Pet store was out of the smaller ones. Wasnt sure he could handle it, but he seems to have done ok. Wild caught on road in September- still has belly button.
-----
_____
Reptile & Amphibian Forums
Welcome to kingsnake.com's message board system. Here you may share and discuss information with others about your favorite reptile and amphibian related topics such as care and feeding, caging requirements, permits and licenses, and more. Launched in 1997, the kingsnake.com message board system is one of the oldest and largest systems on the internet.
Baby's first adult mouse
iturnrocks
Jan 19, 2005 10:02 AM
Replies (5)
mattcbiker
Jan 19, 2005 05:27 PM
It is amazing how large of an item they can eat - but don't keep it on that schedule. That's way too large of lump, and I'd get him back down to hoppers or something like that until he gets bigger.
-----
Matt from Minnesota
Cornsnake, Eastern Kingsnake, IL Bullsnake - all girls.
0.1 Crested Gecko
BILLY
Jan 19, 2005 08:15 PM
My friend, that is WAAAAAAAAY too big!!!
Yes...he was able to eat it, but he also might regurge as well. Overeating is harmful to snakes as well, just like it is to humans. I can eat a whole 16 inch pizza( and would have fun doing it as well! LOL! ), but the results of doing that are not healthy.
I am not coming down on you at all, but politely encouraging you to think about the well being of your snake. Big meals like that encourage the risk of regurgitation, and for some snakes, especially pits, some of them never fully recuperate after regurging.
That is an awesome snake by the way! What is the story on that snake? Where did you get it?
Take care!
Billy
-----
Genesis 1:1
guero
Jan 19, 2005 10:45 PM
Are you sure that is just one......
Feeding like that will cause obesity and/or large fatty deposits that very unsightly too. Some snakes like that become very thick before gaining the proper amount of length. If they regurge this size of meal, it will be VERY stressful on the snake itself. I would not feed for a couple of weeks to let that digest. A good rule of thumb that I go by is, that I feed a mouse that is fairly close to the girth of the snake.
Later
Scott
iturnrocks
Jan 20, 2005 08:48 AM
I know that mouse is too large, in fact I really didnt expect him to eat it. It was the smallest they had at the pet store, and since I didnt have the snake with me to compare, I didnt think it would be a problem.
Below is the size I normally feed him, and I will most likely go back to that whenever they are available.
I caught the snake in September 04 while road cruising in western Kansas. It is the smallest bullsnake I have ever found wild. I caught and released a larger bullsnake near the Konza Prairie in early November 04.
I rarely keep animals, and this bullsnake and my cooter are the only reptiles I have.
-----
_____
Shaun Roberson
Jan 20, 2005 01:32 PM
Yes, that looks about right. Judging by everyone's reaction, I don't know if everyone read that you only fed it that large one once since that was all you could get. No, it isn't recommended to feed that large an item, but in a jam, it's probably not going to cause any problems. Let's face it, in the wild they do not get a steady supply of ideal size prey items; they take what they can get, and often that is aprey item that is considerably larger than what we would choose to feed.
