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Have a quick (I think) question if anyone can answer it for me??

I have a 9' red tail female, about five-to-six years old. She is healthy, has room to roam in her cage, etc. I feed her three large rats about every other week, sometimes into a third week if the pet store is out. Mostly, I feed "on demand" as opposed to a set schedule. It has worked well so far.

This past week I made a change I thought was no big deal... Since she has eaten three at a time for the last two or three years and since she is a little bigger, I thought maybe I should add in a fourth. I thought if she didn't want it, I'd just freeze it. Well she wanted it. Nothing seemed amiss...

That night she was up and about all over her cage.. and all the next day, and the next night... trying hard to wedge herself out through the doors (they do have a small give to them, and she knows that. She can't get out, but it doesn't stop her trying). She has been acting like she is starving to death since the night I gave her the rats.

Did I screw something up here? Every other time in the past that she has been "graduated up" with feedings nothing weird happened. Now she acts like I haven't fed her in a year! What gives??

Thanks for the input!
Sweet

I have a few snakes that try to escape from their enclosure whether they are hungry or not, especially if they know there is spot they think they can use to get out of. (perceived exit). They also make similar " escape try's " if their cage temperature rises and or falls extremely out side their preferred range. I have a reticulated python that is convinced she can escape by pressing her nose in the corner of her cage, she has made her face "puffy" on a few occasions trying, this was happening with optimal conditions, she thought she could get out and even persisted to do so to the point of injuring herself. They are "programmed" to be escape artists by nature, and will "over" test a perceived exit. I have also had this happen when they smell the pheromones of the opposite sex during their breeding season.
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Thanks,

Frank Roberts
Roberts' Realm Of Reptile Research

I will definitely put some thought into the temp changes, esp since summer heat seemed to really start kicking in around the same time she did that..

However, just want to say that she has always known of this spot and never been this persistant, even when really hungry. And she started it within hours of her last feeding.. very, very odd behavior for her. She is always fat and happy at this point.. so.. if there are any other ideas out there/things I should check out, I would appreaciate added input.

Thanks!
Sweet

Is there a specific reason why you feed multiple large rats and not one collasal?
That would probably be a better idea, not that, that has anything to do with her escape attempt....
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1.0 Poss super PC Salmon 05 (Rich Ihle)
0.1 Dubay Pastel 04 (Clay English)
1.0 Sharp Albino 05 (Mike Wilbanks)
0.1 Normal BCI 04 (????)

It has a lot to do with what I can get from the pet store. I don't have a place to store frozen rats, so I don't order those. And our local pet store's idea of a jumbo is not much bigger than a regular adult rat.. so I get what I can get