Malaki; our new/old Burm - Page 2

Norm66 · 01-24-12, 07:36 AM

Thanks for the input. I think Shannon tried offering him rabbits a few times with no luck is why he is still on rats. We'll do some research before the next expo (where we buy our feeders) and find out what's up.

I hope he does grow some more. It would make us feel good. LOL.

Caylan · 01-24-12, 08:20 AM

Try giving him a rat, and just after he's done swallowing the tail, offer him the rabbit. He should take it just from being in feed mode. You could try enforcing this behaviour with the rats you have now, by doubling up, then he will be used to it for when you offer him the rabbit. I think he'll still grow some more, especially on rabbits. Caylan.s.

KORBIN5895 · 01-24-12, 09:36 AM

So out of curiosity why would one rabbit make him grow faster than two rats? A xxxl rat is between 475-600+ g from rodent pro. They cost two dollars each. A 454-794g rabbit (1-1.75 pounds) costs five dollars each. So the rats are a more economical choice. Don't rats have a higher fat content which would make it grow faster? Since he isn't huge two xxl rats seems like a good choice to me and if he never gets huge he could just be bumped to two xxxl rats which would still be cheaper than a rabbit.

Rogue628 · 01-24-12, 11:05 AM

Better nutrients. xxxl/jumbo rats are typically old breeders who have more fat then muscle to them...or that's what I understand. You want to feed them something more healthy, not fattening.

Norm, try what was suggested. It couldn't hurt.

Norm66 · 01-24-12, 11:10 AM

OK, the old breeders thing makes perfect sense to me. I'll give it a shot. But we're going to use up our 6 rats we bought first because nothing else we have will be ready for them for at least a year.

MoreliAddict · 01-24-12, 11:58 AM

is Malaki upset that he won't be allowed to leave West Virginia??

also have you posted pics of your jungle carpet?

Norm66 · 01-24-12, 12:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BimthaS

is Malaki upset that he won't be allowed to leave West Virginia??

also have you posted pics of your jungle carpet?

LOL, only if he gets sick. There aren't any herp vets here as far as I know. It's our job to keep him from getting sick.

And yes, I've got a thread in morelia forum for Jerome. He's a problem child non-eater so far so I haven't taken any pics of him as he's being left alone as much as possible until he starts eating.

KORBIN5895 · 01-24-12, 01:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rogue628

Better nutrients. xxxl/jumbo rats are typically old breeders who have more fat then muscle to them...or that's what I understand. You want to feed them something more healthy, not fattening.

Norm, try what was suggested. It couldn't hurt.

According to rp you are correct! Anything over XL is a retired breeder and may have a higher body fat content. Here I stand corrected but I learned something important today.

Becky Goings · 01-24-12, 03:37 PM

Norm missed the conversation where we discovered he really is on xxl rats, but I think he'll be ready to move up to the xxxl rats soon. I'm also a bit squeamish about feeding rabbits (I used to take care of a neighbor's pet rabbit when he was on the road, so it's hard for me to think about them as food). But, if it's what's best for my Malaki, I'll deal with it. I just want a little more time to resign myself to it. lol We aren't going to powerfeed, we just want him healthy. He is in way better condition than when our friend rescued him. I'm excited to have him home, and can't wait to feed him tomorrow!

youngster · 01-24-12, 04:56 PM

Awesome burm guys, also, sweet name!!

Rogue628 · 01-25-12, 12:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by KORBIN5895

According to rp you are correct! Anything over XL is a retired breeder and may have a higher body fat content. Here I stand corrected but I learned something important today.

I couldn't remember if it started with XL or bigger. Once mine need to be moved up to large rats, I'm going to start looking for rabbits. I do have 2 dumerils that I'm moving to large this week. I have a breeder I need to locate to see if they can stay on large rats for the rest of their lives or if they're going to require a larger food source. If so, I'll be attempting to switch them to rabbits in a couple of months.

Becky, when I first started keeping snakes, I had a hard time feeding mice. I thought they were so cute

It took a while but I can now distinguish in my mind "pets" vs "food". I can have pet rodents. My son had pet mice when he was younger. Those are to never be given as a food source...and probably the reason why I cannot look in the pet section of craigslist for feeders for my animals. I only feed mice/rats/and later rabbits that are bred and fed as a source of good food for my animals. Hopefully soon you can come to terms between them in your mind as well

Norm66 · 01-25-12, 05:58 AM

Oh Becky will get over the bunny thing quick enough if that's what Malaki needs. Did I mention she's in love with him? LOL. Seriously, I've seen brand-new mothers with less love in their faces than when Becky's holding Malaki.

presspirate · 01-25-12, 02:14 PM

Nice looking Burm. Your wife looks like she's holding a baby.

I just recently got mine to take a rabbit. The trick I used was thawing the rabbit in a bag of used rat bedding. Worked like a charm!

Hope this helps. Good Luck!

**millertime89** · 01-25-12, 03:33 PM

Malaki looks awesome, his color and pattern just pop so nicely.
You may be able to keep him on rats now, but if he grows like he should, pretty soon it'll be more economical to switch to one or two larger rabbits than 3 or 4 even 3xl rats.

Becky Goings · 01-25-12, 04:13 PM

Kyle, from what we can find online, he's not going to get much bigger (maybe in girth) because he's already 9 years old. He was severely underfed for all but the last 9 months or so, when Shannon rescued him. He also had been not handled at all after he was about 2 years old, until Shannon got him. He is such a sweet guy it's amazing, with all he's lived through. I'll get over the rabbit thing once we've had him and fed him a few times, I'm sure. Norm is right, I really do love the guy.

<3