast as possible soon after hatching. This only makes sense, as a large snake has fewer predators than a small hatchling Ball Python. I believe that these snakes may actually have a higher metabolism at an early age that allows them to take in more food and grow faster when they are small. I have been wanting to take a closer look at this theory, but have yet to do so. I think that hatchling Ball Pythons may actually be slightly warmer, and spend more time on the hot end of the tank, in an attempt to digest slightly faster. I may have to take some temps with the temp gun this year in an attempt to put some numbers to this theory. Also, I believe this is happening in the wild, as every year, imported wild caught balls that are believed to be less than 8 months old come in with some pretty astounding weights.

I do know of a couple of people that have fed hatchlings as often as every other day without any adverse effects. I am not saying that I condone, or have ever tried this, and I certainly do not recommend it. However, I wanted to relay something that I have seen and heard of in the past. I do believe that the act of "overfeeding" can be dangerous to yearling and older animals, and would never try it. However, I have yet to see an obese Ball that is under 6 months of age. Please feel free to question anything that I have written, and I always love a good discussion. I merely wanted to see this in the Advanced Husbandry section, as I do believe it has a place, and someone with a good bit of experience may want to try it and need a little guidance.

Regards,