Multiple mice or single rat?

[dabigjhemzehh]

Hey guys, I was just hoping for some advice considering mice vs. rats. I got myself a hatchie Bredli and a juvie Childrens
and I was wondering if it's worth starting them on rats, in order to prepare them for adulthood.


Ive heard of many people feeding their larger snakes (obviously my Bredli not the Children's), multiple mice in a single feed, as opposed to a single rat. I'm just wondering as to people's opinions on the matter? Are there any benefits of rats other than convenience?

Any help appreciated.

 

[pythonmum]

Go up the mouse sizes as appropriate and then move to small rats. That way they have a more mature, larger prey. Don't mess around with multiple mice for the Bredl. A full grown one will eat young rabbits. The Children's will eat small rats when adult. That's what I've fed by stimson and spotted on for years.

 

[Bart70]

What she said.....

An adult Bredli capable of eating a rabbit or large rat will take an awful lot of mice to fill it.......If for no other reason, the cost of buying multiple mice compared to a single rat or rabbit should make the decision easier.

Experienced keepers also recommend that a single larger item is better than multiple smaller items where possible - Maybe some will reply and add their experience and reasons. I personally prefer larger and less often as my rule of thumb and from my limited experience my snakes that have been fed this way appear more settled and content than when fed the other way.....but this is not scientifically based, only my observations.

 

[wokka]

I feed my snakes larger food items less often because it is cheaper and less work. It also gives the snakes digestive system "time off" between feed , which closer mimics what would happen in the wild. I dont believe snakes are meant to be digesting 24/7, which may lead to burn-out, a little like Diamond Python Syndrome.

 

[shadowchazer]

as far as i was led to beleive and was told by my breeder wich im not saying is gospal, one of the important reasons u keep upgrading the size of the food rather than the amount is becoz as the food (ie mouse or rat) gets bigger in size its nutritional value also increases. feeding smaller but more feeders does not necessarily provide the same amout of nutrition as they are not as developed as much as a larger feeder.
example 3-4 pinkie mice would not equal a small rat in nutrition.
like i said i dont it to be gospal and i could be wrong, but when thought about it does make sense to me.......

 

[Norm]

I agree with wokka, it is a very lucky wild snake that gets to eat every week without fail. So I too prefer to feed a little less often and bigger feeds.

 

[Skeptic]

I feed my guys the largest food items they can handle. I do this for three reasons.

1. Snakes use a lot of energy just in the digesting process so a small meal can actually equate to very little energy gain.

2. Bigger meals means less frequent feeding and that has the benefits Wokka mentioned.

3. I breed my own prey items and I really don't like killing them. I'd rather sacrifice one life per meal than many.

 

[dabigjhemzehh]

Well that certainly cleared everything up guys, I appreciate it. Thankyou very much.

So move to rats later you suggest?

 

[Maxwell]

Nothing more frustrating then a jungle that doesn't like rats