Mice, rats or ...?

[Jezza]

do you feed your snakes mice, rats or another type of food?
do you have a specialty food or special treats for your snake that you give it every now and then?
or does your snake prefer a particular food?
i like these smilies!

[kwiky]

it depends on the size of the snake, my babies get a pinkie or 2, then fuzzies for the larger ones, then large mice, then a couple of large mice, then rats, then if they are a big breed i'll move them onto guinea pigs and eventually rabbits, the only treat i give them is to starve them for 1-2 month every year (depending on breed/size) this keeps them in good shape and stops them become fat, it also seems to keep them regular feeders as none of my adults are fussy

[Tindomul1of9]

Wow!!!!!!

[Jezza]

yeah a lot of people have told me that, pinkies for babies and then move steadily up until you are feeding, a full grown snake, rats. but i havn't thought about what the larger types of snake would eat...do you feed everything thawed? or don't you freeze the guinea pigs or rabbits?
do you breed them yourself or get them from a pet store or local supplier?
Could you feed your snake just meat, like dogmeat, or something out of the local butchers?
i also wondered about the way most snakes won't eat for months at a time...you say starving them for a month works? i wonder why snakes do this...

[kwiky]

yes mate the guinea pigs and rabbits are frozen and take ages to thaw lol,
i purchase them in bulk from a local supplier simply because its easier to have them stored in the freezer for when i need them,
i do breed rats and mice as i sometimes have to live feed any babie snakes that dont seen to understand the whole freeze/thawed concept and it would be difficult to get live pinkies or rat pups any other way,
as for their feeding habits, i just think that they build up thier fat reserves easier in captivity as they are fed more regular than wild snakes that have to go out and actually hunt, once their reserves are built up they seem to lose interest in feeding and can take ages to eat again, although its not really harmful to the snake to fast for months on end it can also be a sign of illness so i prefer to know exactly why they have stopped feeding by by enforcing a fast annually, this pretty much iliminates the fat reserve reason and helps me to spot sick animals, as i do this during the 'winter cooling period' i find it helps to stimulate breeding activity (remember snakes need high temperatures to digest their food and shouldnt be fed during the winter cooling period anyway)
since i began doing this ive had very few snakes refuse food with the exception of gravid females and hatchlings/neonates

[Jezza]

yup cool
im not real interested in breeding mice just to feed my snake so i will prob get a supplier...don't know where from but i will get one
that explains a lot with the fat and everything 2 thanks!
your a great help, kwiky

[kwiky]

no problem mate, thats what forums are all about

[Jezza]

that pic of the snake
eating a rabbit looks FREAKY

[thomas_tompkins90]

Hey, I havn't seen your snake so I don't know how big it is, but instead of feeding it pinky mice, it would be a good idea to feed it baby rats instead. Rats have more calcium than rats do.