Feeder Fish Questions

[beast999]

Hi,

I have a couple of questions regarding feeder fish as food for snakes. I have done my research on safe and unsafe species but I'm stumped on the way it should be presented to the animal and where I can find safe fish to feed.

1) Are whole non-gutted fish safe to feed to my critters? I have heard internal parasites amongst other things can be found in the guts, but I feel gutting/cleaning the fish takes away from the nutritional value of a whole prey item. Should whole fish be offered gutted with bone intact?

2) Are snake keepers offering fillet's with bones or without to their animals?

3) Are fresh caught fish/fish straight off the ice from a store safe to use or would they have to be washed and frozen first?

4) Are farm-raised fish better/safer than grocery store fish caught from a lake or ocean? I'm worried about mercury levels from freshly caught fish and also worried about the hormones/antibiotics that farm raised fish are exposed too.

5) I'm in Canada, and I can't seem to find any frozen feeder fish at my local Petsmart, Big Al's other than the Pro Salt brand silversides. Are these true silversides?

Thanks for your time.

[guidofatherof5]

Hi,

I have a couple of questions regarding feeder fish as food for snakes. I have done my research on safe and unsafe species but I'm stumped on the way it should be presented to the animal and where I can find safe fish to feed.

1) Are whole non-gutted fish safe to feed to my critters? I have heard internal parasites amongst other things can be found in the guts, but I feel gutting/cleaning the fish takes away from the nutritional value of a whole prey item. Should whole fish be offered gutted with bone intact?

2) Are snake keepers offering fillet's with bones or without to their animals?

3) Are fresh caught fish/fish straight off the ice from a store safe to use or would they have to be washed and frozen first?

4) Are farm-raised fish better/safer than grocery store fish caught from a lake or ocean? I'm worried about mercury levels from freshly caught fish and also worried about the hormones/antibiotics that farm raised fish are exposed too.

5) I'm in Canada, and I can't seem to find any frozen feeder fish at my local Petsmart, Big Al's other than the Pro Salt brand silversides. Are these true silversides?

Thanks for your time.

#1. You are right in your assumption that whole fish is more nutritious but that depends in what they were feeding on. Some parasites don't reside in the gut so gutting doesn't eliminate the risk. It certainly helps but isn't risk-free. I think feeding whole bone is a good thing.

#2. I'm sure this goes both ways. The tilapia fillet I use is boneless.

#3. I think this all depends on county of origin. I would avoid any "Product of China". Washing is always a safe procedure and freezing for an extended period of time is also good.

#4 All your worries are legit. Much depends on origin and growing conditions. It's really a roll of the dice. Sorry I can't be more specific.

#5 I have no idea. I have a call into Pro Salt to see what species of Silversides they use. I'll report back once I get an answer.