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how many poops?

P

patches152

New member
the whole reason i registered for this forum is to ask this question: how many poops should my snake have? i fed him 3 mice, and between days 3 and 8 after the feeding, he had a total of 4 poops. two on day three, one the next day and one 3 or 4 days later. is that normal? before i adopted him, he was fed one mouse every week. from my understanding, that isn't enough for an adult snake. my mom's corn snakes eat two or three mice every other week. my friend's ball python (who's on to eating rats now, but even when she ate two, three, four mice) would only have one big poop.

any insight into the normal digestion process of a corn snake? maybe due to the temperature difference and moving from sacramento to reno? it's considerably colder up here. i think the temperature is staying consistent. around low to mid 80's on the warm side, with mid to high 70's overnight when the basking light turns off.

TIA
 
patches152 said:
the whole reason i registered for this forum is to ask this question: how many poops should my snake have? i fed him 3 mice, and between days 3 and 8 after the feeding, he had a total of 4 poops. two on day three, one the next day and one 3 or 4 days later. is that normal? before i adopted him, he was fed one mouse every week. from my understanding, that isn't enough for an adult snake. my mom's corn snakes eat two or three mice every other week. my friend's ball python (who's on to eating rats now, but even when she ate two, three, four mice) would only have one big poop.

any insight into the normal digestion process of a corn snake? maybe due to the temperature difference and moving from sacramento to reno? it's considerably colder up here. i think the temperature is staying consistent. around low to mid 80's on the warm side, with mid to high 70's overnight when the basking light turns off.

TIA
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Corns from my understanding should be fed one food item per feeding unless bumping up to the next size. Adult can be feed every 7 to two weeks depending on the snake. That's why maybe you snake is pooping a alot!
 
patches152 said:
...before i adopted him, he was fed one mouse every week. from my understanding, that isn't enough for an adult snake....
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A baby Corn Snake should be fed (one item of the proper size) every 5-7 day (no earlier than 5 though)

An adult Corn Snake should be fed (one properly sized food item) every 7-14 days, depending on weight and age of the snake

It takes roughly 2-4 days to digest and poop from a feeding so they definitely should not be fed more often than every 5 days. Feeding more often will just lead to an unhealthy and obese snake. Sometimes they may wait 2 weeks to poop but as long as you make sure that they don't get constipated, you'll be fine

As said earlier, your corn snake can be fed 2 items when transitioning from one size of meal to the next, but one proper sized meal is the best for them cause they get the most nutrition from it.

I would suggest that you get a food scale (one that measures in grams) and weigh the snake and then follow this food plan. It's a good guideline and help you figure out roughly what you should be feeding your snake.
 
hes an adult, like 8 years old, almost 5 feet long but very skinny. my mom's corn snakes aren't that skinny, and i assumed that one mouse a week wasn't enough food for him. my "expert" as well as my mom said that i should feed him as many as he will take, and i just bought three. figured if he took all three he'd be alright for two weeks, which is how often we usually feed the other two corns my mom has.
 
Like Eric said above, a corn really should be eating 1 larger prey every 10-14 days when they're adults. The mouse should be 1.5 times the girth of the biggest part of the snakes body. You can feed it multiple smaller prey items as long as you space the feedings out properly. Some snakes are longer and lean, some snakes can be shorter & thicker. Really depends on the snake. When you get a chance id love to see pictures if you can post them. Also investing in a scale is a great idea too!
 
