Breeding the feeders(mice)

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packer43064

packer43064

Jack Dempsey
MFK Member
Jul 10, 2008
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Sooo was reading another MFK thread. I'm getting a Sand Boa, idk when exactly but I want one. Could be this month but more than likely next month. They feed on pinkies, newborn mice. Would it be feasible to maybe get a pair of mice and breed them. I understand it costs money and would be cheaper to just order a crapload for a online site....but do people do this? I'm not scared or feel bad when I would have to kill them, their feeders to me. Feeders are feeders, pets are pets I do not mix the two. I would of course use the most humane way(blow to the head or C02 chamber is what I hear) of killing them. Even if I had two female rats that produce 6-12(quick google search) that would last awhile. I would treat the adult mice as any other mice. They would get a hide and running wheel and the whole works just the babies would be taken away briefly after the females had them. Interaction daily.

Is there a special way to freeze them or just toss them in the freezer? I understand it will cost more, I like to "breed" animals. I like to understand how they react to us and see how the cycle goes. Plus I wouldn't be breeding for fun it would be for a purpose.

Will a sand boa(kenyan) ever need anything larger than a pinkey?

Mods: I hope to keep this in the reptile since it really really pertains to reptiles and not just breeding.
 
I used to breed all my feeders. You can save money doing it but you need the right set up.

You can use a big glass tank, but large hard plastic bins work just as well if you fit screens over them. Here is a great link you should definitely give a read.
http://www.ball-pythons.net/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=125

It has all the do-it-yourself stuff you could ever possibly want in regards to breeding feeders yourself cheap.
 
If you think you'll like breeding them go for it. For a single sand boa you won't need to, and it probably won't really save you much money, but that doesn't sound like a concern. Benefits are that you're in charge of how nutritious your feeders are, and you'll know your boa's getting fresh food.

You can just freeze them in ziplock bags once they're dead, or if you can get ahold of one of those vaccuum-packing thingies they'll last much longer.
 
packer43064;4361181; said:
Sooo was reading another MFK thread. I'm getting a Sand Boa, idk when exactly but I want one. Could be this month but more than likely next month. They feed on pinkies, newborn mice. Would it be feasible to maybe get a pair of mice and breed them. I understand it costs money and would be cheaper to just order a crapload for a online site....but do people do this? I'm not scared or feel bad when I would have to kill them, their feeders to me. Feeders are feeders, pets are pets I do not mix the two. I would of course use the most humane way(blow to the head or C02 chamber is what I hear) of killing them. Even if I had two female rats that produce 6-12(quick google search) that would last awhile. I would treat the adult mice as any other mice. They would get a hide and running wheel and the whole works just the babies would be taken away briefly after the females had them. Interaction daily.

Is there a special way to freeze them or just toss them in the freezer? I understand it will cost more, I like to "breed" animals. I like to understand how they react to us and see how the cycle goes. Plus I wouldn't be breeding for fun it would be for a purpose.

Will a sand boa(kenyan) ever need anything larger than a pinkey?

Mods: I hope to keep this in the reptile since it really really pertains to reptiles and not just breeding.
Click to expand...

Anyone?

LRM;4361634; said:
I used to breed all my feeders. You can save money doing it but you need the right set up.

You can use a big glass tank, but large hard plastic bins work just as well if you fit screens over them. Here is a great link you should definitely give a read.
http://www.ball-pythons.net/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=125

It has all the do-it-yourself stuff you could ever possibly want in regards to breeding feeders yourself cheap.
Click to expand...

Thanks!!! What did you breed? How did you do yours?

CTU2fan;4361927; said:
If you think you'll like breeding them go for it. For a single sand boa you won't need to, and it probably won't really save you much money, but that doesn't sound like a concern. Benefits are that you're in charge of how nutritious your feeders are, and you'll know your boa's getting fresh food.

You can just freeze them in ziplock bags once they're dead, or if you can get ahold of one of those vaccuum-packing thingies they'll last much longer.
Click to expand...

Yeah I'm thinking of getting two females and a male then just freezing the pinkies which would last me some time then just rebreeding to stock up again. Obviously as the snake grows I will need to get more, but for now.
 
Adult female Kenyan Sand Boas can eat adult rats. So yeah, they will eventually need larger than pinkies. It's just easier to feed them on frozen.
 
Been keeping kenyans for almost 3 years and my females is a hog , weaned rats are fine for her, an adult rat i just don't see it happening .I actually breed rats ,mice ,roaches and hamsters for my pets . when i had more snakes i used a home ma de rack system to raise rats but u can do mince 1.3 in a 10 g tank easy , the initial cost will be moderate but having fresh and in many sizes of prey to chose from will be very nice . just keep them clean as they can stink.
 
i breed my own mice cos i have ten snakes and 3 monitors, but if you only have 1 KSB to feed, maintaining a breeding colony of mice is a lot of work, actually more work than the herps themselves. but if you wanna go for it, then do so.
 
I hated the smell of the mice, too much cleaning. After breeding mice and rats for a few years to maintain 10 snakes and some turtles, I opted to just buy them frozen off the internet.
 
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