View Full Version : how much do you feed
how much do you feed
jakes_cornsnake
11-02-2011, 04:32 PM
my snake is about 3'11" and i have been feeding it just one small rat every week and am wondering if this is enough. should i go by weight or how is it exactly that you experts go about feeding? thanks for any help.
schnebbles
11-02-2011, 04:46 PM
I have read that rats have a much higher fat content so you might want to switch to mice. My snakes aren't that big but I have read that a lot. I have also read that the adults don't need fed as often. Here is the Munson plan that many people use.
-When they're on single pinks (2-3g), I feed every 5-6 days. (Snake = 4-15g)
-Double pinks (3g x 2) every 5-6 days. (Snake = 16-23g)
-Small fuzzies (5-7g) every 6-7 days. (Snake = 24-30g)
-Regular fuzzies (7-9g) every 6-7 days (Snake = 30-50g)
-Hoppers (9-12g) every 6-7 days (Snake = 51-90g)
-Weaned (14-20g) every 7 days (Snake = 91-170g)
-Adult (20-30g) every 7-x days (Snake = 170+) See below.
Note: Adult females are fed more frequently than adult males (especially following brumation). Adult females are fed every 7-12 days; adult males are fed every 11-14 days.
This is by no means scientific, and not all corns will cooperate 100% with the schedule. The weight ranges I gave for the prey and snakes are approximate.
bitsy
11-02-2011, 05:20 PM
Just a couple of thoughts on the Munson Plan above:
- It refers to mice.
- Adult *breeding* female Corns are fed more than adult males, due to the physical toll of forming and laying eggs. My non-breeding females are kept on the same feeding regime as the males.
- The "Plan" is really a set of guidelines, rather than something set in stone. Personally, I've never weighed a mouse in my life!
My thought is that one rat per week is a lot for an adult Corn. I feed one large adult mouse every 14 days, at most.
Fatman608
11-02-2011, 05:30 PM
jakes_cornsnake - Feeding a cornsnake is easy. Just look at the snake and feed a food item 1 to 1 1/2 times the widest part of the body.
As to over or under feeding, handle the snake if it feels fat it is fat if it feels skinny it is skinny. You can also look at it and tell there are many pictures here of adult snakes to compare yours to.
You can also find the Munson Plan and weigh the snake and food item. I just find that too silly to do. You do need to watch out because rats do have a higher fat content than mice but if you feed properly and watch the weight you can feed rats.
schnebbles
11-02-2011, 09:56 PM
I don't weigh the mice anymore, but I do weigh the snakes since I'm new. I can tell by looking and weighing though that one snake will soon be up to 2 pinks. For me, it's a good guide, something at least to go by.
AliCat37
11-02-2011, 10:50 PM
Schnebbles is right about switching to mice. Small rats are calcium deficient and high in fat, so they are really not healthy for your corn and should only be used as "treats" or when rehabbing a skinny corn.
I feed as fatman says, I go by the width of the snakes. If they have a small lump in their bellies after they eat, it's a good meal.
jakes_cornsnake
11-02-2011, 11:23 PM
thanks for all the info. Its good to know that about rats! Good thing i just started the rat diet about three feeds ago. I'll swith over to mice. thanks for the help yall.
jakes_cornsnake
11-02-2011, 11:27 PM
I also might wait a little in between feeds.... its just so fun watching them eat haha. off topic- i found a beatiful grey rat snake that was run over down the street from my house :/ , it was a bummer!
AliCat37
11-02-2011, 11:32 PM
I also might wait a little in between feeds.... its just so fun watching them eat haha. off topic- i found a beatiful grey rat snake that was run over down the street from my house :/ , it was a bummer!
I feed all mine once a week :) I'll probably cut my boys down to every two once they're four or five years old. The rats won't hurt as a treat once in a while, I just wouldn't do it as a staple diet for a corn. That's too bad about the rat snake :( I wish we had cool snakes around here!
wildlifephotographer
11-02-2011, 11:44 PM
If yr snake is 3 feet 11 inches then it's probably considered an adult corn, from my understanding. So I would be feeding it one to two adult mice every 9-10 days or so. The only adult that I have that eats bigger then large is my five yr old female Diamond-she gets one extra large adult mouse once every 9-14 days. Sometimes I feed her two but not often. My other four adults whom are close in age all just over 3 yrs or just over 2 yrs are fed one to two adult mice. I would try and stick with mice, I've heard the same thing about rats-being high in fat content and not healthy for corns unless given as a treat.
Dracoluna
11-02-2011, 11:52 PM
Just reading all this, it makes me feel like I'm overfeeding my adults. My male got 'cut back' to only 2 mice every week and he thinks it's torture. Within 2-3 days, he's cruising his tank looking for another meal. My adult girl gets 3 adult mice every week but that's more for bulking up for breeding.
KingCrimson<3
11-03-2011, 02:18 AM
My 09 weighed in at 329 grams today and is maybe 3 and a half feet. He eats a healthy sized, plump looking adult mouse every two weeks. He weighed in on super empty today though, I think it had been just over 3 weeks because of the storm/power outage, I didn't want him to have food in his system just in case (good thing!) He is nowhere near starving. I really don't worry about him much weight wise, but I did have to stop feeding him on the same schedule as my ball python cause he started to get noticeably chunky on a once a week diet.
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