Sarah1228 said:
Like Eric said above, a corn really should be eating 1 larger prey every 10-14 days when they're adults. The mouse should be 1.5 times the girth of the biggest part of the snakes body. You can feed it multiple smaller prey items as long as you space the feedings out properly. Some snakes are longer and lean, some snakes can be shorter & thicker. Really depends on the snake. When you get a chance id love to see pictures if you can post them. Also investing in a scale is a great idea too!
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i posted pix in the "welcome" area. one mouse every 2 weeks just doesn't seem like enough for a snake that's really active. he comes out and plays with me for like 20 mins every day, sometimes longer. i usually put him away when he loses interest in my arm and neck and starts wanting to explore in the couch for loose change. he's also very active, patrolling his tank. when i feed him, i reorganize so he has something to look for, go exploring, etc.
 
patches152 said:
i posted pix in the "welcome" area. one mouse every 2 weeks just doesn't seem like enough for a snake that's really active. he comes out and plays with me for like 20 mins every day, sometimes longer. i usually put him away when he loses interest in my arm and neck and starts wanting to explore in the couch for loose change. he's also very active, patrolling his tank. when i feed him, i reorganize so he has something to look for, go exploring, etc.
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Then you can still feed him every 7 days but i wouldn't do it any sooner, just watch for signs of him getting fat. Feeding every 7 days should be fine
 
Very pretty snake. It looks good & healthy to me! As long as it body isn't shaped like a triangle (spine noticeably sticks out - under weight) or round (over weight) then you should be ok. Healthy snakes look like a loaf of bread (flat on the bottom, with 2 small mounds outline the spine). Lol if that helps. Your snake was probably meant to be long and lean. What size mice are you feeding it?
 
Sarah1228 said:
Very pretty snake. It looks good & healthy to me! As long as it body isn't shaped like a triangle (spine noticeably sticks out - under weight) or round (over weight) then you should be ok. Healthy snakes look like a loaf of bread (flat on the bottom, with 2 small mounds outline the spine). Lol if that helps. Your snake was probably meant to be long and lean. What size mice are you feeding it?
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full grown mice, idk the weight. just ask for feeder mice from the pet shop nearby.

i'd prefer to feed biweekly, since that's what i've always done with every other snake my family and friends have owned. also a convenience thing, since i sometimes travel for work and can be gone over weekends. that way at least i can schedule to be home for the regular feeding days. if i have to be gone for work, it can be on a non-feeding weekend. ya know? so with that schedule, he should be ok with just one mouse? or could i even do two?
 
Honestly I would just stick with 2 mice every 2 weeks then. If it was feeding just 1 before, and if u feel u should bump it up to 2 mice then go for it. But when u notice any signs of it getting fat (soft/pudgy looking, round shape, or hips by the vent) then cut back to 1 mouse. Congrats & good luck!
 
If you are going to feed it 2 mice every 2 weeks, you have to make sure the 'lump' in his belly is almost gone in about 48 hrs. If it is in there too long, it can start to rot from what i hear
 
now that we have that covered, i have something to say.

i got him this very nice tank and all sorts of stuff to hide in and play on, and he has pooped on literally every item in the tank so far. even IN his water bowl.
 
I hate when mine poops on the decor! Lol but its better then no poop at all! He does it faithfully once a week, 2-4 days after complete digestion. He just shed & pooped 2 wks worth of poop yesterday, he loves leaving me a big pile of steamy present!
 
Haarstad said:
If you are going to feed it 2 mice every 2 weeks, you have to make sure the 'lump' in his belly is almost gone in about 48 hrs. If it is in there too long, it can start to rot from what i hear
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when i fed him three mice last feeding (two weeks ago friday) his lump was gone before monday evening, which was 72 hours from the feeding. it was just weird that he pooped a total of 4 times, which struck me as odd. i've never even heard of a snake pooping more than once for each feeding.
 
patches152 said:
when i fed him three mice last feeding (two weeks ago friday) his lump was gone before monday evening, which was 72 hours from the feeding. it was just weird that he pooped a total of 4 times, which struck me as odd. i've never even heard of a snake pooping more than once for each feeding.
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I have....well reading thru these forums I've heard it has happened....
 
corns kinda have the habit of eating alot more than they should if you offer it to them. i adopted a corn who was very underfed and skinny. the first feeding she ate 3 mice easily but ive been feeding her two a week. shes been good on that but an adult corn needs less food than a subadult because they stop growing longer and will start grower wider. becareful not to over feed your corn even thought you are concerned about the size. if you feed her regularly she will bulk up and be fine.
 
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