Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hi all,

Now I have heard that using day old chicks as primary food source was not a good idea, since they were too high in fat % and my snakes would become obese.
I have been doing a little research and found these numbers (http://www.anapsid.org/resources/preynutrients.html)

Day old chicks
Protein %: 15.3
Fat % : 4.4
Ca % : 0.44
Phos %: 0.40
KCAL : 1.04

Adult Mice:
Protein %: 19.8
Fat % : 8.8
Ca % : 0.84
Phos %: 0.61
KCAL : 2.07

Apperantly adult mice is more than twice as fat as day old chicks, so now i am a little confused about what to belive.
further more species like Boiga (which is my primary interest and what i keep) eats lots of chicks in the wild. Often raiding birds nests.

the reason i'm a little curious is because 2 of my Boiga will eat nothing but day old chicks. And of course I do not want them to get obese and loose their good health

Hope someone can help me out

Kind Regards
Jakob

Little note: I wrote :"More than twice as fat" it should only have been "Twice as fat" ;o)

Day old chicks
Protein %: 15.3
Fat % : 4.4
Ca % : 0.44
Phos %: 0.40
KCAL : 1.04

Adult Mice:
Protein %: 19.8
Fat % : 8.8
Ca % : 0.84
Phos %: 0.61
KCAL : 2.07

I think it all depends on your source for nutrient info. Above is the nutrient content you quoted. Here is another data set prepared by: Ellen S. Dierenfeld, PhD, Heather L. Alcorn, BS, and Krista L. Jacobsen, MS - 2002. I have not seen the original paper and am quoting reprinted information, but I do not feel that it has been misrepresented or modified. The sample sizes for the adult mouse and day old chicks is large enough (108 and 66 respectively) for me to feel confident on the numbers given, but the sample size for the juvenile rat was only 5, which makes me question its accuracy.

Rat (juvenile 10-50g): about the same mass as an adult mouse
Dry matter %: 30.0
Protein %: 56.1
Fat %: 27.5
Energy density (kcal/g): 5.55

Mouse (adult):
Dry matter %: 32.7
Protein %: 55.8
Fat %: 23.6
Energy density (kcal/g): 5.25

Day old chick:
Dry matter %: 25.6
Protein %: 64.9
Fat %: 22.4
Energy density (kcal/g): 5.80

This data points out that day old chicks are LESS fattening and have a higher protein content than rats or mice. They also have a higher overall energy content gram for gram, so you get more bang for your buck per say.

So I wouldn't be too concerned about feeding chicks...especially to a snake who naturally eats them in the wild.

Matt

Thank you very much, Matt )