Rat or Rodent Farmer - Fun Activities - Environments

Environments - RAT OR RODENT FARMER

Calculating the cost for frozen rats that snakes eat!

Primary Middle Secondary

Australian Curriculum General Capability: Numeracy

Teacher

Please read the information about sizes and feed requirements contained in the Word doc 4 pages

Firstly, direct students or read as a class Cheryl Martin's story - a rat farmer.

For primary students, the following activity is a good exercise in getting information from tables.

All classes.
Divide the class into pairs and allocate two different types of snake to each pair - look at Table 1 to see the different types of pet snakes. Each pair of students will research their snakes and make a presentation to the class of the facts and figures.

After all the presentations, the class will determine which snake is the most cost efficient to have as a pet.

Snake Rat
(Source: Everything Reptile)

Students

1. Form pairs. You will be allocated two snakes to investigate. Your task is to investigate and present information re: the type, size and number of frozen rats that your "pet" snakes need.

2. Look at the following tables and work out:

a. what size rat will be required to feed your allocated snakes?

b. how often do your snakes need feeding? Did you average the frequency? What is your reasoning?

Table 1: Sizes of Rats required for Size/Type of Snake

Table 1
(Source: Petwave)

Table 2: Guidelines for how much the average python needs to eat based on its size and age.

Exact feeding requirements vary between individuals, but there are guidelines for how much the average python needs to eat based on its size and age. You will need to assume that your "pet" snake has the same or similar requirements.

Snake Age	Snake Weight	Prey Size	Frequency
Hatchling	50 – 100 g	Hopper mouse or pinky rat (8-12 g)	Every five days
3 months	120 – 200 g	Small mouse or fuzzy rat (13-19 g)	Once week
6 months	300 – 370 g	Adult mouse or rat pup (20-30g)	Every 7 – 10 days
1 year	500 – 900 g	1-3 adult mice or 1 small rat (45-80 g)	Every 10 – 14 days
1.5 years	700 – 1500 g	3-5 adult mice, 1 medium rat, or 2 small rats (80-150 g)	Every 10 – 14 days
3 years	1200 – 1800 g	4-5 adult mice, 1 medium rat, or 2 small rats (90-150 g)	Every 14 – 21 days
5 years+	1800 – 2300 g	4-5 adult mice, 1 medium rat, or 2 small rats (90-150 g)	Every 21 – 50 days

(Source: Everything Reptile)

3. Look up the following websites to obtain a range of prices for frozen rats and then compare and contrast. What is the best deal?

a. Petwave

b. Rodent Farm

c. Biosupplies

d. Petbarn

Work out the cost per month. Work out the cost per year for your allocated snakes.

4. Create and give a presentation on your allocated snakes including: the type of rat required, the frequency of feeding, and the cost of the frozen rat.

5. After all student pairs have presented to the class, work out the "best" value for money snake.

6. If Cheryl Martin sells 26K rats in a year; and, for every dollar spent, she makes 3 dollars. Can you estimate what this rat farmer earns in a year? Do you need more information?