Balls eating rabbits and cleaning question

[BigBADace]

Hey i just noticed on the ball python faq that it said some adults can handle adequately sized rabbits! Has anyone tried this or does anyone have any pics of one eating a rabbit?....even if anyone has a pic of a ball python big enough to eat rabbits that would be pretty sweet

My second question is what you guys use to disinfect rubbermaids, i was thinking of buying some of those disinfectant wipes people use in their kitchens etc.

[BoidKeeper]

I feed rabbits to corns too. As a matter of fact I just fed a rabbit to a ball last night. I'll be feeding a ball three more rabbits before breeding her this year. I'll take some pics and post them.
As for cleaning I use nothing but bleach. It kills everything and when it desolves it leaves no chemical trace of itself behind. It completely disapears. Cleaners can leaves toxic chemicals behind.
Cheers,
Trevor

[Bartman]

Is it as hard to switch most ball's to rabbits as is to any other meal type?

[mykee]

Even the biggest ball would be more than full with a big rat. Why bother? I use Nix mixed with water in an atomizer. Works great, and WAY cheaper than disinfectant wipes, but WAY more expensive than plain ol' beach n' water.

[BoidKeeper]

Mykee, why bother feeding one rat when 10 mice will fill them? It's not about filling their stomach it's about a better food source. I believe rabbits are a better food source than rats, that's why I bother.
Cheers,
Trevor

[BigBADace]

Thanks for the help guys what kinda of ratio of bleach to water do u use? Oh, and where can i pick up nix incase i ever need it?

[Vengeance]

You can get Nix at your local pharmacy, its a lice hair treatment. Also works great for killing mites. Here is an article on how to dilute it properly...

http://www.ssnakess.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=23844&highlight=Mite+treatment

As for the bleach, I'm not sure, I'd like to know that answer myself. Another thing, is a bleach and water solution safe to clean water dishes with. I'm going to assume no, but I figured I'd check.

[justinO]

I use nix & another product for any new stuff like tanks coming in...

Where to find NIX, is easy..... anywhere like Wal-mart, shoppers drugmart or any bigger pharmacy. Walmart is cheapest for $9.99, at shoppers is $12.99.
It's for head lice too though, so buy it at the pharmacy so you don't go through what I did and have people move to the other side of the escalator and wisper "she's got lice!!!"........ lol

I have 2 female ball pythons over 2500 grams, and they are bad enough trying to get them to eat rats (only only eats live), i would imagine they would never eat bunnies! And I breed rats so I don't mind giving them whatever they want.

Jessy

[snakehunter]

Boid Keeper, have you noticed any growth or metabolism changes with rabbits?

[mykee]

Trevor; Crude Protein: 61.8%(rat) 72.1%(rabbit)
Fat: 32.6%(rat) 13.0%(rabbit)
Gross Energy: 6.37 Kcal/g (rat) 5.06 Kcal/g (rabbit).
%'s quoted are rat: adult and rabbit: neonate.
(equal in size for ball python feeding purposes)
Bigbad; one liter of water : 5-10 drops of bleach.

[Bartman]

As for the bleach, I'm not sure, I'd like to know that answer myself. Another thing, is a bleach and water solution safe to clean water dishes with. I'm going to assume no, but I figured I'd check

At the shop I volunteered at, we would scrub the bowl with a brush that sits in a bleach water solution, and then you need to dunk it in cold water. Not sure why, but I know that it does something to the bleach. It has to be cold. And then you just fill it up and thats it.

[Ian]

In the food service industry the proper amount of bleach to water is 1oz to one gallon. That's what the tell ya in the food safe courses that way it cleans and won't hurt anyone if it is digested.

Cheers
Ian

[BoidKeeper]

Mykee,

Where did you find those numbers. Rabbit has more protein, more protein better food source for raising snakes right? So far the ones that have had the most rabbits are those that aren't full grown adults yet.
Cheers,
Trevor

[mykee]

I found that info on rodentpro.com. I'm not sure that protein is the be all and end all for better growth, muscle growth yes, but rodents aren't all muscle. kcal; the energy producing potential in food, or the amount of food completely used by the body for energy is different, with the rat's kcal 15% higher than that of a neonatal bunny. You're guess is as good as mine. The proof is in the pudding, right? Your rat eaters are bigger than your bunny eaters? Time to let Bugs go, and find more Jerrys.

[BoidKeeper]

LOL. It's too early to tell if they are having an effect or not because I don't always have a supply of small rabbits available.
Cheers,
Trevor

[hhw]

Rabbits also have almost double the calcium but about a 5% lower calcium to phosphorus ratio.

Now, I have no idea if a higher Ca:P ratio is always better or whether just having that much more raw Ca works out to be better in the long run in ball pythons, but perhaps someone else can answer that. I'm just putting the data out there.

[Derrick]

Originally posted by mykee
kcal; the energy producing potential in food, or the amount of food completely used by the body for energy is different, with the rat's kcal 15% higher than that of a neonatal bunny.

kcal is just 1000s of calories as fat has more than twice the calories per gram than protien. So the kcal will be higher for rats because thier fatter

[Jeff_Favelle]

How do we know that the natural design of Ball Python is better suited for a diet of either? To claim that one is better than the other is a laugh at best. Not all animals are mammals and not all animals thrive on a diet that is necessarily higher nutritionally than others.

Food for tho......yeah. :D

[mykee]

Derrick; wrong on both counts. One gram protein and one gram of carbohydrate each contain 6 calories. One gram of fat contains 9 calories. Hardly " more than double". Also, the body doesn't use FAT as energy until ALL the reserves of protein (first) and carbohydrates, which are broken down into simple sugars in the body (second) are tapped. The body will only use fat as energy only when the body isn't receiving the other two. It would be safe to say that a pet snake would RARELY use fat as energy, unless they're being starved.