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sherrielouise
Snake Mite
United Kingdom
36 Posts |
 Posted - 13/06/2011 : 19:17:59
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| Hi all, we've had our royal 3 yrs and in all this time he's only ever eaten mice. I've tried him on several occasions on small rats but he's just not interested. Anyone got any tips? Thanks. |
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n/a
deleted
7384 Posts |
Posted - 13/06/2011 : 19:33:30
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Hi, I got a cb06 girl last Nov who I was told refused to eat anything but mice ... 2 large a week when she should have been on 2 rats a month. I also have a cf10 lad who was sold to me feeding on mice, and who I allowed to stay on mice until after the winter fast.
So I know how you feel. I think I've been lucky with Shahi and Surahi, because I just happened to offer a rat when they were hungry, and in both cases they took ...
Before that, when I was planning to get them on to rats, I considered:
Keeping pet mice for their bedding or obtaining used mouse bedding to rub on the f/t rat to make it smell mousy.
Keeping the pet mice in their cage in view of the royals so that excitement over live mice would confuse them when offered dead rats.
Defrosting mice and rats together (to confuse smell) didn't work.
Washing the rats in washing up liquid and rinsing well before defrosting with a mouse. Although someone told me this was 'bizarre',  , it is, apparently, a well-known ploy, but mercifully I never had to give poor ratty a bubblebath lol.
Skinning a mouse and putting the skin over the rat. I did try this, but on leftover prey ... poor mousy was so small that ratty ended up wearing what looked like a surgical mask ... didn't work.
I struck at offering live rats. What if the snake ended up addicted to live food?? worse than dead mice!
I think that's it - can't remember any more ...oh, something you could try is, offer a smaller prey size. And warm its nose well with a hairdryer for 30 secs approx.
I think I was just extremely lucky. Some people say, just persist, and when the snake's hungry enough it'll eat the rat. Others say, well, a pet or male snake doesn't have to attain the great weight of a breeding female, so does it matter if it stays on mice? Which, when you think about it, is fair enough. But it DOES streamline feeding if they'll take rats. |
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Edited by - n/a on 13/06/2011 19:40:04 |
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blackskull
Fully Grown Royal
United Kingdom
1278 Posts |
Posted - 13/06/2011 : 20:25:09
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when i bought my adult royal he was eating mice. i would try every now and then to get him to eat rats but he wouldn't take them so next feed i would give him mice. after a while i just decided to only offer him rats but smaller than he could take, weaners. it took a while for him to eat the first one, a couple of months i think, but in this time he was still active and his weight was good. i left him on large weaners for a few months and he never missed one. i then increased the size to the correct ones for him again it was a while about a month but touch wood so far so good
i just looked at it as he will eat when hungry, but i was lucky in that it wasn't too long b4 he took to rats |
1.1 normal royal, sully, silver
0.1 pinstripe royal, penny
1.1 pastel royal, lars, clover
0.1 lesser royal, serenity
0.1 black pastel royal, betty
0.1 mojave royal, mavis
0.1 normal het clown
1.0 pastel het clown
1.0 nuclear, ned
1.0 super phantom
1.0 childrens python, myles
0.1 hog island boa
0.1 sonoran x boa, grace
0.0.1 mack snow leopard gecko, munchkin
4.1 cats, stan, dave, marble, binx, daisy
4.1 rabbits, mol, ted, bill, spud, alice
0.1 crazy cat/bunny lady of bridgwater, lucy |
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Welly
Yearling
United Kingdom
423 Posts |
Posted - 14/06/2011 : 00:44:17
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| Stick with it and they will convert. Took weeks to get mine to change over. Even my king took a few weeks. |
0.1.0 Royal Python
0.0.1 Mexican Black King
1.0.0 Brazilian Rainbow Boa |
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Royalbob
Royal Python Moderator
United Kingdom
1115 Posts |
Posted - 15/06/2011 : 00:07:02
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Fresh as in dirty mouse bedding from pet shop. Mouse sized White rat.
