Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Is it possible for snakes to eat "too much", or will they stop before it hurts them? I have two 3.5 ft corn snakes and I usually get an adult mouse and a fuzzy rat(the ones with a little bit of fur and shut eyes, maybe 3 inch long body tops)for each of them once a week. But this time when I tried to feed them the male wouldn't eat the rat so I fed it to the female who immediately devoured it like she was starving. So, 2 questions: can snakes eat too much? and do females eat more than males?

Thanks.

They'll eat until they are full. Sometimes more than you think they should.
If you do this repeatedly over a long period of time, its called "power feeding." This supposedly can lead to long-term health issues, and can certainly lead to obesity in adult snakes, but every so often, its completely fine.
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V.P.
Austin Herp. Soc.

Thanks, and do you have any idea why he is eating so little, or why she is eating more than she ever has? Could she be pregnant?

Your original description made it sound like more of an isolated incident. A "one-time thing" where the male simply did not feed & the femal gladly ate the leftovers. THAT happens in my snake room all the time: One snake skips a meal and someone else gets a bonus.

It's happened maybe 2 times out of the past 4 or 5 feedings.

And she is usually much more aggressive than him, finishing both the mouse and rat before he finishes just the mouse.

Maybe he is a she and she is a he? In my collection my females tend to eat very little and some times stop feeding all together when they are gravid
Foot Hill Reptiles

I got them sexed as babies but I know that's not as reliable, so I'll check again.

I have a corn snake that eats too much. I fed him a good sized adult mouse once a week for years. This story goes back to my beginning herping days... He seemed content, just ate and ate, never refused a meal. There was a also a time he wasn't handled as much and he wasn't very active in cage. It seemed like all in one day, he was 4 1/2 ft long and very obesely squishy. He had to go on Snake Watchers and I fed him a fuzzy every 7-10 days for a few months. I'm sure he was a bit hungry and began to hunt around his cage, which helped with a bit of exercise he really needed. We also increased his handling. I still have to watch him and I alternate feeding him a fuzzy and a small adult mouse once a week. I think snakes are individuals, like people. Perhaps this one has a slower metabolism. He's very laid back while my other two adult corns are bit more active and leaner, and just a tad pickier about feeding.