Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Ok well me and my friend are working on a care sheet online...We are trying to make it very detailed so we need help on the feeding.....We were thinking something like this

newborn-30" = 1 small mouse 1x a week/rat pup
30"-42" = 1 mouse 1x every 5 days/weanling rat 1x a week
42"-54"= 1 small rat 1x a week
54"-66"= 1 medium rat 1x a week
66"- 78"= 1 l;arge rat once every 10 days
78" and up= 1 rabbit of appropriate size every 2 weeks
over 3 years old= 1 feeding a month

Were going to get into more detail but does tyhat sound like a good plan I would love to hear others feeding guidelines as well thanks alot
Mike

Well, you might probably note that the food shouldn't be bigger than the largest girth of the snake and sometimes this might be a better way of determining food size than length. Some snakes are wider at shorter lengths, while others stay leaner, so a really stocky snake might throw off your guideline. Some people feed rats the entire duration of a boa's life, and some feed adult boas smaller meals weekly or biweekly rather than moving to a "one large meal once a month" schedule (perhaps this creates a little less stress to the digestive system).

Seems like a good general guide though!
-----
Lauren Madar
www.ophidiagems.com
1.1 Hog Island Boas
1.1 Hypo BCI
0.1 Sorong-type GTP
1.0 Normal Ball Python

Lauren, are you perhaps related to Dr. Douglas Mader? If you were, that'd be surely cool

anyways, I was going to suggest the girth thing as well. IN addition, perhaps specifiy rabbit weight. A detailed guide should well, be detailed right? Perhaps also include information on healthy prey animals, the benefits of feeding weekly, bi weekly, or monthly (I don't recommend monthly, but know some people do it and it works). Also perhaps discuss the benefits of monitoring your snake's weight, as well as how the feeding schedule might need to be adjusted to the individual.

Lastly, there are benefits to feeding at a varied interval with varied prey species and types. Albiet not likely acheivable in a large collection. Perhaps, if no facts on this last point are available, a discussion paragraph could be included to get the readers thinking.

Ian

100% agreed with additional comments in blue

>>anyways, I was going to suggest the girth thing as well. IN addition, perhaps specifiy rabbit weight. A detailed guide should well, be detailed right? Perhaps also include information on healthy prey animals, the benefits of feeding weekly, bi weekly, or monthly (I don't recommend monthly, but know some people do it and it works). Also perhaps discuss the benefits of monitoring your snake's weight, as well as how the feeding schedule might need to be adjusted to the individual.
maybe add a weight of prey vs weight of snake chart? As I see it there would be three factors to consider, girth of snake, length of snake and weight of snake.
>>
>>Lastly, there are benefits to feeding at a varied interval with varied prey species and types. Albiet not likely acheivable in a large collection. Perhaps, if no facts on this last point are available, a discussion paragraph could be included to get the readers thinking.

I have a fairly large collection and while I am pretty much unable to vary the prey species diet, I do regularly vary interval. I raise my own food and go through periods of feast/famine and the snakes seem to do just fine with it. Also, I plan ahead for vacations and stop feeding 1.5 - 2 weeks prior to leaving. This allows most waste to be passed before I leave. That way most of the enclosures will remain clean while I am away and the snakes are IMO better off. With my BRB's, they quite often go in the water bowl. When I return, it's feast time for all!!
>>
>>Ian
-----
Thanks,

Dave Colling

www.rainbows-r-us-reptiles.com

0.1 Wife (WC)
0.2 kids (CBB, selectively bred from good stock)

LOL, to many snakes to list, last count:
11.24 BRB
10.16 BCI
And those are only the breeders

lots.lots.lots feeder mice and rats