Rinse rat under tap then Defrost rat in mouse bedding. Heat up head
nice and warm with hair dryer and bingo. Well worked for me. |
1.0 Enchi butter
1.0 Enchi X Pastel
1.0 Fire het clown
1.0 Bumblebee
1.0 pinstripe
0.1 Enchi Fire
0.1 Pastel calico
0.1 Yellow belly Pinstripe
0.1 Lemon pastel poss het clown
0.1 Het clown
0.1 Yellow belly
0.1 Green Mojave
0.1 HC Albino
0.2 Normals
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Rox1e6
Snake Mite
44 Posts |
Posted - 15/06/2011 : 10:09:45
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| I think we've been so lucky with our little cb10 spider morph. She seems to love her 4' viv thankfully! She's eaten a large mouse every 5 days since we've had her (5wks or so) she doesn't mind being handled at all and yesterday she had her first shed which came off in one piece and measured 2' 1", her first mahoosive poo and we offered her a rat that was twice the size of her usual mice just to see if she'd take one and she struck and ate it with no problem whatsoever and I was prepared after reading lots of threads for her to turn her nose up at it completely! |
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Royalbob
Royal Python Moderator
United Kingdom
1115 Posts |
Posted - 15/06/2011 : 10:25:11
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That's great news. Not sure if you know but Spider's are known to be good feeders and breeders dispite their little wobble.
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1.0 Enchi butter
1.0 Enchi X Pastel
1.0 Fire het clown
1.0 Bumblebee
1.0 pinstripe
0.1 Enchi Fire
0.1 Pastel calico
0.1 Yellow belly Pinstripe
0.1 Lemon pastel poss het clown
0.1 Het clown
0.1 Yellow belly
0.1 Green Mojave
0.1 HC Albino
0.2 Normals
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jhk2005
Yearling
United Kingdom
166 Posts |
Posted - 15/06/2011 : 18:03:16
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| A lot of sources will tell you that royals can develop a preferred food, tbh i've managed to get my bumblebee from mice to rats by scenting his first couple of rat fuzzies with a mouse and feeding a small item of each (at the same time) to get him used to the smell/taste of the rats. Now he wolfs down weaner rats like they're going outta fashion. |
1.6.0 Normal Royals - Will, Grace, Lolly, Patty, Maddie, Mystique, Victoria
1.1.0 Pastel Royals - Becks, Sophie
0.1.0 Spider Royal - Charlotte
0.1.0 Mojave Royal - Mo
1.1.0 Yellowbelly Royals - Pinky, Perky
1.0.0 Pinstripe Royal - Pip
1.0.0 Bumblebee Royal - Buzz
1.0.0 Vanilla Royal - Vinnie
1.0.0 Lesser Royal - Leo
1.0.0 Cinnamon Royal - Sam
1.0.0 Burmese Python - Kane
0.1.0 Albino Burmese Python - Amber
1.0.0 Redfoot Tortoise - Chucky |
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sherrielouise
Snake Mite
United Kingdom
36 Posts |
Posted - 15/06/2011 : 18:47:40
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| Thanks for your replies, I'm gonna persevere with the rats an I'll post back when he eats. |
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n/a
deleted
7384 Posts |
Posted - 15/06/2011 : 20:12:44
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| All the best, fingers crossed. |
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koreybum
Hatchling
United Kingdom
88 Posts |
Posted - 20/06/2011 : 21:57:52
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| i'm in the same boat. when mine outgrew mice i tried rats but he didn't want 2 know. someone adviced me 2 try chicks so he did and he's been eating those no probs 4 about 6 months. he stopped eating 4 a couple of weeks so i decided it was the ideal time 2 again try the rats. ive been trying him now on weaner rats for about 2 months and he still want eat them. dont know what 2 do now. dont know either what the difference between weaner rats and rats are? |
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n/a
deleted
7384 Posts |
Posted - 20/06/2011 : 22:07:53
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quote:
Originally posted by koreybum
i'm in the same boat. when mine outgrew mice i tried rats but he didn't want 2 know. someone adviced me 2 try chicks so he did and he's been eating those no probs 4 about 6 months. he stopped eating 4 a couple of weeks so i decided it was the ideal time 2 again try the rats. ive been trying him now on weaner rats for about 2 months and he still want eat them. dont know what 2 do now. dont know either what the difference between weaner rats and rats are?
