feeding question

At the risk of sounding like an idiot...I'm new to snake ownership and just want to make sure we're doing this right. We don't want to risk overfeeding and haven't been able to get a concrete answer on this.

We have an albino Cali King, who is approx 4 feet long (we measured his shed skin...is this an accurate way to measure?). Now the pet store was feeding him 2 adult mice. We have no way of knowing how much the previous owner was feeding him, but does this sound about right? He gobbles 2 up no problem, but we don't want to inadverdently cause long term health problems by incorrectly feeding. Is there a way to know just how much they need?

Thx

Nat

Measuring the shed skin is not an accurate way of finding the length of a snake because the skin stretches as it is shed. So your snake is somewhat less than 4'.

Two adult mice could be just right. Do they cause noticable lumps after being ingested? Is the fattest part of the snake about as round as the mice? How long does it take for the lumps to disappear? Is the snake passing normal bowel movements?

Feeding adult snakes once per week, depending on the species, is common. Juvinile snakes are fed more often. I feed mine twice a week.

What I use to guage whether my animals are getting enough to eat is to weigh them once a month, and to make note of how often they shed. I keep records on each animal to record this. Experience will give you the skill to "eyeball" the condition of your snake. This you do not have yet.

It is possible to overfeed snakes and cause obesity. The best advice anyone can give you is to consult with a knowledgeable reptile veterinarian. That is the person who can best discuss issues and questions you may have about your snake. Besides, you need to have a relationship with a knowledgeable reptile vet in case of illness or injury. Initiate that relationship now.

Unless you are trying to prepare the snake for breeding, you might even consider feeding 2 mice once every 2 weeks as a maintenance diet ... I have one kingsnake I'm trying to keep plump in anticipation of breeding season, she gets a juvenile rat every two weeks and is VERY fat.

But I have heard that feeding large meals infrequently can actually cause obesity, even if it is less total food compared to another diet. This is because the long periods between feedings puts the body into a natural state of conservation in which it stores all the fat it can because it is afraid of starvation, even if it is already plump. This isn't my hypothesis, but I've heard it from a few sources. This is why drastic diets (without excercise) in humans often does not result in a lot of weight loss from my experience as a PT. You as the owner are the best judge to your snakes needs and condition.

What I would reccomend for a Cal King about 42" would be one jumbo mouse every 4-5 days.

Interesting... while I've heard of this theory (and believe it to be true) as regards to humans, I have never heard of it in relation to snakes. Perhaps it's time to post a poll. I'd be very interested to know this from others. I don't really think there is a relation (though I'm open to the possibility that I could be quite wrong!). I'll have to ask others and see what the consensus is!

Personally my recommendation for a non-breeding adult kingsnake would be to feed once a week at most, and every ten days to two weeks. Do I practice what I preach? Sometimes... but frequently not. Most of my adults are breeders however, and my males are notoriously picky... they'll eat pretty good when first woken up, but they won't consider eating after six or seven weeks... and go without food for the most part until late summer. They just wanna BREED. So I feed them as frequently as they will eat, PERIOD. The girls are more sensible and only go off food for a month to six weeks when gravid. Not enough room inside for eggs AND rats!