Over/Power-Feeding

Is power feeding ever acceptable, like if the snake is very thin from double clutching or after an illness?

Power feeding no, but little and often works wonders. 1 small mouse every 5 days for a female who has just laid for 3 feedings is ok imho, then up a mouse size for 3 feedings every 7 days then back to normal feeding. Please note this is just for females who have laid.

My feeding stratagy is simple.

1 pinkie every 3 days till they have fed 5 times, then a bigger pinkie every 4 days.
2 pinkies every 5 days, or 1 fuzzie.
2 fuzzies or 1 small adult mouse every 6 days
2 small or 1 medium adult mouse every 7 days.

Anything bigger should be fed every 10 days apart from chicks which i feed every 14 days as an alternative sometimes.

Thats the way i feed anyway, and i don't class it as power feeding as i prefer to have my corns wait till their 3 years old to breed, which 1 will be next year, but as yet he is only 41" in shed size and is just over 2 and on 2 small or a medium mouse every 7 days.

Sorry thats just my way of doing it, and should have included that it's just my opinion.

<---- (missing the edit button)

Originally Posted by Duff

Yes sir, capitan. My apologies for breathing the same air as you

You know, I'll never understand the point of responding to a thread just to try and make yourself look so much better than everyone else. Sorry, I may be fairly new, but I've done tons of reading and research and have come across the term "power feeding" many many times and used by people with plenty of experience. I may be low on the experience end, but I consider myself fairly well-versed on the information end.

If you believed feeding a hatchling every 3 to 4 days constitutes Powerfeeding, as you stated, then someone needed to correct you, for the sake of anyone else who is reading. Like Bill Cosby used to say, "Be careful, or you might learn something." No need to thank me for taking time to explain the original meaning of the term. It was not my intention to make anyone else appear foolish or an ass or whatever.

Originally Posted by larryg

If you believed feeding a hatchling every 3 to 4 days constitutes Powerfeeding, as you stated, then someone needed to correct you, for the sake of anyone else who is reading. Like Bill Cosby used to say, "Be careful, or you might learn something." No need to thank me for taking time to explain the original meaning of the term. It was not my intention to make anyone else appear foolish or an ass or whatever.

Um, no, noone needed to correct me. The whole power feeding debate is one based on opinions. You can't SAY that I am incorrect. You can BELIEVE that I'm incorrect, just as I can BELIEVE that 3 days is too soon. If you should allow 48 hours for a snake to digest, I personally don't feel it's right to throw their bodies right back into it all so quick. Now, I never said it would hurt them, but I don't see any benefit to being so quick. There's nothing wrong or harmful in giving their little bodies time to rest in between feedings. Being a baby is tough enough.

And just to clarify, my response to you was about your assertion that anyone using the term "power feeding" is unlearned and inexperienced in caring for corns. It had nothing to do with your view of what constitutes power feeding or over feeding, as your entitled to your opinion on the matter.

I probably should have said it's a red flag that I *may* be dealing with someone who has limited information, as there are at least a couple of posters here who use the term to mean feeding way too often, like every day or every other day (consistently.) I like to give those poor little hungry baby snakes the chance the eat at least every 3 or 4 days, should they decide they want to. Check out these two snakes.... The one on the left was the smaller of the two, when I got them a few months ago. She eats an average of about every 4 to 5 days. The one on the right will only eat live, and he eats about every 7 days. They both eat fuzzies, and have been for most of the time I've had them. Feeding fuzzies instead of pinkies is one answer, as far as how to get them to grow a little faster. The two snakes in the photo are related and the same age, within a couple of weeks. My point in posting the photo is to show that you don't have to 'go crazy' to get fairly rapid growth, and there sure is a difference in the growth feeding every 7 days vs. every 4.

I'm not going to get into the discussion on powerfeeding...but just want to say that those are very beautiful snakes!!!

terrysangel79

Yes, nice snakes!

Allright.. I think i might have got the point now Thanks for the discussion, and ive learned something new today :P

Originally Posted by Mowgli

Yes, nice snakes!

Allright.. I think i might have got the point now Thanks for the discussion, and ive learned something new today :P

People who like snakes don't want to tell you exactly how other people abuse them, if that makes sense. It would be like going on a dog forum and asking for instructions to raise puppies in a chicken coop. If you want your hatchlings to grow at close to their potential, follow the advice in Kathy Love's book, or my more watered-down version (about every 3 or 4 days for youngest hatchlings, then every 4 or 5 days as they get a little larger, etc.)

Thanks for the compliments on the snakes. They are locality Miamis.

Without ragging on anyone elses opinions or methosd, I'll tell you how I do it.

My new hatchlings get offered food every 5-7 days whener whichever day falls into a convenient time in my schedule. Sometimes on day 5 and 6 I'm busy, so I feed on day 7 and visa versa. The one 7 month old sized snake I have gets a hopper about every 7 days. She ate only 4 meals in July and 5 meals in June, so I think that's pretty modest.
My bigger yearlings get a smallish adult mouse every 6 or 7 days, my adult females get an adult mouse a week (but 2 of them only got 3 feeds last month) and my adult males get a feed every 2 weeks or so. I just fed the boys today and it was their first feed in 17 days. They gain about 10-15g a month on this adult maintenence diet whereas the girls get fed more often due to the effort it takes to produce eggs. On a yearly basis, they gain about the same as the boys but they obviously gain it faster and lose a lot of weight with laying time.