Stoopid Rat

[STORMS]

OK so normally I feed Peyton f/t large adult mice, but he has been pounding down 4-5 in one feeding. So I decided to bump him up to small/med rats, and I was unable to make it out to the last show in Wheaton to pick up f/t so I swung by the pet store and got a live rat (this is the 2nd live rat he has had). The first time it went off without a hitch. Last night, however, went horrible! He got all excited and lurched out of his hide to inspect the rat which was hiding behind a plant - the stooooopid rat bit him on top of the head - Peyton retreated to his hide to plan his attack. Unfortunately his attack was NOT very calculated. He struck and constricted BUT the way the mouse was positioned (upside down on his back with Peyton on top - the rats head was free) he was able to bite his side twice! I grabbed the tongs and pinned down the rats head by shoving the tongs in its mouth so it couldn't bite Peyton a 4th time! The whole ordeal was awful for Peyton, the rat and myself After all that Peyton got the rat down and went back in his hide. From what I saw the bites didn't look too serious, but I was not about to take Peyton out after all that drama. My plan is to take him out later tonight to check his wounds (I think giving him 24 hours to digest would be best). So after all my mindless babbling...here's my question...

I read somewhere to use neosporin (without pain relief) on the wounds? Is this correct? Or should I do something different? I think I want to take him to the vet - would that be over kill if the bites aren't huge? Grrrrr!!! I'm so mad that he got bit not once BUT 3 times!!! My poor baby

I doubt I will ever stray from f/t prey again.

Any and all input would be appreciated! Thanks in advance!

[snakecharmer3638]

If the bites are not to bad neosporin sould be just fine. I once had a snake that I rescued that had been bitten several times around the mouth and looked infected. And was able to clear that up with neo and a couple of sheds. Hope he feels better.

[tigerlily]

Yes, you can use the neosporin (or any triple anitbiotic ointment) withOUT the pain killers. I would think that the vet would be overkill, but if it makes you more comfortable then you could do it.

You may want to ask your pet store if they will prekill the rat for you, or you can always pickup up some dry ice to euthanize it yourself.

I'm sorry your baby got bit. Sending hugs your way girl.

[Beardedragon]

Poor thing! He must be use to the dead ones not fighting back. Just so you do not freak out later, the bites might look worst after they shed the scabs, but after that it only gets better.

[Wh00h0069]

Very sorry to hear that. I feed approximatley 40 - 50 ball pythons live rats each week, and I have never had any issues with them being bit by the rats. I wonder if it is because he is used to eating f/t, and was a little confused? Either way, hope that he is OK.

[starmom]

I'm certain Peyton was not accustomed to having anything that would bite him! I really think that this is not so much a thing that happens when you feed live, but rather a thing that happened because the snake was not prepared with the knowledge that the prey would bite!!

Going to the vet is warranted if you believe it to be warranted. Antibiotic ointment is a good fix if the bites are not severe.

Oh Lena, I am sorry this happened...

[frankykeno]

Lena you may want to back him down to younger rats with little to no erupted teeth until he's a bit more used to live rat hunting. Even if he has to take multiples of those it will, I would think, help him gain the experience to make him a more confident and therefore safer hunter. Keep a close eye on those bites to make sure that the wounds don't close trapping infection inside. I don't know what type of bedding you use but I'd probably put him on plain white paper towels until you are certain he's fully and properly healed (that way you can monitor any discharge from the wounds easily plus it won't allow any loose bedding to irritate the wounds or absorb any topical meds you apply).

[SatanicIntention]

I am just curious why a male needs 4-5 large adult mice per week... Mine get 2, maybe 3 every 2 weeks and maintain their weight and grow just fine. Males don't hardly need to be on anything bigger than a 3-4 week old, or 2-3 medium adult mice. Way overkill and you're asking for a long fast.

[STORMS]

Lena you may want to back him down to younger rats with little to no erupted teeth until he's a bit more used to live rat hunting. Even if he has to take multiples of those it will, I would think, help him gain the experience to make him a more confident and therefore safer hunter. Keep a close eye on those bites to make sure that the wounds don't close trapping infection inside. I don't know what type of bedding you use but I'd probably put him on plain white paper towels until you are certain he's fully and properly healed (that way you can monitor any discharge from the wounds easily plus it won't allow any loose bedding to irritate the wounds or absorb any topical meds you apply).

He is currently on Aspen, but when I take him out later this evening to inspect the bites more closely I plan on switching to paper towels. I got a pretty good look at the bite on his head and it did not look severe as for the other 2 bites I am unsure. I will be picking up Neosporin w/o pain relief on my way home from work - should be fun trying to put it on the top of his head

I am just curious why a male needs 4-5 large adult mice per week... Mine get 2, maybe 3 every 2 weeks and maintain their weight and grow just fine. Males don't hardly need to be on anything bigger than a 3-4 week old, or 2-3 medium adult mice. Way overkill and you're asking for a long fast.

Normally he has taken 4 mice in a sitting (I offer food every 7 days) and occasionally 5 (this is not an every week thing) if he is still hunting when one of my other 2 snakes doesn't take their 2nd/3rd prey item. I say large adult mice because that's what it says on the bag - they are not large by any means IMO - 4 mice are just over 10% of his weight. I never saw any harm in giving the additional mouse since he was still hunting, which I understood meant he was still hungry.

Am I doing something wrong?

[SatanicIntention]

Weigh those mice. They sound like smalls. My adult females(1500g plus) get 4-5 medium to large mice(sometimes a f/t small rat thrown in here and there) in a sitting depending on their size. My males get 2-3 medium mice depending on if they are breeding or just sitting the season out. I give the breeding males a bit extra.

These mice weigh around 20-25g apiece generally, some smaller, some larger. so if I give an adult female 4-20g mice, she's getting 80g of food, which is plenty. Males don't need near that amount.

I would get some actual large mice(Big Cheese has big mice if you want to feed f/t), not the scrawny ones from Petco, and start feeding those. He definitely doesn't need a medium rat, or even a small, try a 3-4 week old weaned if you want to use rats. I like mice for males though, since you can vary the amount given every week and mice are leaner. Keeps them ready to eat and not fast.