Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Here are some picks of Blacky, my black milk. I got him about a year ago at the age of 15 months. He is now a little over 2 years old. Here's a pic from last March or April, and one from today... he may look a bit fat since he just ate 2 rats 2 days ago.

The top two images are from today, and the bottom is from last April, if it isn't obvious!

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Matt from Minnesota

Matt, I thought he was just big because he obviously ate your sleeves.

(j/k....nice snake)
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0.1 Amelanistic Corn
0.1 Tarahumara Mtn. King
2.2 Thayeri
0.3 Kunasir Island Rats
0.1 White Oak Gray Rat
0.1 Baird's Rat
1.2 Everglades Rat

The swim trunks are on and the AC is cranked up! Too hot!!

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Matt from Minnesota

Nice Black Milk Matt. What size rat are you feeding, weanling, which about the size of a jumbo mouse? What is your feeding schedule? Thanks.
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Ken Roshak
BlackSwampSerpents@toast.net

Blacky eats small adult rats from Rodent Pro without a problem. Actually, my big king refused his medium adult rat the other day, and that's what the bulge is in the pics of Blacky! I don't like to refreeze rodents so I thought I'd offer it, and he swallowed it, although it was certainly larger than what he should eat on a regular basis.

As far as regimen goes, it's highly variable. I'm a pretty busy guy. Nowadays I feed him about once a week. Sometimes 2x. Much of this winter it was only once every 2-3 weeks, and I gave him a month long fast as well.

Last winter and spring I was feeding him 2-3x a week, and he never refused a meal. He went from weanling mice to small adult rats in a a year!
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Matt from Minnesota

Thanks for your input Matt. I feed my 2 yr old Blk Milks a weaned-to-small rat weekly and they're growing well.
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Ken Roshak
BlackSwampSerpents@toast.net