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Feeding Herps |
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Rodents |
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Frozen Thawed rodents is the best to feed herps. Live rodents can bite even kill herps. Bites can become infected, causing lots of problems=vet bills. Live and even pre killed can carry parasites which can be passed to the herp that eats them. The parasites can cause alot more problems=more vet bills. Freezing rodents for 14 days kills off any parasites on them. When thawing them out, keep them in water (usually about an hour or two). It is best to dry them off and heat them up. I usually but a heat lamp on them for a few minutes to get them warm. Sometimes herps, especialy some snakes, will refuse wet, cold rodents. |
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Snakes |
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When feeding snakes, you should always use tongs. Snakes can miss and grab your hand or intend to grab your hand because it may sence the heat coming from your hand.
It is ok to feed snakes in their enclosure unless there is more than one snake in the enclosure or a loose substrate. Snakes may fight if being fed together. Loose substrates can be consumed with the prey causing an impaction. |
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Insects |
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Insects such as meal worms, superworms and crickets need to be fed some sort of vegies or fruits before being fed to a herp. If they are not fed any thing the herp may not get any nutrients from the insect. It is best to often sprinkle vitamins on the insects before feeding them to herps to keep them healthy.
If you are raising insects be sure to keep them clean as possible to prevent them from geting any parasites that could cause the herp problems.
Be sure when feeding herps crickets that they cannot escape the enclosure. If they are being fed to an amphibian, be careful not to give it too many crickets that it cant eat them all. Left over crickets can chew on and damage amphibians skin.
The only true herp than can tolerate alot of meal worms in its diet are leopard geckos. Meal worms are ok to feed to many insectivores, just dont feed them too many or too often.
Never feed a herp too many wax worms, they are very fatty and can even possibly cause blindness.
It is not a good idea to use insects collected outside. Theres a great chance it ate plants sprayd by chemicals. Even if your yard doesn't have any chemicals, the yard down the street might. |
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Feeder Lizards |
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There are many lizards and snakes that naturaly eat lizards. Sometimes, when smaller snakes refuse to eat it is suggested to offer a small lizard such a house gecko. Lizards wouldn't be much of a problem, they would be a good variety in diet to larger lizards but there is a great chance of geting a WC that has parasites. If you had enough to spend $6 or so on CB lizards then it would be ok, theres a good chance it wont have parasites. |
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