i need some advice help :(

Luckily, I have photos of the same snake that basically illustrate the subtle differences. The 1st and 3rd photos were taken in Jan '09. This is an '06 female who was about 330 grams in the photos. The 2nd and 4th photos were taken just last week-end and her weight is about 400 grams. Basically, you're looking at the proportion of the head to the body size. As the younger snake, this female looked slightly out of proportion, with her head seeming too small for her body size.

Two more comparison photos of the one female, and also two of her sister taken in Sept '08 and Aug '09, with her weight being pretty much around 300 grams in both photos (she gained enough weight to be bred the end of May '09, so she was recovering from egg laying in Aug '09 as her sole baby hatched Aug 22nd).

Susan said:

There is nothing wrong about feeding pinky rats, or any rat of an appropriate size for any corn snake as long as you are aware that too much can cause obesity. All of my corns get rats as special treats (except for the one or two that don't like them), and I prefer to use them on those that need the extra boost, such as females that just laid a clutch of eggs.

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Susan, thanks for posting this. I had theorized that rats of a suitable size might have a role to play, particularly for corns who need some nutritional boost, but I was ~theorizing~. It's really cool to read that someone who has the experience ~knows~ what I had only theorized.

ok its been like 4-5 feedings on pinkies now and never had probs. this week i fed him again and digested without probs, sry for no updates.

when can i increase the mouse size again? its been like 4-5 weeks since the regurg now

Great!

How often are you feeding the pinks?

im feeding 1pinky every 7days

Good job maybe after another 4 good feedings and no regurges you can go to 2 pinks every 7 days. If after 10 good feedings on double pinks there is still no regurge go to fuzzies and so on. Growth thats slow and steady is not a bad thing for now

You could probably use the same size pink, but start feeding every 5 days instead of 7 - assuming he has been defecating normally, and is empty after 4 days or so. Be sure to put cuts into it if it is not alive. That helps it digest faster. I would let him stay on that diet every 5 days for at least another 5 or 6 feedings before changing anything.

I don't remember how big your snake is. But if the pink barely makes any bulge, then AFTER another 5 or 6 pinks every 5 days, maybe you can give it just a LITTLE bigger pink - not more than 20% more weight than you have been feeding. Better to be too conservative than to take a chance at another regurge.

Good luck!

If you only have a couple of sizes of pinks available, and can't just increase the size by a little, then maybe do a few feedings of 1 1/2 pinks before going to 2. Taking the interim step can help the snake avoid becoming overwhelmed.

thanks for the advice, btw the pic of the snake is at the begining of the thread katy compared to my hand, thanks for your helpfull info.
im feeding live btw. i will try to increase a little bit the size , and then re-increase after 5-6 feedings.

cause my snake is going in hunting mode after 1 1/2 - 2days :S

cause my snake is going in hunting mode after 1 1/2 - 2days :S

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Corns will usually be in "hunting mode" when they're not digesting. In the wild, they're opportunistic feeders and will always be on the lookout for food. He doesn't know that you will guarantee his next meal.

Just because he's out hunting, doesn't mean he actually needs food right at that moment to stay alive. It's the equivalent of a pet dog having a sniff around just in case someone dropped a scrap - if we fed them every time they did that, we'd end up with furry balloons!

bitsy said:

Corns will usually be in "hunting mode" when they're not digesting. In the wild, they're opportunistic feeders and will always be on the lookout for food. He doesn't know that you will guarantee his next meal.

Just because he's out hunting, doesn't mean he actually needs food right at that moment to stay alive. It's the equivalent of a pet dog having a sniff around just in case someone dropped a scrap - if we fed them every time they did that, we'd end up with furry balloons!

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thanks for the reply , i know all that. What i meant was that he usually takes 4-5 days to go in hunting mode and now on the small pinkies after 3of them he's going on hunting mode after 1 - 1 1/2 days.

DarkSmoke ... maybe I can clarify what bitsy is trying to to explain to you.

When a corn snake lives in the wild, as soon as they are finished digesting they go into hunting mode. Sometimes digestion is faster than other times, so sometimes the snake goes into hunting mode faster than other times. This happens because snakes are opportunistic feeders and will always be looking for food becuase they never know when they will get their next meal.

Our captive breed corn snakes have not lost this instinct. The big difference between the snakes in the wild and captivity is that we feed our snakes regularly and they do not have the ability to think this through and "hey I can just sit back and relax until the next meal comes because I know that it will come to me". So just because they are in hunting mode does not mean you should feed them.

Our captive snakes will become fat over stuffed sausages and die early due to health complications, if we fed them every time they displayed what appears to be the hunting mode. This is esp. true because our captive snakes do not get nearly the amount of exercise that they would if they were in the wild.

Finally, the behavior you are seeing is not necessarily the hunting mode. Snakes relax while they digest and after digesting some are more prone to become active, you may just have an active snake. You can not really know if your snake is actually hunting or not, right after digesting because you just can not read his mind. So stick with a reasonable feeding schedule and do not be worried that he is to hungry because as many people have mentioned before it is better to under feed a captive snake than to over feed it.

Hope this helps you understand better.

I wouldn't ever feed any kind of rat to a corn snake.

Corn snakes eat mice in the wild. That is what they were made to do. Mice are cheaper. I can't think of a single reason it would be better than just feeding your corn an appropriate sized mouse.

Keep in mind, snake in general, can last months at a time between feedings if they're healthy. Don't rush your snake. If you are feeding it an appropreate sized mouse (1-1 1/2 times snake diameter of largest part) every 7 - 10 days, it will be just fine.

Frank grows just as much getting fed 2 times a month as he does being fed 5 or 6. Chill out on the feeding.

that is... the largest diameter of the mouse should be no larger than 1 and a half times the largest diameter of the snake, and at least equal to the largest diameter of the snake.

In the wild, cornsnakes eat a variety of prey items, and this includes rats of appropriate size.

Or even Rodents of Unusual Size!

i don't know if my corn regurged again :S after 7days ( its feeding day) i found like some small mouse meat laying on the news paper and he shedded too today. (no its not shed) and i tried to offer him a mouse and he didnt eat, is it possible a regurg after 7days? :S

Yes, it's possible if the temps were wrong or the mouse was a bit too big.

It's back to the regurge protocol again, I'm afraid.

DarkSmoke said:

i don't know if my corn regurged again :S after 7days ( its feeding day) i found like some small mouse meat laying on the news paper and he shedded too today. (no its not shed) and i tried to offer him a mouse and he didnt eat, is it possible a regurg after 7days? :S

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I'm sorry