Feeding Baby Chicks

[ksu_panda]

My boyfriend was at our local pet store the other day when he saw a sign regarding feeders that showed they sell frozen baby chicks for real cheap. He got really excited and decided it would be cool to see my red tail eat one. Up to this point in time, I've only fed her mice (sometimes frozen, mostly live). So naturally, I suppose, I'm a little hesitant. She's still only about 1-1.5 inches in diameter. I was just curious as to what everyone's thoughts were about feeding baby chicks.

[Piers]

I've used chicks for years with no problem other than they smell more when they come out the other end.
I wouldn't use them as a main food sorce but more as a filler, ie a mouse or 2 then a chick. Day old chicks basicly don't have any calcium and they are fatty.
Piers

[Siretsap]

Wouln't the chicks increase the risk of salmonella contamination? Since the meat is raw when you thaw it, not only do you risk contamination by manipulating it, but your snake might transmit it more easly?

Or am I just thinking like a paranoid a little too much?

[boa]

Piers did your boas get runny poop after feeding chicks?
I tried them however my boa's poop was always runny so i much rather rats and rabbit's.

[Edwin]

You could try them, but like Shawn and Piers said, I find their poop to be 'softer' (i.e. harder to clean) and more pungent. Their nutritional content is inferior to rats and rabbits; I would stick to those as your boa's primary food source unless they are unavailable in your area.

[HeatherRose]

Since the meat is raw when you thaw it

Aren't mice and rats raw too when you thaw them? Rats can transmit salmonella just as well, as can hamsters, mice and rabbits. Any animal that passes through it's own waste in an unclean cage can be a risk, and all animals can carry salmonella in their digestive tract. It can also be passed onto things like the surfaces of fruits and vegetables, which is why we wash 'em.

[bistrobob85]

Very pertinent, HeatherRose! I wouldn't change my animals' diet for the only reason that it is already safe and balanced. The fact that digested birds smell really bad is just another good reason not to feed them chicks... Also, if you take chicks that are too old, it is possible that the bones in their wins have already grown their kind of ''nails'' and it might damage your snake's digestive system... I've read this somewhere, sorry i can't give you the link...

phil.

[djc3674]

um....ALL poop stinks, regardless of texture.

The fact that digested birds smell really bad is just another good reason not to feed them chicks

what...and digested rat doesn't smell bad? Kind of a weak point. Not a reason to deter from feeding chicks.

[ksu_panda]

Thank you for all of your help. I've made the decision that I think I'm going to hold off on feeding baby chicks any time soon. I really don't feel like cleaning up stinky, runny poop...and she really doesn't need the chicks.

Thanks again! :)

[MormonBoa]

keep with feeding frozen, its healthier that way too, alot of diseases are killed that way and the mice cant kill the boa.
this is someones snake that got torn up by a rodent when the snake wasnt hungry.
http://www.anapsid.org/images/bite2.jpg

[ksu_panda]

I do occassionally feed frozen mice, but most of the time up to this point, I've done live. I always watch the mouse though until it is dead - to do as you warned about, make sure it doesn't hurt my boa.

[Mark Jones]

...and then there are those snakes that won't go near a F/T mouse, period. So far that is my problem. My BCI seems too picky.