Reptile & Amphibian Forums

i chose a kingsnake partially because of always being described as "oppurtunistic eaters"(sometimes too oppurtunistic). i have been feeding him frozen pinkies, and know he appears big enough to take anoles.
i have heard of kingsnakes who, after they eat another snake, wont take rodents anymore. could this happen with anoles too? i didnt know if the taste was just for snakes or all reptiles. i know that youre supposed to "scent" mice with anole brain for tricky eaters, and that would make me think anoles are much preferred. what are your experiences?

heres a side question, is the actual health of the snake effected by a varied diet? id like to offer him a varied diet including baby chicks when hes big enough, but does it make a difference in well-being or lifespan, or just my entertainment?

i meant that hes feeding on fuzzies and not pinkies, my mistake.

What kind of king snake is he??With the exeption of the scarlet king most kings do not eat anoles and theres really no reason to do so when you can feed rats or mice, which are far more nutritous and easily aquired.If you have him on fuzzies upgrade to hopper when hes ready. As far as a varied diet, It is much healthier to do however you may give your king a taste of somthing he likes and he may not want to go back.Mice and espeacially rats have more than enough nutrients.

its a CB california king. im having trouble finding frozen anoles anyway, and live i think would be too risky with possible parasites...

Cal-kings like mice.Ive kep and bred them for many years. I live in vegas and have caught them as well and aside from naturaly accuring lizards in their territory they like mice the best.But my wild caughts have eaten side blotched lizards, whip tails, night and a variety of other lizards. But my opinion is they do best on mice.

Well anoles can and will carry parasites that will transfer easily to your king. Next they have less protein and calcium than a rodent which are both important to growth. The only upside would be trace nutrients in the gut of the lizard but you can add that to the diet by dusting rodents with powder supplements. So the question would be why risk parasites for lesser quality food items.

Chicks that have been frozen can add lots of fat onto breeder females after a egg lay or birthing event so there is a benefit. Also some people have suggested they had faster growth from a all chick diet but the feces is wetter.

Later Jason