Our first S.F.E.

I use 10" bamboo tongs, since hemostats aren't really available around here. They seem to work fine (both of mine are yearlings) and I feel better about the snakes striking bamboo on accident, as opposed to metal.

Both of mine will only strike if the mouse is within about 4 inches or less, so I'm not worried about them heading for my hand. :)

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Originally Posted by frankykeno

I swear these snakes are getting almost trained that the hemostats mean food. Is that possible?

Can a snake do this or am I just imagining a response?
~~Jo~~

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They can learn simple associations :)

Oh, I have done that! Only it was when I thought that my adult male, Goblin, was not interested in his rat after cnostricting it and then ignoring it for an hour. Iwent to grab the rat with my bare hand (DUH lol) and he struck and coiled around me! I of course, being the level headed individual that I am, shrieked like a little girl and jerked my hand ack, and somehow he must have tasted my yucky hand and not wanted it, cuz he released right away. But it did bleed a bit!

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Originally Posted by kavmon

yeah, feeding time can be fun! i have a few that will come out of their tubs and go get the rats if i let them! lol. i certainly wouldn't want to feed them in a seperate tub!!!


vaughn

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one of my girls in particular is like that. she is the sweetest thing and has never bitten me but she KNOWS when it is time to eat. i have to have the rat in tongs ready to go when i crack her tub open because she comes lunging out immediately on feeding day. she strikes and coils, half in and half out of her tub usually hanging upside down with it until i (using tongs) lift and coax her back inside of her tub far enough that i can close it. the second i walk into the room with even the slightest hint of rat she is ready to go but any other day she is just as sweet and calm as can be. :)

Hades pouts after he strikes and misses. Then he'll stare the rat down for quite sometime as my arm is dying. Sometimes he pouts so much I have to close the box up and let him have some alone time with the rat until he eats it. Kozma does this a lot too...plays with his food...then hisses when you try to take it away. Never been bit during feeding time though. It'll happen soon enough :)

about that remebering the hemostat thingy back there i dont know if this applies to BPs but many animals (including humans) respond to whats called conditioning which is different than memory. they dont have specific memories of the shiny stick thingy bearing the offering but they start to associate certain causes "causing"certain events again maybe doesnt apply to BPs

I do have my snakes trained to a conditioned response. As some of you already know I base my feeds on bowel movements. Since I don't like the idea of being bit I have ques I use to let my snakes know when it is feeding time. First thing is to get their attention if they are in their hides but I have to go through the routine even if they are out. I will tap the backside of the enclosure firmly, I don't hit it, don't want to scare them. Then I will move to front side and gently scracth the front left bottom of the enclosure. Then it is a matter of the snakes comming out of the enclosure or checking out the scracth if already outside. Once they check they know I will be offering food shortly there after (it works like a charm for me and I get a great feeding response). I have two of my snakes conditioned to this response but I have yet to try it on the Boa.

Forrest

Hmm... conditioning is very common in primates and domesticated animals (dogs, cats etc). But, since snakes have a much lower brain function, I'm not sure if conditioning is possible. I'd check some of my Zoology texts, but all the books are old and outdated, so effectively useless. Good topic for a research paper :).

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Originally Posted by iceman25

They can learn simple associations :)

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I certainly think so. Before I moved Issa to his new cage, I would put newspaper down over cocanut coir (to avoid a missed strike and a mouthful of coir, which happened once). After a while, I'd put the newspaper down and Issa would go straight into hunt mode. (this is before I show up with a rodent, which can be a while, espeically if I haven't started thawing yet).