Dusting food?

I've always fed my corn F/T mice, thinking that must give her everything she needs to develop well, as so far she seems like a very healthy snake. But I read in a book recently some snake owners prefer to dust their animal's food with things like extra calcium and vitamins to give them a bit of a helping hand.

I guess I'm just curious to see what people's preferences are, and if there's any significant advantages for snakes that have dusted food. Would anyone reccomend it?

-Bump- Advice, anyone?

I've never heard of dusting a snake's food. Some lizards, but not snakes.

ceduke said:

I've never heard of dusting a snake's food. Some lizards, but not snakes.

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Admittedly I never had until I read this book, it just made me curious as to wether people really do bother with it and if there's advantages or not.

I've never bothered with it. There's plenty of calcium to be had in the bones of a rodent.

Think on this: Do wild snakes have dusted prey items?

With captive lizards, we often can't give them their wild diet, nor the potential variety so dusting makes some sense. Corn snakes? They eat rodents, lizards, and probably birds if they can get them.

Shiari said:

I've never bothered with it. There's plenty of calcium to be had in the bones of a rodent.

Think on this: Do wild snakes have dusted prey items?

With captive lizards, we often can't give them their wild diet, nor the potential variety so dusting makes some sense. Corn snakes? They eat rodents, lizards, and probably birds if they can get them.

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Indeed, the way you put it does make a lot of sense. Like I said, I just wanted to see if anyone would reccomend something like that, though I didn't really believe it'd be a massive amount of people.

Generally, people don't. Since I have a little guy with shed problems who's been eating only pinkies for a year and is still too small to go up to fuzzies, though, I have started the occasional dusting. Pinkies don't have as much calcium, from what I've heard, and I began to worry that he might have a deficiency. If he does, it will help, and if he doesn't, I don't think I'm doing it often enough that it will hurt. And considering he's a 10-gram yearling striped snow, this little beast wouldn't be alive in the wild anyway, so I figure I can get slightly more unnatural with him. I have heard of vets suggesting calcium dusting for snakes with calcium deficiencies, though not often. Normal healthy snakes, though, should not need it. From what I've heard.

wretchedprocess said:

Generally, people don't. Since I have a little guy with shed problems who's been eating only pinkies for a year and is still too small to go up to fuzzies, though, I have started the occasional dusting. Pinkies don't have as much calcium, from what I've heard, and I began to worry that he might have a deficiency. If he does, it will help, and if he doesn't, I don't think I'm doing it often enough that it will hurt. And considering he's a 10-gram yearling striped snow, this little beast wouldn't be alive in the wild anyway, so I figure I can get slightly more unnatural with him. I have heard of vets suggesting calcium dusting for snakes with calcium deficiencies, though not often. Normal healthy snakes, though, should not need it. From what I've heard.

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Wow, only pinkies for a year? Poor little guy, but I have a feeling your dusting the pinks with calcium might help him out, after all they don't really have proper bones etc. yet like fuzzies will, so he could probably just do with a little boost. I noticed once I got my little amel onto fuzzies she started to grow like crazy! Tango's my first snake, and even though she's getting close to being fully grown now, everything she does still facinates me. I don't think she needs any extra goodies really, just eating mice seems to be doing her well. Good luck with turning your little snow into a big boy though, he sounds cute.

Serpentine_since09 said:

Wow, only pinkies for a year? Poor little guy

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I know! That shouldn't be all he can handle by now, but he's literally still hatchling-sized. Bad beginning. He's gained two grams with me so far, and I'm hoping the calcium, and taking the advice of a few other posters who suggested moving him up to double pinks, will help. He *is* adorable, though, no matter what size he is. He's the little guy in my avatar.

wretchedprocess said:

I know! That shouldn't be all he can handle by now, but he's literally still hatchling-sized. Bad beginning. He's gained two grams with me so far, and I'm hoping the calcium, and taking the advice of a few other posters who suggested moving him up to double pinks, will help. He *is* adorable, though, no matter what size he is. He's the little guy in my avatar.

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Awww, he's like a teenager in a baby's body. XD Well hopefully those steps you're taking should help him out, I guess the trouble is still him being so little and delicate so you've got to be careful how much you try to feed him up. I did wonder if that was him in your picture, it's a good shot, he looks a bit like your ring! He is adorable though, I really like snows, and stripes have been growing on me lately (not literally of course!).

