Posted by:
TBrophy
at Thu Aug 11 11:29:24 2011 [ Email Message ] [ Show All Posts by TBrophy ]
I think a lot of us learned that snakes are "cold-blooded" and just do not eat much because they have a "low metabolism". You know, the one mouse every two weeks advice from the past. I believe what we under-estimated for years is just how much they can and do eat in the wild. Anyone who has ever run a snaptrap line in a pasture knows just how incredibly abundant field mice and voles can be. Lots of kingsnakes, ratsnakes, bullsnakes, etc. probably eat daily, maybe 2X per day. Crap, as a kid I learned that they ate a large meal then "rested" for a week or so before they got hungry and started to prowl again. You know, maybe eat 15-20 rodents a year. Well, truth is I think they may eat 150-200 rodents in a year under good conditions (lots of mice; lots of heat). Cold-blooded, my @ss!
To be honest, I do not feed them as much as they have the genetic potential to eat. My reason? It would cost too much and I would be cleaning cages daily! Still, I feed a lot, give them temperature choices, and do not have regurging problems.
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