Feeder breeding - your recommendations please

[jwsporty]

Hi folks,

I am the new papa to 3 Kings ( An albino, A Desest, and a Variable), with one more tank that will be filled shortly. They are all around the same size, 4-8months old. They are currently taking two pinkies each in a feeding session with no problem and they are eating once a week (The Variable is still on one pinky..she's a little smaller) and I know I will have to move two of them to fuzzies shortly. This I am aware of.

Like many, I am looking to ultimately save money on feeders and have since picked up 1.1 Mice and 1.1 Rats. The male rat is a grey dumbo and the female is a white/brown hooded. Both pairs are being fed very well, with staple food, fresh fruits and veggies, clean water and tanks cleaned regularly. The male rat is slightly younger than the female but he has put in some meat in the past 2 weeks. Both rodent pairs are active in their respective cages.

The questions are as follows:

Is this going to be enough to sustain my feeding program for 4 Kings?

Is there going to be a problem with the cross species of the rats?


Would it be in my better interest to pick up more females for both rats and mice? Or pick up more complete pairs?

When can I expect to start seeing litters popping from both the mice? and the rats? If I have dud pairs, I would like to know early before investing the time into them.

I know... raise the chances and buy more of each, but I don't want to get into a situation where I have way too many rodents then snake requirements. So I am looking for the balance point where enough is enough.

I am not concerned about the housing arrangements, as I have lots of room to do this and an understanding wife...

This is all still very new and exciting to me and your assistance is greatly appreciated

Jim

[Dom]

Hello Jim!

Firstly, congrats on the 4 guys!

Second, I think u probably will not have enough with only 2 females.. u will need about 8 mice per week.. 2 females.. I personally would simply get two+ more females..

As for the different breed of rats, unlesss u're aiming for specific colors or your snakes prefer a certain breed lol It makes abselutly no difference! There all snake food to me!

As for when u will get babies.. hmm depends on there age .. if they are adults .. probably 3 weeks give or take after the matting and trust me u will see them mate if they are .. If there not adults .. u will need to wait for them to mature until they do so..

After wich, if u take the babies out right after she gives birth you should be able to get babies from the same mother in about a month of time .

So yes I think u need a bit more females in my opinion.

I used to breed rats .. I had a colony of 3 males and 29 females.. and at any given time, about 300 rats .. It saved me so much money and made me lots too selling my rast ..

Only problem .. its very time consumming

take care
Dom

[Pixie]

I would definitely get more females, at least 2 per breed. I started out with small pairs and it took me months to get them producing well and that only by bying more females and getting rid of the dud males. If a male is with females for 4-5 weeks and there are no apparent pregnancies, change him. By having more than one female you can also detect which of the sexes is sterile if that's the case.

If you end up with a bit too many feeders for your needs. Sell off your extras and trim down your colonies to what your needs are. You can always find people in your area looking for quality feeders at a decent price so don't worry about having a hard time selling off your extras.

Good luck

[jwsporty]

Thanks folks.. guess it's off to the pet store I go....

[Cas]

Just one comment - even if you don't take the babies out right after she gives birth, the female will generally have another litter in about 21 days (possibly a few more if you're growing up hoppers or adults and leave them with her until weaning - nursing tends to delay the next pregnancy by a few days). But, regardless, the male will generally breed the female again within hours of her giving birth. (gestation = 21 days, weaning= 21 days)

Another interesting tidbit - I've noticed that the day before a female gives birth, the male often is VERY interested in her again... it's a good way to tell you'll have a litter of pinks the next day.

Oh, that was all for mice, btw....

Dawn

[jwsporty]

Thanks Cas.

More great info

Jim