It's just a very young rat - rat pups = mouse pinkies, rat fluffs = mouse fuzzies, then the next sizes are 'weaners', which usually come in 4 sizes - small, medium, large and XL, and are baby rats who are on solids - weaned. The next size up is a 'small' rat, which is the first size of adult rat.
Hope you get your lad 'weaned' on to rats - it does simplify feeding. |
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Edited by - n/a on 20/06/2011 22:11:24 |
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sherrielouise
Snake Mite
United Kingdom
36 Posts |
Posted - 16/07/2011 : 16:48:50
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Still not eating the rats, he has a good sniff but then wnaders off!! getting frustrated now! |
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sherrielouise
Snake Mite
United Kingdom
36 Posts |
Posted - 16/07/2011 : 16:50:20
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| Wanders!! Not eaten for over a month now! |
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n/a
deleted
7384 Posts |
Posted - 16/07/2011 : 17:28:07
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Ah, sorry to hear. It's best to persevere if you can, though since he's a male it's not as crucial as if he was a female you wanted to get to breeding weight. But still rats are much more suitable for an adult royal. (And convenient for the owner too.) Some royals will not change to rats, it's true; but I'd personally give him another couple of tries, and try some of the feeding ploys mentioned above (sorry if you've done this already.)
Other people may have other suggestions - do hope he gets there. |
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Welly
Yearling
United Kingdom
423 Posts |
Posted - 16/07/2011 : 18:27:20
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| Stick with it. They will convert |
0.1.0 Royal Python
0.0.1 Mexican Black King
1.0.0 Brazilian Rainbow Boa |
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jhk2005
Yearling
United Kingdom
166 Posts |
Posted - 17/07/2011 : 13:10:09
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aww try not to worry! You'd be amazed how long they can go with no reall ill-effects ;)
my most fussy feeder is my pip ; basically he dieted from halloween last year until 31st March this year, and more or less maintained his weight at around 300gms. Then he ate solid for about 4 weeks and then went on another diet from the end of april until he started eating again in june. In all that time I force-fed him twice during his first stint when he'd lost about 20gms, but otherwise he survived none the worse for it. He's proved to me just how fussy they can be!?! If it puts your mind at rest then weight him regularly and it will hopefully help to ease your worries, but don't lose hope - just when you think you've reached the end of your thether he'll surprise you and scoff it down before you blink! :D |
1.6.0 Normal Royals - Will, Grace, Lolly, Patty, Maddie, Mystique, Victoria
1.1.0 Pastel Royals - Becks, Sophie
0.1.0 Spider Royal - Charlotte
0.1.0 Mojave Royal - Mo
1.1.0 Yellowbelly Royals - Pinky, Perky
1.0.0 Pinstripe Royal - Pip
1.0.0 Bumblebee Royal - Buzz
1.0.0 Vanilla Royal - Vinnie
1.0.0 Lesser Royal - Leo
1.0.0 Cinnamon Royal - Sam
1.0.0 Burmese Python - Kane
0.1.0 Albino Burmese Python - Amber
1.0.0 Redfoot Tortoise - Chucky |
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sherrielouise
Snake Mite
United Kingdom
36 Posts |
Posted - 25/08/2011 : 18:31:12
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Yay!!! last night he finally ate, i defrosted a mouse with the rat and rubbed the mouse all over the rat, introduced the rat but at first wasnt interested so i held the mouse and rat together (mouse behind the rat) and he struck at the rat and wolfed it down!!
Well pleased, he hadnt eaten for over 2 months. I'll do the same again next week then i'll just try rats on their own from there on.
Many thanks for the advice, this is an invaluable forum. |
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Evolution Morphs
Old Royal - I Post too much!
United Kingdom
2265 Posts |
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sandi
Sub Adult
787 Posts |
Posted - 25/08/2011 : 21:10:07
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Yay, good news.
Was just about to sugest exactly what you did! The rubbing trick always works for Flo so im glad it worked for you too! |
0.1.0 Royal Python - Florence
1.0.0 Boa Constrictor - Boris
1.1.0 Alaunts - Willow & Brochan |
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switching to rats.
