Rats biting snakes

For those that feed live or have fed live. How often would u say that a rat or mouse was able to injure your snake while the snake is killing it? Assuming appropriately sized prey..

After being bit by a mouse myself I couldn't imagine the pain it would b for such a small snake. I would never leave it Unattended but my girl doesn't seem to be the most accurate this last feeding taking a couple long distance shots and missing so to speak.

Amd random but being nervous about this what if I were to feed the mouse or ray penut butter right before I give it to the snake.. to cushin tho blow or make it harder for the mouse to bite

As long as the snake is hungry they usually attack appropriately. But if the snake isn't hungry or isn't eating, if the rat is hungry they will try to eat whatever is there. Keep the rat full and just watch your feedings there shouldn't be no problem.

And also keep a pen handy. I usually just let the mouse/rat bite that if my little snakes mess up
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Originally Posted by BoostedMX3

For those that feed live or have fed live. How often would u say that a rat or mouse was able to injure your snake while the snake is killing it? Assuming appropriately sized prey..

After being bit by a mouse myself I couldn't imagine the pain it would b for such a small snake. I would never leave it Unattended but my girl doesn't seem to be the most accurate this last feeding taking a couple long distance shots and missing so to speak.

Amd random but being nervous about this what if I were to feed the mouse or ray penut butter right before I give it to the snake.. to cushin tho blow or make it harder for the mouse to bite

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Hundreds of feedings and zero biting incidents. Maybe 8% of those feedings had a potential for a bite, but I always just shove a chop stick into the feeders mouth so it was all good.

Mice tend to be more bitey than rats.

Just make sure the feeder is calm, well fed and hydrated, and the appropriate size.

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Idk this was one mean arse mouse haha I was worried for her it was like watching a boxing match with a lot of dancing and then boom she took it down.. 150g at last weigh in 27g mouse

Both times she has fed she has coiled so fast and tight I haven't been able to see where the head of the mouse ends up untill it's about dead n e way

Now please correct me if im wrong but If your feeding live and when he/she is hungry would you not still dangle it in front of the snake so they can strike it and kill it before it can try to bite the snakes body?

I just don't think I'd be comfortable just dropping it in and possibly injuring the snake. and.. having to wait and wait? Obviously it can still bite if its not locked well around the head and a chop stick or pen is a great idea :)

Sorry if I'm totally wrong

I've only had problems recently. Out of several hundred times I've fed live, I've had to stop a rat/mouse from biting maybe 4-5 times. It's usually when the snake strikes around the butt and constricts the middle, leaving the rodent's mouth to go about it's business.

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Originally Posted by RedseaReefer

Now please correct me if im wrong but If your feeding live and when he/she is hungry would you not still dangle it in front of the snake so they can strike it and kill it before it can try to bite the snakes body?

I just don't think I'd be comfortable just dropping it in and possibly injuring the snake. and.. having to wait and wait? Obviously it can still bite if its not locked well around the head and a chop stick or pen is a great idea :)

Sorry if I'm totally wrong

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Well, I find dangling extremely dangerous. More dangerous than just setting the feeder into the enclosure.
Dangling puts the feeder into panic mode. If you drop that panicked feeder, its going to be extremely scared and the chance of it biting out of fright is increased. Frightened animals are dangerous animals that will lash out.
Putting the feeder into the enclosure gently, keeps it calm. I have never had an incident where the feeder immediately went to attack the snake. 100% of my feeds, they just walk around exploring or just sit and groom themselves until the snake gets them.


Some responsible live feeding tips:

1) Feed the appropriate size food. I like smaller and more frequent meals than larger and less often. Weanlings and small rats are safe and harmless(to some extent). They're also not as conscious to danger as an adult would be. Adult rats can pack a nasty bite and are much stronger at fighting back, which is why "smaller and more frequent" is the way to go. I feed all of my adults small rats once a week. And multiple smalls for the big girls. A medium size would be the max appropriate size for a ball python. Even if the rat was able to bite, a smaller feeder won't do as much damage as a larger one. And another reason I like rats more than mice is because the equivalent size of an adult mouse is the same as a harmless rat pup. Adult mice can be nippy, baby rats not so much.

2) Keep the feeder well fed and hydrated. They're less likely to see your snake as food. Hungry rats are dangerous rats. They will eat your snake if left unattended for extended periods of time. This is the reason for most snake killing incidences.

3) Don't dangle the live feeder. This puts them in panic mode. A freaked out feeder is a dangerous feeder. Gently place the feeder into your enclosure. Calm feeders are good.

4) Monitor your feedings and keep a tool, such as tongs, on hand to assist your snake in case the feeder tries to bite down. Like I mentioned before, I use a chop stick to stick in the feeder's mouth if its in a bad position.

5) Don't keep the feeder in with your snake longer than 30 mins max or so. Some people have a shorter time frame. If the snake doesn't eat within that time frame, take out the feeder and save it for next week.

Overall, it's pretty rare for a feeder to immediately hone onto a snake and immediately attack it unless it was already scared in the first place.

I usually just drop the rat into the bin and slide it shut. However, there are some times of the year when my females will literally jump out of the tub when you open to feed. I love it when they have that kind of feeding response.

The only 100% way to prevent bites is to feed f/t or prekilled prey...
I wouldn't say I'm totally against feeding live. Out of my collection, my Pied ball will ONLY eat live rats, end of story. He's only about 300 grams and is a 2011 animal... I have been trying prekilled and f/t for months to no avail.
But again, I have seen my fair share of psychotic rats so I prefer something that is dead for that reason. I bought a small rat for my Pied once, and it absolutely would not stop jumping every time he struck; screaming and biting me when I picked it up too. I had a gut feeling that it would injure my snake. I ended up killing it myself and feeding it to someone else. I don't want to risk my prized animals getting scars, or worse!