over feeding?

[tamzzz]

ok, my old snake i went on the logic of he never ate more then one or two rats. my new more vicious snake just keeps eating and looking for more. ive had people telling me she may be vicious because shes still Hungary. i know this is a noob question. but for a coastal python about a meter and roughly a yr old. shes a lil over half a kg approximately. how much should i be feeding her?

 

[Darlyn]

What are you feeding it? Rats all weigh different amounts what size are they?
By the way it is "hungry".

 

[tamzzz]

bad spelling my bad. there "medium" sized. not sure about weight.

 

[Darlyn]

So is a medium rat about 200 grams? Makes a big difference to people helping you.
Wasn't having a crack at you're spelling just thought if no one tells you you wont know : )

 

[Khagan]

ive had people telling me she may be vicious because shes still Hungary.

Hmm that's odd, Hungarians aren't usually vicious.

Wasn't having a crack at you're spelling just thought if no one tells you you wont know

You are spelling? Do you mean your spelling?

Now that i have that out of the way.. Small to medium adult rats are a good size.

 

[leamos]

So is a medium rat about 200 grams? Makes a big difference to people helping you.
Wasn't having a crack at you're spelling just thought if no one tells you you wont know : )

200g sounds like quite a big rat, i would definately class a 200g rat as large, the prey charts i use describes a medium rat as being anywhere from 80 - 150g

Tamzz, with a 500g snake, one 80-100g rat a week/10 days would be sufficient. That works out at 16 - 20% bodyweight which is ideal IMO. Get your hands on a set of digital scale (mine were $10 from $2 shop) makes your life so much easier

 

[tamzzz]

now that you guys are finished fixing my grammar thank you for the help. ive had mixed advice for her since i got her. im just trying to sort out what to do with her.

 

[MontyTheBredl]

Is it possible to over feed a little hatchie spotted python on pinky mice? I give her one every 7 days but i think she might still want another one

 

[Skelhorn]

Is it possible to over feed a little hatchie spotted python on pinky mice? I give her one every 7 days but i think she might still want another one

Monty My hatchling stimson's were eating 2 pinkies every 5 days at 2-3 months old. At 5 months i upped them to a good sized pinkie rat (which they loved and added 1,0000000000 times more nutrients-result rapid healthy increase in growth). At that age they are growing quickly and it would be hard to overfeed on pinkies man

 

[MontyTheBredl]

Oh okay thanks ill offer her two next time then. Shes 2 months old so it should go alright

 

[CrystalMoon]

Hi Tamzzz, dont worry about you're(your) spwellingg or, "ya" gramm'ma rofl.... I dont just read any of ma posts(snickers) I have a Coastal Boy about the same age weight/size as yours and I feed him a small rat(when I can get them) or a Jumbo(huge)mouse every 7 days(sometimes 10-14 days just to break routine) and he is happy as Sometimes just after you feed them they can still be what I call in "hunt mode" and will have that "feeding" response still happening. So if you put your hand/hook into the container/enclosure they will mistake you as "meals on wheels" lol I generally Leave my Boy alone till he has digested his meal before I handle him and then he is more than happy to be handled. If you havent had your Baby long perhaps she is still adjusting to a new home and "slave" Good luck
Crystal
PS I dont think any-one was having a crack at your spelling in a malicious way, more just to let you know kinda as a heads up for some teasing(fun way) Cause out of all the Hungarians I have met none of them have ever been vicious :lol:

 

[Bluetongue1]

How much per feed?
A meal weighing 5% to 20% of the snake's body weight is within the accepted conservative range.

Meal size can also be determined by eye. Meal sizes estimated in this way have been to fall mainly in the range of 15% to 20% of the body weight of the snake.

The maximum diameter of the food item should be equal to or slightly larger than the maximum diameter of the snake. Alternatively, the bulge produced by a single item meal should obvious but not excessive. this will be around ¼ to 1/3 increase on normal diameter, once it reaches the snake's stomach.

How often to feed?
A good conservative feeding regime is juveniles once a week for there first year. This can then be stretched out a number of months to once a fortnight for sub-adults and adults.

Some keepers prefer to feed their young snakes every 5 days and their older snakes every 10 days.

Conservative Feeding vs Other
The above recommendations will allow snakes to reach their full potential in terms of size i.e. no stunted growth. Being opportunistic feeders in nature (not knowing when or where their next meal may happen) snakes will eat more and more often, if allowed.

Experiments with Antaresia pythons have shown that they will eat about one third of their body weight if allowed to eat to refusal. Some keepers even place an additional prey item to the last one willingly taken, in the snake's mouth before it shuts. This practice of power feeding young snakes makes them grow significantly faster and they attain sexually maturity and are able to breed at a significantly younger age.

Unfortunately there does not appear to be any experimental evidence that documents the full life history of snakes that are power feed versus those that are conservatively fed. However, there is anecdotal evidence from a few well known keepers who have tried both, that power feeding significantly reduces the life expectancy of snakes.

Mixing it up
It is up to you which regime you want to adopt. Irrespective, you do not have to stick to a rigid feeding regime. If your snake still looks hungry after a feed, then you can feed it until it has had enough (to refusal). Let's say it was on weekly feeds and ate double what you would normally feed it. Just down don't feed it for another week and you are still on schedule. Alternateively, forget about the large feed and just keep feeding as per normal. the occasional larger feed or more frequent feed is not going to produce any long term health issues, so long as it remains occasional and not the regular thing.

Condition in Snakes
The best piece of advice I can provide is to learn how to determine the condition of a snake. Is it obses, normal or underweight? Then adjust your feeding accordingly. if you would like some info on this please PM as this post is already too long.

Blue

 

[Renenet]

Experiments with Antaresia pythons have shown that they will eat about one third of their body weight if allowed to eat to refusal.

Are there any published studies on this, Blue? I knew stimmies were pigs...

 

[bohdi13]

feed 10% of her body weight.

 

[MontyTheBredl]

Just offered her another pinkie and she smashed it. Now trying to find its head hehe

 

[Darlyn]

Hmm that's odd, Hungarians aren't usually vicious.



You are spelling? Do you mean your spelling?

Now that i have that out of the way.. Small to medium adult rats are a good size.

Ha ha Khagan, I can spell but I have bad eyesight so can't check for typos that well. : )

 

[Bluetongue1]

Are there any published studies on this, Blue? I knew stimmies were pigs...

There are but I am going away for a few days and don't have time to dig them up at the moment. Am happy to do so if you can wait until I get back.

Blue

 

[leamos]

http://www.aussiepythons.com/forum/...ildrens-python-research-prelim-results-84052/