what size of mouse/rat should i be feeding my bp?

[Lillian]

i have a bp who's almost 2 yrs old (bday feb. 1) and he's about 34" long. i dont know his weight, sorry. i've been feeding him one large mouse once a week on fridays. of course, my baby isn't much of a baby anymore and i've been wondering when i should bump up his large mouse to a small rat and if/when i do, should i be changing his schedule from once a week to ever 2 weeks or whether it should stay the same.
he seems happy but i want to make sure he's getting fed as often as he should be! thanks for the help guys!

[wax32]

I'd think he could easily bump up to weaned rats. Hopefully someone who has been keeping balls longer than me will chime in. My year old male has been eating 35g "jumbo" mice. Once he gets done with this breeding season fast that he seems to be in I plan to start giving him 60g rats. Remember that you can generally feed a ball a meal equal to his girth.

[xdeus]

One large mouse a week for a male Ball is plenty. There's no need to bump up the size. Males don't need the extra food that a female might for breeding, although breeder males would probably need more than a non-breeder male.

The first 3 years are all about growth, but then it's just about maintenance. Figure an adult male that weighs 1,500 grams is getting about 1,500 grams of food annually with a 30g mouse once a week... that's plenty of food and any more might result in a fast.