baby corn switching for live to f/t

[Ryce'smom]

Hi all,

My mother surprised me this past week on her trip to CA and called to ask if I wanted a baby corn snake. So I am now the proud mom to a 3 week old baby normal male. :) I called the store today to ask if he was fed live or f/t. I was actually disappointed to find out all their snakes were fed live.

The little guy just arrived to me on Thursday, and so I let him settle in to his new home, and recover from the 2 day drive.

I plan on offering him food tomorrow. Obviously, I want to be sure that he eats, since he hasn't now since a week ago Wednesday.

When's a good time to switch him over? I know Ryce came eating live, and was a pain to switch to f/t. And took starving him for over a month before he would accept a f/t mouse. But when they are so little, I worry. Ryce was my first snake, and I've had him now for a year and half.

Also - how long will they be eating pinky size? Roughly? I know it will be different for each snake.

Thanks in advance!

[moreptiles]

I would say that the majority of hatchlings that were started on live will eat f/t pinkies with no problems. So hopefully everything will be fine. Did he come in a deli cup? If so, you might start out feeding him in the same cup that he came in.

Mark

[Ryce'smom]

Thanks Mark!

I went ahead and bought a f/t mouse today, and he took it without a second guess. I did wiggle the baby a bit to get his attention, but he grabbed it and did well!

I guess, now I just need to know about how many I should order to last him, but to not be left with too many. I hate paying $1.50 a mouse at the pet shops. ick!

Thanks again!

[moreptiles]

Ryce'smom

$1.50 each for pinkies. You are really getting ripped off. We have pet stores that only charge about a buck each for pinkies, and that seems awful high. The problem with buying mice in bulk is that the shipping cost is so high because they have to package them in dry ice. Also, they often come 50 to a package, and by the time you use very many they are usually badly freezer burned and not in good condition for feeding. Although you have 2 snakes, so maybe ordering mice for both snakes may justify the extra shipping expense.

The best thing to do is find a few friends with snakes, and get together for an order of mice to share the shipping expense.

You asked how long they eat pinky mice. It depends on the snake. I had one snake that I fed twice a week, and it was ready for fuzzies within 3 months. I have another that will only eat 1 per week (if I'm lucky) and it has been eating pinkies for a year.

Chances are your snake is a good eater and will grow fast. so 50 pinkies may be enough to get it through until it is ready for fuzzies.

good luck
Mark