Pissed off snake, unusual behavior <maybe>

Ok, first off I'll admit my probable mistake... Feeding an undersized prey to my larger male bp <550gr>. I tried a f/t a few days ago which the previous owner said he ate before. Likely my fault he wouldn't eat it, I snapped my hand back when he struck and after that wanted nothing to do with it. Anyway.... I had a spare adult mouse <39gr> that looked lonely in his tank so decided to end his suffering... In the tank with Cheddar he went. 3 second kill and took it down pretty fast. Problem is, now I have one very snappy pissy snake. If I squat down in front of his tank he goes into striking position, which is better than actually striking like he did the first time I approached.

I'm thinking my answer to this is going to be a trip to my feeder store tomorrow evening and toss it in for a late dessert? Oh and of course in the future <like 7 days later> he will be upped to live small rats. Thoughts? Is he simply still hungry and staying in feeding mode longer because of it? Should I get him a super small rat or just another good sized adult mouse?

20l, back and sides covered
2 identical hides, fake leaves covering for additional hiding
large water bowl
cypress mulch with Eco earth mixed
foil and tape covering screen with air flow.

Temps=
89 hotspot <thermostat of course>
82 cool side
85 ambient

humidity= 55% <from both Acurite thermometer and a brass with glass front humidor hygrometer>

He could still be hungry, have you had him long enough to feel with certainty that this is unusual behavior for him? Could it be attributed to him still settling in to a new place (since you ref'd to previous owner)?

If it was me, and I was planning to switch to rats anyway (easy for some, drama bomb for others), I would just wait until the scheduled rat time, no extra mouse. He's not going to starve in that amount of time and being a bit hungrier may help entice him to switch over. Plus if it's something else that's stressing him out, he can have a chance to adjust without having more stress on his body (from digestion).

I've had him 3 weeks. Typically pretty docile. He's fed once with me, 10 days ago, and didn't react like this after. Since I'd like to feed both of my snakes on the same day, I'm thinking of waiting until next Monday?

I'm just afraid at this point I've underfed him. His first meal with me was also a large adult mouse as I hadn't weighed him and grossly under estimated his size.

He should calm down again when he realises no more food is on offer. :)

Could he be going into shed? One of mine is very laid back, but once there's even a hint of pink on her belly she gets very defensive, and when her eyes are gray she will strike at any movement or if a shadow passes over her.

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Originally Posted by dr del

He should calm down again when he realises no more food is on offer. :)

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x2


Things will be ok. No need to worry. Wait until your next scheduled feeding day and feed then. If you feel you have underfed him, you will learn to feed him properly. He may take 2 mice, 3 mice, or a small rat. You will learn what he wants in the coming month or so. Good thing about snakes is you are not going to starve them in a day or a couple weeks. :)

Thanks guys... He still seems pretty on edge, camping the exit to his hide 'waiting'. He's not going into shed, just finished about a week ago. He spends all his time on his cool side which seems odd to me. His temps seem to be spot on.

I wish he would come out for me, what I can see of his mouth looks a bit off and he was doing the open his mouth a few times last night. At this point I'm probably over stressing since this is the first time with rare behavior from him.

*sighs* 7:30am and I need a drink.

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Originally Posted by MsMissy

Thanks guys...

*sighs* 7:30am and I need a drink.

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hehe. I know the feeling. Take a deep breath and have a nice stong martini. :)

3 weeks is a short time to learn all the behaviors of a snake. I've had my yellow rat snake since November and I'm still learning his behaviors. My milksnake is over 12 years old and he is doing/learning some new things.

LOL!! I wish <actually don't drink at all> but firearms and alcohol don't mix. At least I'm at work where I cannot obsess over him. I'm going to leave him be and on Monday pick up dinner for both of them. Nice fat mousey for Nagini and a small rat for him. Been wanting them on the same day schedule but omg my girl is a pig. She knows when 5 days is up.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by MsMissy

LOL!! I wish <actually don't drink at all> but firearms and alcohol don't mix. At least I'm at work where I cannot obsess over him. I'm going to leave him be and on Monday pick up dinner for both of them. Nice fat mousey for Nagini and a small rat for him. Been wanting them on the same day schedule but omg my girl is a pig. She knows when 5 days is up.

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I like being on a schedule, my Fridays are set around feeding and touching up my girls tank. But it seems like the last two Thursdays she's been camping at the entrance to her hide waiting for dinner to walk by. Yesterday she took two small mice, so I'm trying to lean more towards maybe she's ready for a bigger meal. The guessing and learning never stops.