Snake bit himself...

He did get "so excited!" I have never seen him move so quickly - not even the first time I fed him. Next time, I'll try pre-killed and see what he does. His former owner could not get him to switch from live to prekilled. Maybe he didn't wait it out long enough. How long should I let him go hungry (assuming he refused to eat prekilled) before I offer him something live? (If this is in the material already referenced, I'll read it there.) Thanks for you help!

If I go to a 10 - 14 day feeding cycle, do I stick with the same size rat or a smaller one?

The same size rat, though preferably stunned or prekilled for his safety.

Hi April! Welcome to the forums! Everyone else has said all I would have said about the rats, so I won't repeat any of that. I will say that I've read several different stories of snakes biting themselves when they miss their prey...so while it may be rare, it's not unheard of. It'd be interesting to know if that is a habit for him, or if it was just a freak accident when you happened to be watching.

I'd do what Marla suggests and try him on a 10-14 day feeding cycle. If he doesn't eat prekilled on the first try, wait a week and try again. But don't give up too quickly. If he doesn't immediately go for the dead rat, turn out the lights, leave the room, and wait an hour or two. If he's hungry, he'll eat the rat.

LOL, I laughed when I read the title of this thread! Man that must be one hungry snake to try and eat itself!

Update: I've checked with Jake's former owner, and she tells me that Jake has never bitten himself before. She thought it was funny too! So, this was unusual. Jake's only been with me a month, so, he may be disoriented in his new surroundings. I will try a dead rat next time, and I'll adjust him to a more frequent eating schedule, but my friend tells me she could never get him to eat anything dead, and he's always been a super-eater on the live stuff. But, again, I will try it. I'm going to start with a fresh-kill, and if I can adjust him to that, I'll move on to try the frozen/thawed rats. I've never owned a reptile before...this is quite an experience! Thanks again for all of your help and I'll write another update to let you know how Jake is doing. Also, there were no teeth embedded in his skin, and its difficult to even find the wound. So, although it looked painful and traumatic, Jake didn't do much damage to himself.

Glad he's doing ok, and definitely let us know how it goes with feeding him. :)