Hello Bushviper an Craig,
It definitely is correct that Baby Caudalis are eating lizzards to grow up, and maybe later also accept small rodents as food.
But here in Switzerland it is absolutely impossible to get small SA or Namibian Lizzards as food items. And tropic Asian and African lizzard species aren't good for thes snakes, for obvious reasons - Craig allready mentioned it.
I have never had any problem to get the small Bitis on mice, after I have feed them for several months with Hill's A/D, they easely accept mices as soon as the have grown a little bit.
It is absolutely correct that only rodents isn't the perfect way to feed the snakes with. But the problem isn't that a mouse has more fat, or has less calcium and stuff. The real Problem is their water content ! The biggest ''ingredient'' of a lizzard is water, much more then in a bigger mouse. So I always inject some ml of water, into a dead mouse, before I offer it was food item.
Without giving that extra water, a Dwarf Adder will sooner or later die because the kidneys will stopp to work, because they have dryed out.
That a mouse consists of more fat, you can easely compensate by offering it every now and then only. My animals receive a mouse about every 3-4 weeks, that's enough for them. Feeding on lizzards should be done every 2 weeks, for a big Bitis caudalis or peringueyi for example.
As long as I find some babies in the cages, from time to time, it can't be that wrong what I'am doing
Cheers Friends
Marco from Switzerland