even longer:)

[ Follow Ups ] [ Post Followup ] [ The Rat Snake Forum ]

Posted by TravisG on August 08, 2001 at 11:02:21:

In Reply to: Tx rat feeding, shedding, and growth ?s - really long posted by Kristen on August 07, 2001 at 22:11:50:

Hello again Kristen. Patricia had some good points, but a few I would disagree with. You can read and decide what you think is the best but I feel that feeding snakes too much is detrimental to their health. I believe 4-5 day feeding intervals is too short for most rodent feeding snakes. I beleive that the best way to keep snakes is to try and provide the most natural conditions possible, but with all the comforts of regularity and controled environments. On that note I think it would be best to keep them on a feeding schedual that most closely mimics their natural schedual. One way we can do this is to try and keep our captive snakes relatively the same size as wild in relation to age, which usualy works by feeding a moderate meal 1 time a week. Some people have had troubles with some of the asian species of ratsnakes dieing because of fatty livers, this death had been occuring with animals 2-3 years old so it is a gradual process. So I suspect that the same troubles exist with our native species, but their just more tolerant. Well there is my take on that, :)
As far as the shedding snakes will typically shed 4-8 times a year, more for young and less for adults. I would not worryb too much about the shedding, make sure he has a water bowl he can get in, and he will do the rest:)
When I used to have just one or two snakes I would feed them in paper grocery sacks. This was great because they would learn that when they are in there its FEEDING TIME. They would strike anything entering the bag, these were calm snakes that didnt bite. Then I would clean their cages while they were out.
Handeling snakes can sometimes stress them out, but this is probably not the case with the Texas Rat. It is good that you dont handle for 2 days after a meal.
Soaking him in a covered encloser had two purposes. One so that he would move around rubbing the sides while in the water, and two because with a cover this would creating 100% humidity which would help his head wether or not he put it in the water. I told you this because from the first description it had sounded like he had tried to shed and did not:)
My guess is that your snake is real close to a year old, because of his size and the time of year it is now. And yes when he is 6' you will still be able to wrap your hand around his body, or real close to it:)
You can e-mail me if you have any more questions
travisgrasha@hotmail.com
TravisG

: I have had a wild caught Tx rat,about 21 in long, for about six weeks (first snake). I don't remove him from his tank to feed, but I put a thawed frozen fuzzie in a small cardboard box and lay it on it's side in the tank while we have the snake out. When we put him back in the tank, he seems at first repelled by the mouse and goes into his hide, but then he has always come back for it anywhere up to two hours later - whether it was a pinkie or now a fuzzie. I remove the box once he's eaten and then we don't handle him for two days. Last week, on the regular feeding day, he didn't eat the mouse that was left all night (he only seems to come out voluntarily at night) so I threw it away and tried again the next night. HE ate that night. Last night we handled him for a while before putting him back in his tank with the fuzzie already in there and he did not eat all night. My questions are: are there potential problems to feeding in this manner? Are we handling him too much before feeding - we like to since we don't bother him for two days after? If he doesn't eat, do I try again the next night or wait until the next week(I hate to throw away many fuzzies)? He seems to have grown a couple of inches since we've had him, and he is definitely larger around - but he has shown no signs of shedding, except he has had a few dry flakes or pieces of scales around his head (soaking did not seem to help as he never put his head in the water) How often might he shed and how long does a shed take? Also I have been told that he might grow to 41/2 to 6 feet, but will he stay relatively thin? THanks to any who offer advice or info.

Follow Ups:

Post a Followup

Name:
E-Mail:

Subject:

Comments:
: Hello again Kristen. Patricia had some good points, but a few I would disagree with. You can read and decide what you think is the best but I feel that feeding snakes too much is detrimental to their health. I believe 4-5 day feeding intervals is too short for most rodent feeding snakes. I beleive that the best way to keep snakes is to try and provide the most natural conditions possible, but with all the comforts of regularity and controled environments. On that note I think it would be best to keep them on a feeding schedual that most closely mimics their natural schedual. One way we can do this is to try and keep our captive snakes relatively the same size as wild in relation to age, which usualy works by feeding a moderate meal 1 time a week. Some people have had troubles with some of the asian species of ratsnakes dieing because of fatty livers, this death had been occuring with animals 2-3 years old so it is a gradual process. So I suspect that the same troubles exist with our native species, but their just more tolerant. Well there is my take on that, :) : As far as the shedding snakes will typically shed 4-8 times a year, more for young and less for adults. I would not worryb too much about the shedding, make sure he has a water bowl he can get in, and he will do the rest:) : When I used to have just one or two snakes I would feed them in paper grocery sacks. This was great because they would learn that when they are in there its FEEDING TIME. They would strike anything entering the bag, these were calm snakes that didnt bite. Then I would clean their cages while they were out. : Handeling snakes can sometimes stress them out, but this is probably not the case with the Texas Rat. It is good that you dont handle for 2 days after a meal. : Soaking him in a covered encloser had two purposes. One so that he would move around rubbing the sides while in the water, and two because with a cover this would creating 100% humidity which would help his head wether or not he put it in the water. I told you this because from the first description it had sounded like he had tried to shed and did not:) : My guess is that your snake is real close to a year old, because of his size and the time of year it is now. And yes when he is 6' you will still be able to wrap your hand around his body, or real close to it:) : You can e-mail me if you have any more questions : travisgrasha@hotmail.com : TravisG : : I have had a wild caught Tx rat,about 21 in long, for about six weeks (first snake). I don't remove him from his tank to feed, but I put a thawed frozen fuzzie in a small cardboard box and lay it on it's side in the tank while we have the snake out. When we put him back in the tank, he seems at first repelled by the mouse and goes into his hide, but then he has always come back for it anywhere up to two hours later - whether it was a pinkie or now a fuzzie. I remove the box once he's eaten and then we don't handle him for two days. Last week, on the regular feeding day, he didn't eat the mouse that was left all night (he only seems to come out voluntarily at night) so I threw it away and tried again the next night. HE ate that night. Last night we handled him for a while before putting him back in his tank with the fuzzie already in there and he did not eat all night. My questions are: are there potential problems to feeding in this manner? Are we handling him too much before feeding - we like to since we don't bother him for two days after? If he doesn't eat, do I try again the next night or wait until the next week(I hate to throw away many fuzzies)? He seems to have grown a couple of inches since we've had him, and he is definitely larger around - but he has shown no signs of shedding, except he has had a few dry flakes or pieces of scales around his head (soaking did not seem to help as he never put his head in the water) How often might he shed and how long does a shed take? Also I have been told that he might grow to 41/2 to 6 feet, but will he stay relatively thin? THanks to any who offer advice or info.

Optional Link URL:
Link Title:
Optional Image URL:

[ Follow Ups ] [ Post Followup ] [ The Rat Snake Forum ]