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How many pinkies?

O

Ophion

New member
I fed Ophion for the first time on Monday and he was more of a little piggy than a snake. I was very proud. He ate two (2g) pinkies and was positive he needed more. I left him with two just to make sure he would digest properly and no overdo anything. He was out this morning and bumps are gone, so things are digesting well.

I plan on feeding him again this weekend. Should I keep him at two pinkies or offer him a third if that is what he wants? (don't know if he was just super hungry too, may be better when he eats every 5-6 days consistently?) The 2g seems a decent size for him and I don't know of anything that offers a larger pink if that might be a better option. I am trying to follow the Munson plan, but it says only two pinkies then fuzzies and he certainly can't handle fuzzies yet.
 
Remember snakes are opportunistic feeders. And will actively search after eating for more food. If they find it they will eat it even if they shouldn't. But you might be able to find large pinks to feed him till he is ready for fuzzies. Or if they are really small 3 won't hurt him if he is supposed to be at full size fuzzies. Just might have to shop around a bit to find what you can use.

I had one snake that seemed fairly small in girth, so I just kept him on double pink till he had grown a bit more. It didn't seem to slow him down a bunch compared to others that I had that were close in size. There is a theory out there that a friend of mine is testing. He keeps his snakes on prey items one size smaller than the reccommended. But feeds two or sometimes three smaller items. He has been doing it for a little over a year and is convinced his animals are growing faster. The theory being that they can digest a smaller item more fully than a larger item. Therefore getting more out of it with less energy spent digesting.

I am trying a similar experiment by slitting all food items given to a group of snakes vrs others who are just getting it without to see what results I get. But won't really have a good study till I keep a whole hatch back to track growth with snakes with the same genes.
 
I do not have a way to get his weight at the moment, have not purchased a scale yet. He is 12-13 inches long (does not appear under or overweight). I know that fuzzies are still a ways away and he is going to need some sort of inbetween because these pinkies are so small. That was partly why I was wondering if it should be 2 or 3 if they are 2g rather than the specified 3g. (obviously then 2 at 3g=6g and 3 at 2g=6g) Or if that really isn't that much of a big deal and just wait until he get to an inbetween pinkies and fuzzies and see then. Now they are specified that size and I don't have a scale, I could get one and measure it out to be sure. Perhaps that is pushing paranoia, but I want to make sure I am not underfeeding or overfeeding.

smallet, both of those experiments sound fascinating! If you end up using a hatch for that study it would be great to post and see how it progresses. It certainly makes sense how smaller items and slits would ease digestion and conserve energy, but it would be even more interesting in practice.
 
carry on feeding 2 pinkies until you have used them all eg if 10 remain, then 5 more feeds every 5 days (2 pinkies each feed)

if they are not showing much of a bulge if anything when swallowed then fuzzies is the next step

some places sell small fuzzies and large fuzzies, and so suggest you go with small fuzzies - one fuzzy each feed

if they come as just a standard pack of fuzzies like most places, then feed the smallest one from that.

remember food = 1.5x the widest part of the snake

and dont be fooled just because they have small mouths, as you be surpised how wide they can open,

initially this will leave a vry noticeable bulge but as snakey eats fuzzies and as she grows, then they soon become a very slight bump and then you move on and so forth



Ophion said:
I do not have a way to get his weight at the moment, have not purchased a scale yet. He is 12-13 inches long (does not appear under or overweight). I know that fuzzies are still a ways away and he is going to need some sort of inbetween because these pinkies are so small. That was partly why I was wondering if it should be 2 or 3 if they are 2g rather than the specified 3g. (obviously then 2 at 3g=6g and 3 at 2g=6g) Or if that really isn't that much of a big deal and just wait until he get to an inbetween pinkies and fuzzies and see then. Now they are specified that size and I don't have a scale, I could get one and measure it out to be sure. Perhaps that is pushing paranoia, but I want to make sure I am not underfeeding or overfeeding.

smallet, both of those experiments sound fascinating! If you end up using a hatch for that study it would be great to post and see how it progresses. It certainly makes sense how smaller items and slits would ease digestion and conserve energy, but it would be even more interesting in practice.
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