Successful first feeding!

[jsixfingers]

Fed Quentin for the first time today, small hopper mouse. Transferred him to a different enclosure for the meal as I've read not to feed them in their cage. The mouse made three loops around him before he struck, grabbing it's head in his mouth and quickly constricting around it. I've never seen him move so fast! Took him a good five minutes to get the mouse down, and after he'd gotten it down into his midsection, I slowly reached in and petted his side to let him know I was there, then picked him up and moved him back to his cage. He was perfectly calm, didn't strike at me which I've heard can happen during feeding times. He's been in his warm hide all day digesting, all in all it was a rousing success and a fun and interesting experience. If anybody notices while reading this anything I could have done differently or more efficiently I welcome comments. I'm new at this!

Six

[llovelace]

Congrats on a successful first feeding. It is not necessary to feed in a seperate enclosure.

[jarobin]

Congrats!!! I'm still a newbie myself, but I got a lot of advice that you don't really need to feed in a separate enclosure. And i've read not just on here, but a few other places on the internet that its acutally a myth that feeding in their enclosure causes aggression. in fact, i read that it's more likely they will be more stressed and bothered if you are moving them in and out of the enclosure for feeding. not sure how true that is since i have never done it, but I've been feeding my bp, parker, in his enclosure and he shows no signs of aggression and is such a sweet, timid and friendly little guy. he still hasn't quite gotten the hang of the whole eating thing yet, he strikes but sometimes drops the mouse, and doesnt he constrict around it lol. and boy is he picky!!! he refuses to eat hoppers and will only eat fuzzies, so i have to buy more than one since they are so smalL! ugh! haha.....but he only goes for the mouse and never our hands when we put our hands in to change his water bowl, check his temps, or take him out to play.

again congrats! getting them to eat is always fun!

[jsixfingers]

Thanks guys! Thanks for the info on feeding in separate enclosures. Also, shine some light on the difference between 'fuzzies' and 'hoppers' for me?

What is the general rule of thumb for handling after a meal? He's been in solitary all day after he ate as I had to go to work, but I'm home now and wondering if he'd be opposed to coming out. Does he need a day or two to digest before being handled or does it vary from snake to snake? He was still in his hide when I got off work, but that's typical behavior from him, and bp's in general from what I understand. Can he come out and socialize or is he going to need some solitude?

Six

[jsixfingers]

Here's a video taken on my iPhone of the feeding if that's interesting to anyone. Excuse the brief language, my roommate and I were excited.

http://youtu.be/aXTSbB4rl_4


Six

[llovelace]

Yes always wait 24-48 hrs after feeding before handling