Feeding live with hide in tub

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Originally Posted by Slim

Until it does result in a bad bite, localized swelling, a nasty infection....you get the point. I've driven my car over the speed limit thousands of times, and only ever got one ticket. Dang thing cost me $475 before it was all said and done. Feed the way you wanna' feed, but please be careful with statements that include the words never, not going to, or always.

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How's this...99.9% of the time (subjectively), a few minutes alone is not going to result in hundreds of dollars in vet bills. If you check your BP after each feeding (or once wrapped), clean out any (likely minor) injuries that might have occurred, and keep a relatively clean enclosure, those odds (subjectively) drop to 99.99%. ;) I just think we get a little paranoid about a process that these creatures were built for.

And I agree with Rich, no reason to feed larger prey just because they can stuff it down, which the OP already said wasn't going to happen.

I usually leave my hides in also. If the rat goes in and stays just a little to long I will check and make sure they are ok. My boys go back and forth with size. Sometimes the small rats are to big for them. They act like they are scared of them. If they do that for a week or so I will offer a rat pup or two then go back to the small rat. I have one that won't touch a live rat he wants mice hopefully yours will take the rats :)

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Originally Posted by Annarose15

How's this...99.9% of the time (subjectively), a few minutes alone is not going to result in hundreds of dollars in vet bills. If you check your BP after each feeding (or once wrapped), clean out any (likely minor) injuries that might have occurred, and keep a relatively clean enclosure, those odds (subjectively) drop to 99.99%. ;)

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:gj: Words matter.

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Originally Posted by Annarose15

I just think we get a little paranoid about a process that these creatures were built for.

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Pesonally, I don't mind being a little paranoid if it saves me the trouble and exspense of a Vet visit. I guess we all do things baised on our own experience. Nothing really wrong with that.

I know that before I got him, he was on live mediums. So a couple of smalls should replace that diet?

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Originally Posted by blueberrypancakes

I know that before I got him, he was on live mediums. So a couple of smalls should replace that diet?

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That equivalent weight sounds about right. Do you have a scale to weigh your prey items?

Feeding live will result in the occasional bite no matter how careful you are. All of our bites have been defensive and unpreventable, with the exception of not feeding live. It's not like you can force the snake to perfectly execute the kill every single time. 99% are harmless with the teeth doing no damage, but we have had two bites in/on the mouth that are dangerous and kind of scary.

Most of our BPs are on pre-killed now. We do have a few off/on eaters with crappy feeding responses that will probably always get live. They'll continue to get bit occasionally, get scared, and stop eating for a while. Worst predators ever. :rolleyes:

Fun fact: I've had a BP get bit by a pre-killed rat. Yep. The snake somehow bent the rat backwards while wrapping it up and pushed the teeth on the upper jaw through its own scales so hard that it drew blood.

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Originally Posted by Slim

:gj: Words matter.

Pesonally, I don't mind being a little paranoid if it saves me the trouble and exspense of a Vet visit. I guess we all do things baised on our own experience. Nothing really wrong with that.

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Agree on both points. :D