The Life Of Mercy

[Klaire]

Grr photo's don't do justice ever regarding size but anywho this was about a couple minutes after she swallowed her meal

[Klaire]

Cool glad to hear she is up to normal standard i wasn't sure whether you would see either thread so i posted her weight on the other one too so just disregard that . I may up her it just depends the pinkies she's on leaves a pretty good bulge IMO and is still visible the next day , I did happen to take some shots of her just after she ate of the size of bulge, they aren't that good quality but i will post them so you can get an idea

[toddnbecka]

Originally Posted by Klaire

Cool glad to hear she is up to normal standard i wasn't sure whether you would see either thread so i posted her weight on the other one too so just disregard that . I may up her it just depends the pinkies she's on leaves a pretty good bulge IMO and is still visible the next day , I did happen to take some shots of her just after she ate of the size of bulge, they aren't that good quality but i will post them so you can get an idea

Bogey will take a "jumbo" mouse or 2 smaller/weaned mice and be looking for another. I usually do feed 2 medium size mice (same size as fuzzy rats) simply to help keep their numbers down, those are barely noticeable when swallowed. I've also noticed that most of his waste is urates, relatively little brown poop like the boas and colubrids typically pass. I presume that's because more of the prey is digested and absorbed rather than passing on through.

Rivers is still a baby, though now a bit larger than Bogey was when I brought him home. She will happily take 2 large fuzzy mice or 1 hopper, and would eat every 4-5 days if I'd feed her that often. So would Bogey for that matter, but they're growing quite fast enough already, lol.

Generally speaking, a hopper mouse is about the same size as a rat pinky.

[EL Ziggy]

Klaire- I love her colors and pattern. Trust me, she can definitely handle larger prey or at least 2 of those pinkys. I was a bit leery about feeding my carpets larger prey in the beginning and I still won't push the envelope too far. I started my 85g coastal on 17-20g rat fuzzys. I talked to the breeder 2 weeks after I got him and he told me that my guy could easily handle a jumbo mouse. I thought NO WAY! He's a very well respected breeder, I figure he knows a lot more than I do, so I decide to give it a try. I was beyond surprised and actually pretty impressed. This was last September. For his most recent meal he had a small rat and a chick. That was 3 days ago. He's already prowling his enclosure and would definitely eat if I fed him but he won't eat again until Saturday or Sunday. I love how he comes to the front of the glass begging but then goes back to doing his thing when he realizes no food is coming.

[EL Ziggy]

Will move to different thread.

[EL Ziggy]

Sorry Klaire, I wasn't trying to hijack your thread.

[Klaire]

Originally Posted by EL Ziggy

Sorry Klaire, I wasn't trying to hijack your thread.

Don't be silly! i really enjoy getting advice/stories from other people you didn't have to move your response

[Klaire]

It's funny you say "I figure he knows a lot more than i do " Because i was thinking the same thing about your advice and i figured well you obviously have been into the whole "reptile" thing alot longer than me and own your own carpets so i trust your advice on stepping her up even though they grow them quite large here. I will get some fuzzy's in a few days do you recommend keeping her on a 5 day schedule still or since her food will be larger should i stretch her feedings to every 6 days instead?
That's crazy that he still slithers around his enclosure after that kind of feed they definitely are garbage disposals lol. I can imagine that "begging" look as i kind of see mercy do it when its coming close to feeding day and she sits on her log looking at me like "please mum, food now?" haha

[Klaire]

Iv'e decided to move her up to rat fuzzies

[Herpo]

I think she could go higher. Some breeders start their pythons on rat fuzzies. But maybe go with fuzzies and see how well she goes.

[Herpo]

Never mind, I think I'm confusing them with pinky rats.

[EL Ziggy]

It's cool to see our carpet clan growing. It's great that we can all learn from each other as we go . I love my colubrids but I'm smitten by my carpets .

[EL Ziggy]

@ Klaire- I like to mix up my feeding schedules, prey items, and meal sizes. Have fun with it . If she gets a smaller meal, feed her sooner. If she has a larger meal make her wait an extra day or two.

[Klaire]

Ziggy - Okay thanks, I will do that

[EL Ziggy]

I'm going to open up the ASF's I got with my last feeder order and offer it to the carpets this weekend. I'm curious to see how they respond to a new prey item . So far they've both eaten everything I've given them.