2 dumbish questions

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Originally Posted by SatanicIntention

Also, holding a live, scared rat(that shouldn't be any bigger than a smallish-small) by the tail is just going to make it even more stressed and apt to bite whatever it gets ahold of first. That is not a safe way to feed live to snakes and will ultimately lead in someone getting hurt(obviously this has already happened, thankfully just to you).

All of my snakes(save for the 3 baby corns, since it's hard to monitor them inside their hides) eat live from the security of their hides, inside their own homes. They have no problems feeding this way, and they do know when feeding day is. I also can handle them when I need to and don't have any issues with them.

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Great post; that sums up what I was going to say. :)

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Originally Posted by mr~python

hey thats a good idea. maybe i should ask my parents for a pair for Christmas. LOL. woule be handy to have around for the monitor also. that little, 20 inch lizard has some sharp claws.

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Yeah.. and now I want a pair like the bite gloves we have at work (for dogs) they're really thick and cover most of my arms. Nice for the occasional wayward large boid. LOL Only reason I don't have any yet is they're $65. Sometime!

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Originally Posted by Kizerk

how do you guys transport your rodent to the snake's cage without touching it?

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In my hands - not sure I understand the question, maybe?

But I drop the live prey in the opposite end of the enclosure from the snake. I don't hold it by its tail waiting for the snakes to strike them.

And a small/small rat is very small - about a three week old weaner, really. And that's the largest your snake, even as an adult really needs.

Yeah.. a bite from a small rat isn't really that big of a deal usually. Large rats are not great food for BPs. Hey a full grown angry rat scares me.. I wouldn't want to toss that at any BP.. lol

We use a plastic container that we bought at the dollar store put air holes in and it's what we use to take the rats from the rat room to the snake room and also what we go out and pick up mice for the ones that don't eat rats we have bigger versions that we use to take the snakes to the vet in Jo may or May not have posted a pic of them in some ohter post if not I can take a pic of them and get the photo up here later.

This is what my hubby (Mike aka McAdry) is talking about. All of $2.00 at any dollar store, WalMart or the like. Just melt in some vent holes and you've got a handy, sturdy live rodent carrier, a snake carrier for vet trips or cleaning enclosures, etc. (these come in a ton of sizes from $2.00 to $10.00).

http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e2...nsportCage.jpg

Now as to the rat bite. If it bit you that deeply and that much it was totally stressed out. If you are restraining a living rat while it is also facing a hunting snake, it's going to bite you. If you are dangling it upside down by the tail (other than a quick transfer from the container to the enclosure), it's going to flip upright and bite you. This is normal, to be expected and something you really should not be doing to a living prey animal. You don't want to be inhumane to prey creatures and you don't want your snake facing a stressed, aggressive rat. Hopefully you are using appropriately sized rats that should not be capable of inflicting great damage anyways.

You do need to be careful of those bites. Rats, especially bigger ones, can inflict deep and dirty bites. If you did not immediately flush it with hot water you need to. Flush as in under strong running, hot as you can stand it water for a significant amount of time (not just seconds). Pat dry and apply a triple antibiotic...leave open to the air unless your hands are in food, raw meat or a dirty environment (like cage cleaning, etc.). Keep an eye on it and if you don't have a current shot, get one (you need it anyways LOL).

Mike and I handle and feed off a lot of live rats, some of our breeders are huge. We rarely ever get bitten. Rats do not bite if they don't have a reason to, so changing your handling of them is likely to deal with that very easily for you.

My last bite caused my finger to swell up, burn and change to a blue purple color for a couple days. I just took some Anti Biotics and soaked in Hydrogen Peroxide 3+ times a day as well as keep it covered. The infection rats can give you is the main problem

Actually you're only supposed to use peroxide once on a wound as it apparently eats away at healing flesh. Triple antibiotic ointment is a better bet for a healing wound.

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Originally Posted by Shelby

Actually you're only supposed to use peroxide once on a wound as it apparently eats away at healing flesh. Triple antibiotic ointment is a better bet for a healing wound.

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Never heard of that. We just moved a month ago so not everything is unpacked yet and peroxide is all I had on hand. I used rubbing alcohol for a while and the burn was just too much

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Originally Posted by mr~python

in a brown paper bag or cardboard box. i hate to touch rats as i dont know the temperment of the rat since i dont breed my own. so its much easier for me to scoop it into a paper bag, etc. i sure would hate to get bit by a rat. yuk.

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ya, YUK it HURTS LOL