pretty cool, whaddyathink

[tsdsbd]

alot of people claim that rehoming your BP in a different enclosure for feeding will help the snake associate the move with dinnertime, but i dont like doing that because my pastel wont eat anywhere else.

so ive just started taking everything except the water dish out (2 hides and a low climbing log thats for clutter)

was thinking maybe they could associate that with feeding time as well, they dont seem to mind to much and just ball up when i move the hide and then relax after like 10 seconds and start lookin for there food, so it seems to be working!

[Kaorte]

I don't think they are "looking for food" I think they are looking for a way out.

I feed them with all the hides and everything in there. My pastel won't even strike if she isn't in her hide.

You can take all the stuff out but I don't see what you gain by doing so. There is no such thing as "cage aggression". If you open up the tank once a week other than feeding, than no association with "opening tank=food". If anything, you are more likely to get bit by messing with all the stuff in the tank with a hungry snake hanging out in there.

This is just my opinion though My snakes know when it is feeding time. They can smell the rats and it has been exactly a week since they were last fed. They don't need you to try and make associations for them.

[SlitherinSisters]

I do the same thing more or less. My rats are in my snake room so I can't pre-scent the room for feeding day. I at least take out the water dish (I had a snake constrict and fall right under the water once-that freaked me out a bit), sometimes the hide as well, close the tub, do the same thing for all the other tubs, then I drop the f/t food in. What they really need is some sort of routine so they know it's time to eat IMO. Everyone does it differently, but this is the way I do it and it works great for me. I've never been tagged because they thought I was food. I have had several attempts at my hand from my het with an attitude!

[aaramire]

No such thing as cage aggression? What about the countless videos we have seen BHB put up where they get bit sticking their hands in the tubs and such? What about retic keepers like myself who have to hook-train their snakes so they will not mistake us for food when we stick our hands in the cages? Snakes can certainly be cage aggressive, and not every snake will behave the same way.

Onto the OPs original question, I personally do not move snakes out of their enclosures to feed, and because I hook train my animals, I do not have to worry about them associating my hand with food. Instead, they associate me touching them with the end of the hook with getting picked up and taken out of the cage. This is mainly just a technique that big snake keepers use, but I do know that some ball python keepers do it as well.

[Elise.m]

The snakes at BHB are not handled like our snakes most of the time. They are there to be sold and bred. There may be some that are the staffs favorite, but I don't believe many of those snakes are pets like they are when they're home with us. That's just my personal opinion I can't imagine they take the time out of their already busy day to socialize the animals.

I don't do the whole moving thing for eating. It's a snake, if she strikes at me then so be it. It's her nature to strike, I know she's being fed enough so if she happens to strike (Knock on wood) it'll be because I spooked her, not because she thinks this huge human being is for dinner.

[Kaorte]

Elise.m is right. The snakes at BHB are not pets. Many of them never see human contact aside from being fed and getting moved to a different tub for breeding.

Retics can't really be compared to ball pythons in this case. Retics are very very aggressive feeders and will try to eat anything that moves. This is based solely on my opinion though, I don't know a whole lot about retics.

I do know that ball pythons are picky eaters and some won't even eat if you are watching. Cage aggression isn't actually aggression in my opinion. It is a hungry snake hoping a meal is on the way.

[accidental777]

I feed in their enclosures, I do not remove water bowls or hides. If I need to remove these things to clean out their tub, I don't want them to associate it with being fed. I also feed everyone on the same day each week.

[Lolo76]

I don't move or change anything for feeding, since that seems to stress them out - and often causes a refusal. Sometimes I'll remove Mona's water dish for a live rat, just because she tends to make a mess... but that's it! So far I've had no problems with doing things that way, and have never been bitten as a feeding response. Two of them have tagged me, but for completely different reasons.

[Lolo76]

Btw, a few of mine like eating inside their hides... like Toby, who will stick his head out to strike, and then pull the mouse/rat back into his hide. Is there any danger in letting them do this? I'm always amazed he can swallow without choking, when he's all squished in his little cave.

[euphuistical]

I tried moving my BPs to a new enclosure to avoid cage aggression and just found it too much work (I have very limited space). So I stopped and have been bitten maybe twice in the last 3 months because of it. Hardly a high price to pay. I don't bother with hook training either, I just try not to smell like an ASF or a rat. I just don't think theres a reason to feed in a separate container with balls.

Now if I had something like a retic you better believe I would be hook training that bad boy. But with a BP a bite is nothing.