when is it time to start buying in bulk?

ErikBush97 · 08-24-13, 11:13 PM

Hi. I am now up to four snakes
1.0.0 Ball
0.1.0 Corn
1.1.0 BCI
I bought food at an expo at 0.50 a piece and bought about $15 worth of food. I bought about an equal amount of hoppers and adult mice. My BCI's are like 80 grams, while my Corn snake is around 200, and my Ball has almost hit 300 grams. I don't think I need to buy online if I only have four snakes, but when do you usually start buying in bulk? Should I buying about 6 months worth at each expo (we have an expo about every six months) or should I continue to buy from a pet store?

slowhite03 · 08-25-13, 12:15 AM

It all depends on what you want to do. If you have room for about a 100 mice then get then at the expo. I prefer to get mine at petsmart only because you never know when they are going to need a bigger meal. This gives you a chance to move up to the right size food when needed

Stewjoe · 08-25-13, 11:30 AM

I buy 4-6 months work of food at a time. $120 for 4 snakes.

ErikBush97 · 08-25-13, 04:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stewjoe

I buy 4-6 months work of food at a time. $120 for 4 snakes.

Awesome. Thanks, man. I might start doing that.

formica · 08-25-13, 04:54 PM

BCI's can outgrow their food size very quickly, bare that in mind when buying, you could have two 6ft+ snakes in a years time if they are set up right, munching down rabbits

**EL Ziggy** · 08-25-13, 04:54 PM

Im buying a years worth of mice and rats for $80 for 2 snakes with my next online order. Last time I bought 6 months worth for $60. The mice held up great for these 6 months, I'm hoping they'll still be fresh after 12 months. I would save the shipping costs if I bought at an expo but I missed the last one and the closest trusted supplier is a 4 hour roundtrip drive.

Stewjoe · 08-25-13, 06:56 PM

Larger rats and mice can last a lot longer in the freezer because of their fur. The smaller once will be freezer burned much sooner. I don't stock any longer than 6 months to be on the safe side.

**EL Ziggy** · 08-25-13, 08:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stewjoe

Larger rats and mice can last a lot longer in the freezer because of their fur. The smaller once will be freezer burned much sooner. I don't stock any longer than 6 months to be on the safe side.

^Makes good sense to me.

ErikBush97 · 08-25-13, 11:38 PM

Since my BCI's are babies and should grow pretty quickly naturally, should I get like a months worth of what they're on, a month or two of the next size up, etc, etc?

formica · 08-26-13, 03:58 AM

thats kinda what I do Erik, buy my months supply and a few extra at larger sizes

freezer burn is caused by unsealed packaging inside anti-frost freezers, contact with the air removes moisture and causes 'burns', it can be prevented if the items are air-sealed well.

the length of time they last depends on the type of freezer you have, a deep freeze @ -10F/-25C will keep them fresh allot longer than a freezer @ 20F/-5C

I would not personally keep prey items longer than 6months in deep freeze, it is generally recognized that whole meat items, which still contain stomach, brain and other organs, degrade much quicker than prepared meat

ErikBush97 · 08-26-13, 04:17 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by formica

thats kinda what I do Erik, buy my months supply and a few extra at larger sizes

freezer burn is caused by unsealed packaging inside anti-frost freezers, contact with the air removes moisture and causes 'burns', it can be prevented if the items are air-sealed well.

the length of time they last depends on the type of freezer you have, a deep freeze @ -10F/-25C will keep them fresh allot longer than a freezer @ 20F/-5C

I would not personally keep prey items longer than 6months in deep freeze, it is generally recognized that whole meat items, which still contain stomach, brain and other organs, degrade much quicker than prepared meat

Thanks! There are Expos pretty often here, so I don't think buying food and having it go bad should ever be an issue!