[Schedule] What exactly is a maintenance diet? how often to feed?

[Miranda]

Okay so my two new boas are 18 mnths old and were being fed large mice by the breeder. I assume this was a maintenance diet for them and they are very small, like less then yearling size,barely 24 inches, although seem very healthy.
I am not sure how to feel about this. Is this bad for the snake? Is it done because the breeder is cheap and doesnt want to feed them more? Or just wants to keep them small for his own convenience? Why keep them so long if they cant feed them properly(or am I being defensive for no good reason here).
Now I dont want huge obese snakes but I dont want them scrawny either. Ive started the female on weaner rats and the male on large rat pups. Now normally under a year are fed every week but since these are almost 2years should I feed every ten days or go with a weekly routine till they gain the size they are supposed to be? Assuming they are supposed to be 3-4 feet at 2 years old according to the Boa care sheet on this site.

Thanks so much.

[acephantom903]

Re: What exactly is a maintenance diet? how often to feed?

From what I've heard, how often you feed is based on how big the food you give is. A breeder I talked to at a convention a couple weeks ago said "If they poop, that is a good sign to feed in the next day or so." From my knowledge, mice are not significantly cheaper than rats so I don't think it was a cost. It might have been a way to keep the snakes looking younger an more appealing to people who want to buy a baby. I can't pretend to know why he would feed smaller meals. As long as they aren't skinny, is there any harm? What locality boas are they? Some are smaller than others.