First Reptile! Feeding Question.

[sonicity]

Hey! I recently got my first reptile a beautiful little Carpet Python named Willis (Will-hiss), still trying to figure out if he is a Darwin or a Jungle, bought him through a pet shop and the breeder didn't provide much information, only saying that he is a Top End and a Morelia Spilota Variegata, but other people on this site and the pet store themselves believe it might be a jungle.

After the first few days he has finally calmed down and is now pretty relaxed with me handling him for 20-30 min a day.

He is a good feeder in his history before and I have fed him once since coming into my hands with no problems, he is 2 years old and around 3 foot, I've started him on fuzzie mice and just curious to others opinions, how often should I feed him? and should I get something bigger then a fuzzy right now? The pet shop recommended once a fortnight but, I've seen elsewhere weekly or every 10 days is also acceptable. I'd rather overfeed him a bit and ensure he grows healthy then stunt his growth a little bit to keep him slender.

 

[Snapped]

Hey! I recently got my first reptile a beautiful little Carpet Python named Willis (Will-hiss), still trying to figure out if he is a Darwin or a Jungle, bought him through a pet shop and the breeder didn't provide much information, only saying that he is a Top End and a Morelia Spilota Variegata, but other people on this site and the pet store themselves believe it might be a jungle.

After the first few days he has finally calmed down and is now pretty relaxed with me handling him for 20-30 min a day.

He is a good feeder in his history before and I have fed him once since coming into my hands with no problems, he is 2 years old and around 3 foot, I've started him on fuzzie mice and just curious to others opinions, how often should I feed him? and should I get something bigger then a fuzzy right now? The pet shop recommended once a fortnight but, I've seen elsewhere weekly or every 10 days is also acceptable. I'd rather overfeed him a bit and ensure he grows healthy then stunt his growth a little bit to keep him slender.

Top end python usually mean Darwin Carpet python, looks very similar to a Cape York python though, I"m sure someone else will come along who has more knowledge on this.

Fuzzy mice are a bit small, I'd up his food size to just slightly bigger than his body size at it's widest, so probably a medium or adult mouse, or even get him onto the equivalent size rat. Food should leave a noticeable lump in the body.

Personally I feed my adults once a fortnight, if they are super hungry (coming out of winter) then it's probably every 10 days.

I'd cut down the handling time to 10 mins every second day, you don't want to stress the snake out, he needs to feel secure to eat, I always recommend people have a read of Doc Roc articles, the first 3 articles are brilliant (takes very little time to read and should be mandatory for all new snake owners I think , it will give you a great insight into the snakes needs).

http://www.southernxreptiles.com/RA ARTICLE PAGE.htm

Love the name too!