approximate time to grow to fullsize?

[ChristinaM]

Hey folks....

I'm trying to place a rodent order, and will be orderring prey too big to feed now, so I'm trying to figure a timeline of how long the prey will be frozen before it is eaten.

Approximately ( yes I know there's alot of variables ) how long does it take a corn to reach fullsize?

My lil guy is on pinkies still and he's 5mos old (having feeding issues at the moment)

So I'm trying to figure out which size mouse, and how many to buy, to stock up.

Thanks for any help.

[MouseKilla]

You can get a corn to breeding size in 18 months usually but they continue to grow beyond that. I'm not totally sure but I think nearly all growing is done after 3 years or so. At that point they should be eating adult mice.

[gonesnakee]

To reply to the 18 month thing. Can be done if you "power feed" the animal, not nessicarily too healthy for it & even then we are talking minimum size/age standards. In my opinion & that of many others is to wait until 3 years of age. Give her a proprer growth diet & she will end up being a big "double clutcher" or breed her too soon & risk egg binding, death etc. For the males 18 months is fine, they won't be that big, but as long as their goo is good LOL. The females are better off to wait that extra year & yes I am speaking from experience, egg binding sucks the big one, even moreso for your poor snake. Anyone who has "lost" an animal this way before will know exactly where I'm coming from. Mark

[ChristinaM]

so would it be somewhat safe to say that, I have over 1.5yrs before he'll be eating adult mice regularly? ( He's 5mos )

I do not want to powerfeed. I want him to grow nice and strong and big on his own.

I'm guessing I will be buying fuzzies and hoppers mostly then. Now just figuring out the time frame.....fun stuff.

[MouseKilla]

I was made reference to the 18 month thing because whether the snake is male or female it will probably be mostly grown by then and eating adult mice. I wasn't trying to endorse powerfeeding or premature breeding at all, just using that point as a sort of bench mark for size.

[BoidKeeper]

I had a corn hit 36" in 12 months once and he was fed one item every 7 days.
Trevor

[marisa]

Me too. My male snow was almost exactly 40 inches at one year old. He had only one pinky per 7 days from the time he was like ten inches long.

I geuss some just have the genes.

Marisa

2 of my neos born 7/1/03 have been eating adult mice for over a month, 2 other born the same time are still prefering large juvi mice(just under 20 grams).

[gonesnakee]

Hi all. Yeah I was coming more from a breeding point of view obviously. I agree with ya Mousekilla etc. that 18 months is about right for young adults & didn't mean you no dis (ie:endorsing) LOL I'm obviuosly a strong supporter of waiting to breed the girls though : ) Some Corns definitely seem to grow faster than others thats for sure. Like I say I myself like to take my time with them, rather than push any limits size wise. Ask anyone most of my breeders are pretty big girls. Not saying that all specimens fall into the same grooves as there are always exceptions, but with most girls its better to wait for breeding. I know its kinda off the orginal topic, but had to get my digs in, as people are always asking me "How long until I can breed her?" Mark

[Katt]

I support you 100% Mark!! Too many undersized underaged corns being bred out there. It's a shame. It's not like they are het pieds, or albino boas, that you want to pump up and breed!

[Bighead]

A related question: I would like to buy mice in bulk, but only have 3 small corns. Will it be worth it to buy feeders onthe internet? How many would it be safe to buy at a time without them going bad in the freezer? Thanks.