Feeding after brumation

[kenalotia]

Okay, I know that most people offer their snakes a smaller meal than usual for their first feeding after brumation. My question is, how much smaller? Frank normally eats weaned rats. Do you think I should try to offer him maybe a small adult mouse instead this time?

Thanks. :)

[Susan]

A small adult mouse, or even a jumper, would be good for a first meal after brumation.

[Kevin M]

I feed my adults a single hopper or small mouse 2 days after I've taken them out of brumation. Providing everyone is OK I'll follow that up with a normal feeding a few days after that.

[Rich Z]

I think a lot depends on the temps your animals are experiencing when you bring them up. I tend to bring my up to around 78 degrees fairly rapidly, but I still give them a week before I try to feed them. Generally I feed a small hopper mouse the first time around to get the digestive juices working again.

Anything that might be a bit on the smaller or thinner side, I would likely give a large fuzzy mouse to.

If I had rats available, I would probably use fuzzy rats for the first meals.

Darn, it is that time of year now isn't it......

[kenalotia]

Thanks for the tips, guys! :) Frank ate a freshly killed hopper earlier tonight. He'd refused the last meal I offered him... went straight from the "I can't eat; I'm brumating" phase to the "SEX SEX SEX who cares about food?" phase. So I'm relieved now that he's actually eaten again.