Questions About These Commonly-Available Fish

[pitbulllady]

I've read up on a lot of the fish that are or are NOT OK to use as feeders, but none have mentioned these fish which are often available, fresh, at supermarkets and fish markets here in the Southeastern US, so I was wondering how they'd work as feeders for my Water Snakes. The fish that I see most often are Croakers, Spots, Perch, Whiting, Mahi Mahi(also called "Dolphin fish"-that name is not good for commercial sales, needless to say)and Flounder. Flounder are available either wild-caught in salt-brackish water or farmed in fresh water. The local Piggly Wiggly carries fresh whole Croaker quite often. Sometimes these are a bit too large(although I'm sure some of my eating machines would give it a good try)but many weeks they get in these small dinky Croakers that would hardly make a fit human meal, after cleaning. I have never seen Silversides offered anywhere, and the only live fish I've fed are large Shiners, which are sold at bait shops. We do not have pet shops around here, and of course, they wouldn't carry appropriate feeder fish for a four-foot snake, anyway. My long-term snakes have all eaten Tilapia, but it is a bit more expensive and is normally only available in bulk, which means freezing the surplus, and I understand that's not good to do. Anyone got any information on those fish I mentioned, with regards to the whole thiamine-thiaminaise thing, or any other potential problems?

Two of my Water Snakes are on rodents, one still requiring scenting, but the others are more recently-caught and still on fish.

pitbulllady

[Millinex]

Honestly, go get a fishing hook, some line, and a stick. Make a fishing pole out of it and put a worm on the end, should be able to catch plenty of bluegill/sunfish for your snakes, if you are willing to fillet them that is...

[DrKate]

At the beginning of the "academic nonsense" thread in the Husbandry section, toward the end of the second post, is a link to a table of unsafe *and* safe fish that you can access free online. I suspect at least some of the fish you listed are on there, so that might help clear things up.

[gregmonsta]

You could always opt for FT salmon and trout fillet cut into little strips

[pitbulllady]

Honestly, go get a fishing hook, some line, and a stick. Make a fishing pole out of it and put a worm on the end, should be able to catch plenty of bluegill/sunfish for your snakes, if you are willing to fillet them that is...

I live in a "dry" area. We do not have permanent standing water. The one access point on the nearest river is a haven for crack addicts and gang activity, and is barely safe to drive past, let alone stop. There are no small creeks, streams, ponds or ditches that hold water for more than an hour after a rain. The soil here just does not hold water; even putting down a well you have to bore down 3,000 feet to hit a permanent reliable source of ground water. Fishing is "iffy" in the best of circumstances, and I sure don't want my animals to go hungry because it was a bad day and the fish weren't biting. Throughout most of the year, I'm a school teacher, with a very hectic schedule that does not allow time for fishing!

pitbulllady