I get the feeling perhaps my boyfriend's anery is a bit undersized for it's age, he got it in early January this year and it's still only on pinks, admittedly it's on 3 a week now so he's going to move it up to fuzzies soon, but I swear my girl must've been bigger at this point. I wonder if he's not upping the food amount as often as he could?

I don't actually know much about normal growth rates yet. I'm still pretty new to snakes, and the other one I currently have, Whisper, was already 65g when I got her in April. She's up to 101 as of last feeding, which gets a happy dance from me, but of course I don't know how old she is or how she grew when she was small-- she's a rescue too. But very soon I'll be getting a fresh shiny new hatchling and a 2009 girl who was bred by Drizzt80 from this very site, and has been living with him. So I'll get a much better idea of how corns are *supposed* to grow from that, I think. I do know that different snakes grow at different rates, though, even the ones who aren't weirdos like Worm. It could be that the little anery could use more food, but it could also be that your young lady was an especially good grower!

Yeah, I still had Worm on single pinkies because I don't want to power-feed him and risk those health problems, and the Munson Plan suggests that one doesn't take one's snake up to double pinks until he's at 16 grams. But I was wondering whether that might not be the way to pursue this course even before a few other people told me that he looked like he could probably handle two pinkies of the size I have, because his feeding lump is always gone the next day. I think he has a high metabolism, and I have kinda small pinkies. We'll see, but considering what he's been through, I think he's pretty hardy, and will tend toward health.

I love the way he echoes the ring in that picture! I'm quite fond of stripes myself. I hope he doesn't lose them when/if he does grow-- I'd like his pattern to stay!

I dust a meal or two with a calcium/mineral supplement for breeding-age females. I know that snakes in the wild aren't getting dusted meals :rofl: but they do take a variety of prey animals that we don't supply. Do I think it's REALLY necessary? No. I trust that the f/t mice I buy have had a proper diet and will supply my snakes with all that they need - to the best of our knowledge. There's the rub; maybe we're missing some information. So I consider dusting a couple of meals for animals who'll be subjected to the physical stress of egg-laying - often whether or not they're bred - much like taking a vitamin supplement myself. It's just some insurance.

wretchedprocess said:

I don't actually know much about normal growth rates yet. I'm still pretty new to snakes, and the other one I currently have, Whisper, was already 65g when I got her in April. She's up to 101 as of last feeding, which gets a happy dance from me, but of course I don't know how old she is or how she grew when she was small-- she's a rescue too. But very soon I'll be getting a fresh shiny new hatchling and a 2009 girl who was bred by Drizzt80 from this very site, and has been living with him. So I'll get a much better idea of how corns are *supposed* to grow from that, I think. I do know that different snakes grow at different rates, though, even the ones who aren't weirdos like Worm. It could be that the little anery could use more food, but it could also be that your young lady was an especially good grower!

Yeah, I still had Worm on single pinkies because I don't want to power-feed him and risk those health problems, and the Munson Plan suggests that one doesn't take one's snake up to double pinks until he's at 16 grams. But I was wondering whether that might not be the way to pursue this course even before a few other people told me that he looked like he could probably handle two pinkies of the size I have, because his feeding lump is always gone the next day. I think he has a high metabolism, and I have kinda small pinkies. We'll see, but considering what he's been through, I think he's pretty hardy, and will tend toward health.

I love the way he echoes the ring in that picture! I'm quite fond of stripes myself. I hope he doesn't lose them when/if he does grow-- I'd like his pattern to stay!

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Ah, I see, well then I think when you get your hatchling that'll definately help you to know more about how quickly they can grow. I got Tango as just a hatchling, and when I first got her she was about...35cms long, and the reptile store said she was about a month or two old. Now I've had her a year and a half and she's hitting about 120cms, and it seems like she's still going to grow pretty well for a while yet, with her last shed she grew 7cms, and that was a quick one! I kept a diary of her first year, of how often she went into blue phase, shed, ate and how much/what she ate. I found it useful to keep track of everything, that way I've got a rough guide if I get another hatchling. Maybe that's something you could try?

