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Mice or rats?

A

amanda84

New member
I have had a pet store guy today that I've talked to many times recommend rats over mice. He has pythons so I know that's different than a corn snake. I trust him with advice because while someone was telling me to buy the $50 heating lamp he was telling me no, that it could harm the snake. But I wasn't sure if it makes sense to feed my guy rats if I'm not trying to breed him and he seems to be growing fine. Any advice?


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Feeding rats will likely lead to obese Cornsnakes.
Most adult Corns can live their whole life eating large adult mice every 2-3 weeks. Some Corns do get larger and can eat XL adult mice every 2-3 weeks (over 500 gram Corns).

Rats are for larger species, like Carpet Pythons.
 
That's what I was afraid of. I appreciated his information but I wasn't doing anything until I spoke to my forum people's! Thank you.


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You can feed Baby rats which are about the same size as a mouse. From a Nutritional standpoint, Rats are more nutritious than mice. Rats have more protein than mice. I would not recommend Rats to small or young corn snakes but a full grown corn snake can eat a small rat no problem.
 
As far as I'm aware, rats are actually fattier than mice. That can be useful for underweight or malnourished corn snakes, but for a healthy snake, I wouldn't feed rats, even if the snake is capable of eating that size.
 
So I should just stick with the hopper mice I've been feeding him. He's grown in the month I've had him, shed just fine and has visibly been gaining weight.


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actually, if you read the ingredients on the mice/rats you'll find that the rats do contain more protein. But you can feed peanut butter for all I care
 
amanda84 said:
So I should just stick with the hopper mice I've been feeding him. He's grown in the month I've had him, shed just fine and has visibly been gaining weight.


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Click to expand...
Yes, there's no reason to feed healthy Cornsnakes rats.
I can see feeding rats (size appropriate to what they're used to) underweight Corns to bulk them up, but I'd rather feed mice, with vitamin supplements.
 
I have been purchasing the "Arctic Mice / Rats" brand from local PetsMart.

This is a direct copy from the box they come in:

Mice
Crude Protein(min) - 44%
Crude Fat(min) - 17%
Crude Fiber(max) - 2%
Ash(max) - 11.8%
Moisture(max) - 80%

Rats
Crude Protein(min) - 61.8%
Crude Fat(min) - 32.6%
Crude Fiber(max) - 0%
Ash(max) - 9.8%
Moisture(max) - 80%

You will notice that there is a bit more "Fat" in the rats, but there is also significantly more protein. The biggest concern is, what makes up the rest of the totals in the Mice? 44% protein and 17% fat = 61% in the mice. Whereas 62% protein and 33% fat = 95% in the Rats. That's a big difference. I wonder what makes up the other 39% in the Mice?

I do feed both. I feed bigger mice and smaller rats, for diversity and balanced diet.
 
The majority of Corns I have seen that are fed rats are overweight, which is as unhealthy for them as it is for us.

If you want to add variety into their diet, you can add chicks, quail, etc, which are lower fat.

Corns do fine on strictly mouse diet, if fed appropriately (not underfeeding or overfeeding). Captive kept snakes don't have to search for their food, therefore a lower fat diet is more necessary than their wild counterparts who spend much of their time searching for food.

The only Corns I offer XL Adult mice to are the ones that are genetically larger than normal, like the Coral Snow I currently have. Her mom was a large Corn as well.
 
My guy I got just over a month ago. They had him for a year and a half from the pet store. They were feeding him one fuzzy every seven days. It was realized on here he was under fed. So I upped him to hoppers and in just the month I've had him he has shed perfectly but has also visibly gotten thicker. He gained 3 ounces since I've had him too. I'm not positive of that in grams. So I know he is doing well. I want a nice big thick snake when he is adult sized but I don't want over weight. I understand it must be a preference but I am worried about the fact that they could get over weight. I don't want to breed him/her I just want a simple happy snake. So I think I will stick with mice since it seems safer. I really appreciate the information from all parties. It helps me make a better decision.

If I needed to go out of town for awhile and he wasn't going to eat for a bit would a rat be a good idea?


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MysticExotics said:
Yes, there's no reason to feed healthy Cornsnakes rats.

I can see feeding rats (size appropriate to what they're used to) underweight Corns to bulk them up, but I'd rather feed mice, with vitamin supplements.
Click to expand...


Mystic you mentioned vitamin supplements. Can you explain more? Where I get them, what I do with it, etc?


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amanda84 said:
Mystic you mentioned vitamin supplements. Can you explain more? Where I get them, what I do with it, etc?


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Click to expand...

I'll have to get the name of it later, when I'm at home.
A friend got me started on it, if I had a female that had trouble recovering from egg laying, or a malnurished snake.
She created a "slurry" that included a vitamin supplement and a couple other ingredients (Carnivore Care may have been part of it-it's been years since I have needed it) then inject it into a feeder mouse (f/t of course).

It makes a significant difference in their recovery.

I haven't needed to use it in a while. Most snakes recover just fine, with smaller, more frequent meals.
 
Most Doctors will tell you Taking Vitamins is a bad idea. They'd rather see us "Eat Right." We get everything we need from the foods we eat. In fact some vitamins can actually do Harm to you if you take them and don't need them. (Vitamin A and Vitamin E for Example). Well, the same applies to animals and our pets. If they are healthy and eating right, they do not need vitamins.
 
Karl_Mcknight said:
Most Doctors will tell you Taking Vitamins is a bad idea. They'd rather see us "Eat Right." We get everything we need from the foods we eat. In fact some vitamins can actually do Harm to you if you take them and don't need them. (Vitamin A and Vitamin E for Example). Well, the same applies to animals and our pets. If they are healthy and eating right, they do not need vitamins.
Click to expand...

Most Dr will advise patients after a certain age to take multivitamins.
Most vitamins can be obtained through healthy eating, but vitamins are often lost due to freezing, transport time, cooking, etc.

As I mentioned a couple times, I have done this for animals that are either malnourished or having trouble recovering from egg laying, indicating that they are not otherwise healthy.
 
not true
Taking certain vitamins are harmful. They store up in the body. I come from a family of Physicians. All doctors I have ever talked with stress eating right.
 
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