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Feeding a 3 week old burm

CHEeeEZZZ May 17, 2005 10:25 AM

shes about 3 weeks and 26-27 inches is my guess. I fed her 3 full size mice one after the other last friday and there wasnt really even a bulge. So I was thinking i might try a weanling/small rat today. I know it is perfectly normal for snakes to stretch quite a bit during feeding but i wasnt sure if there is a threat of a baby breaking a rib or something on a large meal. Anyone have experince w/ feeding the little ones??? thanks- Pete

Replies (6)

Corbin May 17, 2005 04:37 PM

Baby burms can take rat pups right away when they hatch out. After 2-3 feedings they can take weanlings-smalls because of their rapid growth. When my burm was around 30" I gave her a small rat (4-5" body length and 50-80g) every 5-7 days. Just go for it and see how large of a lump it leaves, if it looks like it filled her up too much (more than doubling her girth) go with something smaller next time.
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1.1 Albino Burmese
1.0 Veild Chameleon
Waiting for more reptiles of any kind

crazy4burm123 May 17, 2005 07:20 PM

Whoa! 3 full size mice! that is toomuch.....your burm is a baby and should get a lot of food but that is power feeding. giver it 1 full size mous every 5 days . After a few feedings go to about 2 a week. DOnt switch to small rats until around the 3 ft mark and at least an inch of girth.

Corbin May 17, 2005 08:50 PM

Don't even bother with mice. Rats are a better choice, they are better for your snake. It is something like there are more calories per body mass unit in rats rather than mice. and to Crazy4burm, it really depends on what he or his local shop considers to be a fully grown/mature mouse, for all we know they could be selling juvies as adults. Just try the small rat and see how much of a lump it leaves, if it more than doubles the girth of your snake then go with something smaller next time.
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1.1 Albino Burmese
1.0 Veild Chameleon
Waiting for more reptiles of any kind

Drosera May 18, 2005 12:10 AM

Well, my two cents is to just keep the prey items the same diameter around as the widest part of her girth. That's sort of the classic rule of thumb. Rats are probably the way to go, so you won't have to change her from mice to rats later on. Maybe something smaller than a weanling? Doubt rib breaking is much of a risk, but she should be able to swallow it easily.
As for number and schedule, I can't help you there, never raised a baby burm. Good luck.
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0.1 chickens (Condor)
0.2 dog mutts (half ownership, only mine when they misbehave, Lucy & Amy)
0.1 Halflinger horse (Crissy)
0.1 Normal phase California Kingsnake (Sophia)
1.1 parents
Still searching for 1.0 WC human

jasonmattes May 18, 2005 08:31 AM

One good sized meal once a week is good. If you dont have the appropriate size then a couple smaller ones work fine.
Dont worry about rib breakage. They hinge so no worries there.
And yea..i'd go with rats..mice are a waste of time

CHEeeEZZZ May 18, 2005 05:52 PM

Ok thanks for the advice everyone. Turns out Corbin was right, she took the rat w/ no problems and theres a little bulge. Not quite double her normal girth, but a bulge none the less. Looks like I found the right sized item, and Ill be going w/ something this size every 5-7 until shes a bit bigger. Crazy4burm, we must have different ideas of full size mice, my baby burm put down 3 in about 15 minutes and was you could barely see any lump at all. But I appreciate the tips from you and everyone else. Thanks again

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