Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hi, after reading some posts about a week ago about how big some of your JCP's get after a year is making me a little concerned about my JCP. I don't doubt her health, I'm starting to think that I haven't fed her enough. I got her on august 2nd, 2002. She was close to a year old then. She's definately grown, but not too much. I think I fed her every 7 to 10 days, according to when she defecated. I'm starting to wonder if she didn't have adequate heat to digest her meals fast enough to grow at the rate most JCP's grow. It's been hard to tell what the temps were in her cage because thermometers can't just float on a branch, but I plan on getting a tempgun from pro exotics soon. (I know, that makes me sound terrible, considering I've had her for so long.) A rough estimate on herl length: 3 to 3 and a half feet. I'm guessing by how far she reaches across her cage, which is 3 feet long. She is eating rat fuzzies, and has been for a while. When I first got her, I fed her rat pinkies.
I'd appreciate any feedback.

3 feet long, 16 inches high, 11 inches deep.

The rule of thumb you hear most is that you should feed animals 100%-125% of the thickest part of the snake. If your snake is three years old, it should be eating adult rats. Guage the girth of your snake to the rodent or bird you are feeding and it should start to grow accordingly. I'm no expert but my JCP is younger than yours and eats 15 plus mice a feeding. In the wild it is not unocommon for them to gorge themselves. JCP's, like many snakes, will eat until you stop feeding them so start with an appropriately sized rat a week and go from there. Good luck, Eric-