Question about feeding my new Fire Ball Python!

[Snake Man 27]

Hello everyone! It has been a while since I have had a Ball Python and I decided to go with a Fire Ball Python since it is a low cost and attractive option (in my own opinion) anyway, I know I should wait a little bit before feeding him since he is adjusting to his new home but I was curious if I should feed him in his enclosure or outside his enclosure? Also he has a tiny bit of shedding skin left on his neck and head should I wait for the shedding to be completely gone? Any feedback would be appreciated! Thanks!

[lorenhavens]

Some say feed in their enclosure to reduce the stress on the bp others say in another. I personally feed in another just cause the possibly of then ingesting the breeding. I know that a little won't hurt them but it's known to happen so I say why risk it. And haven't had any problems with feeding. As long as the shed is mostly gone u should be ok to feed.

[KMG]

Not to many people feed in another cage unless feeding live. The pros of feeding within the cage far outweigh the cons. I have not seen one case of impaction caused by the ingestion of substrate since I have joined this forum.

The main reason people think they need to feed in another cage is because of the myth of cage aggression. It was thought that the snake will associate opening the cage with getting fed and therefor become aggressive when the cage is opened. The fact this is not true and moving a snake that is ready to feed is a much better way to increase the odds of getting bit. I feed all my snakes in their home and none of them ever strike just because I open the door.

I have naturalistic tanks and feed rats thawed directly in water. I have never had an issue and never see much if any substrate be taken in by my snakes.

I would leave the snake alone for now and not worry about the stuck skin.

[Albert Clark]

I think it's always better to feed the animal in his enclosure for a couple of reasons. One is due to the stress factor, the others include convenience and familiarity for the bp. If you are worried about your bp swallowing substrate you can place a paper towel on the area where you will be placing the prey item. You can also use your tongs to remove any substrate that is attached to the prey item as it is swallowed. I do both. Stay in peace and not pieces. Good luck. A.C.

[Sauzo]

I feed both my girls in their cages and one of them is a 6ft BCI. You just got to take a few precautions if you are worried. I personally get paranoid about eating aspen as that's my substrate so I feed them both on dishes. My little BP girl get fed on paper plates and my big BCI girl gets fed in a 1" tall ceramic casserole dish. I watch them while they are eating the whole time and both of them don't care if I move them while they eat so if for some reason they move the food off the dishes, I just pick them up and put them back on the dish and pick off any aspen. Probably not the most brilliant idea but in almost 2 years, I have never had a problem with my BCI. I also feed them pre killed live as I just do cervical dislocation to them when I bring them home and then feed them to the snakes. I personally wouldn't try the whole picking up the snakes head/rat while its eating it and picking off substrate unless your snake is comfortable with you. Like I said, mine don't care and will keep swallowing as I race to pick off pieces of aspen. I don't really worry about little pieces on my big BCI girl but my BP is only about 30" long so I would rather not have her eat aspen yet until she gets to be an adult, then I wont worry so much about a little piece here and there.