Well if your guy is getting down pinks that easily I'd definately say try him on two, it's wonderful if he happens to have a high metabolism! That means higher levels of food would be less likely to start rotting in his stomach. I've never heard of/read the Munson plan, but choosing when to upsize my Amel's meals has always been something I've played by eye. If she settles down straight after a meal to digest then all's well, but if once she's fed she roams around for quite some time afterwards looking for more food, and I can barely see the mouse-shaped lumps in her body, I generally start to think about giving her a bit of a bigger meal. It's worked pretty well for me by far, but maybe if I get another corn they might not be as easy to read as Tango. Personal preference I guess.

I really like that photo, it's well done, makes me wish Tango would be calm enough to stay still for one. :laugh: I'm sure your lovely boy will keep his stripes as he matures, though as he's a snow I don't know entirely how vivid they'll be against him.... I'm curious, has his neck got any yellowing on it at all? White snakes are gorgeous with yellow necks! I wish you luck with your new snakes, it'd be nice to see some photos of them once you get them, do you know which morphs they are? All this talk of new snakes really makes me want more....

Caryl said:

I dust a meal or two with a calcium/mineral supplement for breeding-age females. I know that snakes in the wild aren't getting dusted meals :rofl: but they do take a variety of prey animals that we don't supply. Do I think it's REALLY necessary? No. I trust that the f/t mice I buy have had a proper diet and will supply my snakes with all that they need - to the best of our knowledge. There's the rub; maybe we're missing some information. So I consider dusting a couple of meals for animals who'll be subjected to the physical stress of egg-laying - often whether or not they're bred - much like taking a vitamin supplement myself. It's just some insurance.

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I had wondered about if it might be worthwhile for when it comes to breeding a female, because they may need a bit of extra calcium to help ensure healthy eggs and their own wellbeing. I do think it's something of a pity we can't offer them the variety of food they'd get in the wild, but mice seem to do well enough in keeping them healthy.

Serpentine_since09 said:

I really like that photo, it's well done, makes me wish Tango would be calm enough to stay still for one. :laugh: I'm sure your lovely boy will keep his stripes as he matures, though as he's a snow I don't know entirely how vivid they'll be against him.... I'm curious, has his neck got any yellowing on it at all? White snakes are gorgeous with yellow necks! I wish you luck with your new snakes, it'd be nice to see some photos of them once you get them, do you know which morphs they are? All this talk of new snakes really makes me want more....

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Worm hasn't got any yellow on him at all yet. Whisper, though, is also a snow, and is picking some up with each shed. She'd getting really pretty, actually-- her pinks are fading into lovely opalescent pink/green, except in a couple of stripes on her face, where they're deepening to a nicer, more permanent-looking shade. I wish I could get a decent picture of *her*, but I've never managed-- somehow, she's actually camera-shy. She's a lot more hidey when I have my phone out and am trying to snap pictures of her than when I don't. No idea why!

My next one is going to be an amel, possibly sunglow (the mother is, and the father is a motley, so it's hard to tell how much white he'd have if he weren't, but the older hatchlings from the same pair look like they'll turn out with no white), and possibly-just-possibly het bloodred as well. I'm getting to know the clutch (and getting bitten repeatedly by them-- tiny hatelings are SO CUTE!) at the Rescue while we wait for them to eat their third meal-- should happen this week. So I'll get to pick my very favourite out of the whole clutch, which I am REALLY excited about. I adore their father-- he's one of my favourite snakes in the world, and he's also about 6', so these kids shouldn't have ANY growth problems!

The one after that is going to be a 2009 bloodred het charcoal from Drizzt80. Her picture may still be in one of the threads in his personal forum. I'm waiting to have her shipped to me next month, when we've completed our move to Seattle, because I figure that the shipping will be traumatic enough for her without being packed into a car and driven alllll the way across the country a few days later. I'm excited about her because I've been in love with bloodreds since I first started researching corns, almost 10 years ago! I know for certain I'm going to get a pewter male next year, but beyond that, I haven't yet decided. There are so many gorgeous morphs out there! But I can't get them all at once.

There is time.

i spoke to a man in my local reptile shop and he said that he dusts his snakes food every 4 feeds just to make sure that they are getting everything they need. i guess snakes can survive without this extra supplement but i guess it cannot hurt them

You really don't need to, and in fact I have seen a couple corn snakes that had some problems because they were taking in too much calcium.