Woma Python feeding question

[Endeavour]

How often do you feed yours when they reach a year old, your views and opinions would be great to read.


Kindest regards


Endeavour

[KaotikJezta]

Mine yearlings get fed fortnightly

[Endeavour]

Cheers for that, there seems to be quite a mixed opinion as to the best feeding frequency.


Kindest regards


Endeavour

[KaotikJezta]

Yeah, sure is, I am with the slow and steady crew. Mine shed every 6-8 weeks and are both quite large already and the right thickness so I assume I am doing the right thing.

[rvcasa]

...there seems to be quite a mixed opinion as to the best feeding frequency...

Depends on your location/temps/size (of feed) age of your Woma etc.

ie. a top breeder in Melbourne stops feeding them during winter and cools temps down to 10C at night etc.

He told me it's to "mimic the locale" for his SA Womas and I believe that's also cause he also wants to breed them.

Briefly, up in QLD, (where Tanami Womas are more common) everyone seems to keep the temps quite high 24/7 (a must for hatchies) and feed them every week or so as well.

My breeder only cools down temps (during winter that is) and spaces out feeding after 2-3 years.
But another breeder I talk to in SA, he also cools down temps during the night year round.

In general every one seems to agree the first year they need more hides, constant high temps and frequent feeding.

And that's exactly what I do.
This winter I only got one refuse feed. A Quail, which is not his fav! (I alternate with rats).

Both (above mentioned) breeders say not to worry to much as they will naturally refuse when the time is right for them.

In the wild they eat mostly lizards (less fatty meat) And in winter temps during the day in arid desert areas of Australia, where these pythons come from, temps are quite high compared to UK ie.

Hope this helps.

P.S.
keep feeding them more regularly if you want then to keep growing.

ie my breeder advised me to double the food amount every 4-5 feeds and keeping for another 4-5 feeds before upgrading sizes and so on.

The result, my Woma had constant growth spurts and became quite big very quickly. I changed that cause I don't need/intent to breed...

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[Endeavour]

Cheers my friend.


Endeavour

[KaotikJezta]

Growing snakes up quickly, especially womas, is not really a great thing to do IMO. Womas are prone to fatty liver and grow quickly enough without needing to feed up quickly.

[rvcasa]

Breafly, fatty liver disease is only an issue once feeding rats above 200gm

Another solution is to alternate with Quail, Chicks etc.

Check Doc Roc's (SXR) published articles on this...


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[KaotikJezta]

Breafly, fatty liver disease is only an issue once feeding rats above 200gm

Another solution is to alternate with Quail, Chicks etc.

Check Doc Roc's (SXR) published articles on this...


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Fatty liver is also an issue in overweight snakes. Chicks are not the best food source as they are very high in vitamin A so should be offered sparingly. I have read all doc rocks articles as I purchased one of my womas from SXR. Reading articles and talking to breeders is a great way to increase your knowledge but does not make you an overnight authority.

[rvcasa]

Never said I am!

Interesting, cause it was SXR who mentioned the chooks!


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[KaotikJezta]

Never said I am!

Interesting, cause it was SXR who mentioned the chooks!


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I never said no chooks, just not all the time.

[notechistiger]

I think fatty liver disease is an issue for snakes that sit in their enclosures most of their lives and don't "exercise" like their wild counterparts. Obviously the first year or two is different because they're still growing and they use the energy, but after that I would be inclined to slow right down and feed as KaotikJezta does. No point in growing up snakes fast unless you have a vested interest in getting them big and fat for breeding (and even then...)

[rvcasa]

That's what I said on all my previous posts:

- I stopped 'power feeding'

- I alternate food supplies


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[notechistiger]

I wasn't telling you what you should do, only really disagreeing with your statement about fatty liver disease being caused by x sized rats =)

[rvcasa]

...the 200gr rats size info has also been posted here few times. the last one I read about was yesterday.
which is also consistent with an email I got from Doc Roc at SXR. read below:

"Hi Ric,

it is true that fat food (i.e. fat rats) are very bad for Womas. They get fatty liver disease which is fatal. Unfortunately I learnt this the hard way many years ago and killed a few... see my article from Retiles Australia magazine... http://www.southernxreptiles.com/Art...Fs/woma_lr.pdf . All pythons are susceptible to this problem but by far the most sensitive are Womas followed by BHPs, no doubt because of their very low fat reptile diet in the wild.

Providing you feed Womas smaller rats (~ 120 gram or less) then there shouldn't be a problem. Older rats are full of fat - I never feed any python a rat over 180 grams (female rat) to 200 grams (male rat) because of the fat in them.

You can feed chickens without problems... Lately, I don't feed chickens only because the poops tend to be more runny and more smelly when pythons are fed birds.

Hope this helps.

Regards Simon"
woma_lr.pdf

P.S. nowhere in the article mentions anything about snakes that "don't exercise"

Ric