Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Im sorry for all the questions, this is just follow up from my below question on my 8-9 month old desert king..I try to feed once per week...I hear that it should be every 5 days...is this true? I also feed my corn snake once every 7 days..should it really be 5 days? or is every 7 days ok for a snake this age group?

>>Im sorry for all the questions, this is just follow up from my below question on my 8-9 month old desert king..I try to feed once per week...I hear that it should be every 5 days...is this true? I also feed my corn snake once every 7 days..should it really be 5 days? or is every 7 days ok for a snake this age group?

There is no set schedule except for the one you make...
Feed the snake when it's hungry as much as it wants...
If all conditions / husbandry is correct it will thrive and probably want a meal in less than 5 days....Some of mine get fed every 3 or 4 days....Snakes are individuals so get to know it's needs/wants and feed it when it's hungry...

Usually when the timed lights turn off in my snake enclosures the hungry ones will emerge from their hides and "search"...this lets me know it is time to feed....

The every 5 or 7 days a week is a keeper's schedule and will maintain a live snake but it will be hungry a times while the keeper waits on that 5th or 7th day to arrive....

I hope this helps...
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John Lassiter
Poor planning and procrastination on your part does not constitute an emergency on my part...

How often and HOW MUCH.
A adult king may want not one but two or three mouse meals.That depends on the size of each meal.The difference between 5 days and 7 days is nothing.You can feed it every 10 days and it may not make a difference over the long haul,Just feed it two mice.If your like most you want your snake to grow up as fast as possible.In the wild a snake won't have as much food and maybe heat to digest the food like snakes do in captivity.
Remember too that your snake may go on shed cycles where it may stop eating for a while and also seasonal cycles where it will stop eating for mounths at a time.I like to over feed my snakes till they look stout.That way if they go on a seasonal fast I can cool them @ 55 degrees for a few mths and not have to worry.After a while you wll know when your snake is hungry.it will be alert and moving around the tank/tub.When I thaw my FT mice out some of the snakes will smell the mice and you will see them looking to find the meal. If your snake doesn't take a meal you can refreeze it if you dont leave it there too long.

Cornsnake slugs

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Doug L