Movin on up! - Page 3

**EL Ziggy** · 07-18-16, 05:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sharthun

Hey bud! Going well here! Darth is @2921 grams! Medusa is 1924g! Yeah been away for a bit, but not gone.

Wow! What are you feeding those monsters these days? She-ra is about 2500g and SF is about 900g. I'm feeding them every 10-14 days. You gotta throw up some pics (please)

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sharthun · 07-18-16, 07:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by EL Ziggy

Wow! What are you feeding those monsters these days? She-ra is about 2500g and SF is about 900g. I'm feeding them every 10-14 days. You gotta throw up some pics (please)

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Wow, yours are doing well! I will try to get some pics up soon. 2 of mine are in shed.

franks · 07-26-16, 06:54 AM

Hey ziggy. Noce to see an update on your snakes. They look great. Personally I think thats a bit too fast to grow them, but they do look great.

**EL Ziggy** · 07-26-16, 09:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by franks

Hey ziggy. Noce to see an update on your snakes. They look great. Personally I think thats a bit too fast to grow them, but they do look great.

Thanks Frank. I probably feed my snakes a little more liberally than some for their first 2 years but I don't believe in power feeding at all. My coastal and jungles are currently eating every 7 days on average and the Bredli eats every 5-7 days on average. What do your carpets usually weigh at their 1 & 2 year marks?

franks · 07-30-16, 09:21 PM

Hey zig. Sorry man. Been at work alot. I honestly couldn't tell you weights, i do not have a scale that can work for my snakes. I can tell you it takes me 4 or 5 yrs to get a female to breeding size and a male 3ish. None of my snakes are ever "skinny" looking, they are just take longer to reach full size.
Personally I feel 5-7 days is kind of "power feeding." I am not calling you out or anything, I know you take fantastic care of your animals and put alot of thought into your work. I just have a new opinion on the matter after spending alot of time researching. I want my carpets to live 20+ yrs and to breed healthy etc. I feel like many of the leading breeders and hobbyists in our field have adjusted the way they feed.

franks · 07-30-16, 09:31 PM

Sorry- guess I should explain why I feel that is power feedong. On a 5 day schedule your snake is spending way more than 50% of its life just digesting. That is conservative. I offer multiple temp gradients (up to around 92* sometimes higher on a particular perch) and I try to create multiple humidity gradients. My juvenile carpets will camp on that 92* spot and it still takes over a week for a full bowel movement. My adult is much more active, but she will even take more than a week to fully dump her meal. I notice the same behaviors in regards to food- its cyclical. Eat-digest-relax- perch for ambush- then general activity and foraging. If I wait too long on the active stage the pacing and perching seems a bit frantic lol. Also, ill have a difficult time getting the rat in without the snake coming out for it. All this rambling to say. I wait until my snake is somewhere in the active phase, however long that may be. I realize nobody's setup is exactly the same and what works for a particular animal or group of animals may not work for everyone, but I am very happy with the regiment. My snakes are solid and healthy. Active, great display animals.

**EL Ziggy** · 07-30-16, 09:48 PM

I'm always interested in learning Frank as I definitely don't have all the answers. I like to hear different keeping and feeding methods. How much and how often do you feed your carpets? My regiment has been every 5 days until they turn one, every 7-10 days until they turn two, and every 10-14 days thereafter. They usually eat 10-15% of their body weight per feeding. Would you adjust the feeding amount, frequency, or both? All of my carpets are under two except my coastal who just turned two but I got him as a yearling. He was a bit undersized when I got him but he's grown fast. I usually wait until after they've evacuated their last meal and they begin 'hunting' before feeding them again. The coastal gets really active and the other carpets just perch and S-pose when they're ready to eat. I don't have any breeding plans so all of my snakes are just pets but you're right I want to give them the best care possible. Any helpful hints are appreciated.

franks · 07-30-16, 09:54 PM

Im not a biologist or an expert, so instead of trying to reiterate what I am learning I'll point you towards the sources. I'll pm you in the AM with some links etc.

sattva · 07-30-16, 10:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by franks

Im not a biologist or an expert, so instead of trying to reiterate what I am learning I'll point you towards the sources. I'll pm you in the AM with some links etc.

Hey my friend... Would you send me those links also? Thanks in advance...

franks · 07-31-16, 07:55 PM

HNR: Over Feeding | The Reptile Report

Here is a page with links to 4 different interviews mostly about feeding. After listening to these I usually research the person being interviewed and his work directly. Its just interesting to learn about.

dave himself · 08-01-16, 12:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by EL Ziggy

Thanks Dave. All of my carpets are really sweet. My male jungle (Shredder) is always primed for food so I have to be aware of that when I open his cage but once he sees there's no food coming he mellows out right away. I'd read heard carpets, especially jungles, were known to be a bit bitey when they're young but I was pleasantly disappointed

. My Bredli, who's supposed to be the most docile of the carpets, was a little nippy as a hatchling but he's gotten over it.

Thanks for the info Ziggy I forgot I asked you about these lol we don't get to many carpets in the shop so my knowledge on them is pitiful lol