Digestion of mice

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Hijinks
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Digestion of mice

Postby Hijinks » Tue Feb 26, 2008 11:20 am

When I feed mice to my skink, what can I expect to come out of the other end? How much do they digest?

Ping had his first fuzzy mouse experience a couple weeks ago. He wouldn't eat it whole, so I chopped it up for him. :hurl: He ate the head and the rump/hind legs. I saw in his poo what looks like it could have been fur, but I haven't seen any of the bones. Do they digest the bones? He has been very uninterested in food ever since. So I was worried it could have clogged him up or something (i.e. why would he start with the brumation attitude toward food now in the middle of February?). Does that make any sense? :paranoid:
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Postby NomadOfTheHills » Tue Feb 26, 2008 11:34 am

As long as you have a nice 100 degree basking spot, he should be able to digest it just fine.
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Postby Jenn » Tue Feb 26, 2008 12:14 pm

My guys have mice about once a month and I don't recall their poop looking any different.
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Postby Fatal_S » Tue Feb 26, 2008 2:52 pm

My snake's poo looks pretty much the same as the Blueys, and she eats mice all the time. I wouldn't expect any bones or other mousy bits to make it through digestion like in an owl. As for being uninterested in food is he due to shed? Otherwise it may just be a mood.
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Postby Scotts1au » Tue Feb 26, 2008 3:18 pm

You can probably expect more Uric Acid (white stuff) in the poo, similar to feeding ie. with meat only meal.

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Postby Blotch » Tue Feb 26, 2008 5:44 pm

I feed my guys Pinkie RATS - I can't stress enough that they are baby RATS not mice.

Reason for this is the baby rats are bigger, easier to digest, more nutrition, and softer bones. All I've ever seen come out is poop. No Bones, no hair just poop.
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Postby Jenn » Tue Feb 26, 2008 7:08 pm

What makes them more nutritional? Wouldn't an adult mouse, with more developed bones have more calcium?
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Postby Blotch » Tue Feb 26, 2008 7:27 pm

Mothers Milk. It has all the nutrients a baby needs to grow and develop. Most baby rats that are frozen are done so after a week or 2 suckling at mum. Think of it as gut loading.
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Postby Scotts1au » Tue Feb 26, 2008 7:40 pm

Lets face it feeding a bluey a rat or mouse is really for the fun of it.

Of course if you were really serious you could alway gut load the mouse. ie. with a worming tablet, crushed up bones etc. :-)

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Postby Blotch » Tue Feb 26, 2008 7:43 pm

Scotts1au wrote:Lets face it feeding a bluey a rat or mouse is really for the fun of it.


how can you argue with a point like that?
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Postby Graniteer » Tue Feb 26, 2008 9:04 pm

On the gutloading bit, I remember seeing something on a different forum about people injecting mice/rats with liquid calcium or various kinds of goodies. Anyone ever done this? I've thought about it, but I have no idea where to get liquid calcium from.
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Postby NomadOfTheHills » Tue Feb 26, 2008 9:45 pm

Seems pointless to me, mice are loaded with calcium.

Oh yea, calcium powder + water= liquid calcium :lol:
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Postby Scotts1au » Tue Feb 26, 2008 10:04 pm

Yah Calcium rich poo.

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Postby Leigh » Wed Feb 27, 2008 3:39 am

Hijinks, I expect the mouse has supplied all your skinks nutritional needs for a while, be glad he's not a greedy pig,or an over eater.
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Postby Scotts1au » Wed Feb 27, 2008 4:54 am

Geez Leigh - don't let the truth get in the way of a good story.

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