WTH!must see! - VERY graphic picture warning

I don't think "Must See" is the correct title for this post.. yah, I know you said there were graphic photos.. but come one. I think I just lost my appetite for breakfast. Poor poor snake. This is just horrible.

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Originally Posted by Daniel Tuttle

That is horrible. I feed my ball live (closely surpervised) because that is what the breeder I got her from did. Maybe I should switch to F/T? Is that possible to do after they have had live their whole life?

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Don't leave a full grown rat in with your snake for days and this won't happen. That picture is what happens when a rat is starving, not a rat that was left in the cage for an hour. Just like when rats are starving they will eat each other or their babies. I've actually spoken to a fairly large breeder who routinely leaves rodents in overnight for feeding and then pulls them in the morning. The only time something like this has happened to him was when a rat was missed the next morning and ended up spending another day in the tub without any food.

Looks like one of the staff members took care of adding a warning to the thread title. I do agree that it's beneficial to have a thread like this pop up from time to time, but anytime a graphic picture is used, a warning should be placed in the thread title because seriously, not everyone wants an emotional punch in the gut first thing in the morning....ok?

An injury like that doesn't happen simply due to lack of "keeping a close eye" on a live feeding. And despite the "story" that has circulated with the picture, I have my doubts that something that bad happened even overnight. I would put money on the fact that the rat was left in with the snake for at least a couple of days. That's not to say that it couldn't have happened overnight. Leaving a live adult rodent in with your snake for more than the 20-30 minutes it takes for the snake to decide if it wants to eat or not is DANGEROUS.

I have to agree with JLC, Rats may land a single bite if they get bit out of defense. For the rat to continually chew on the snake like that...it takes quite a while before the rat goes "ok i have no food around but i still have to survive what can i eat" I don't see that being an over night thing either.

so what happen if the rat already not eat for 1 or 2 day before the keeper put it in the tank?the same thing happen in overnight right?so we learn a new lesson now,make sure the live rat/mouse you buy must be fed well too before put it in the tank.like what i am doing now,i will buy a rat 2 days earlier to make sure the rat is healthy,already eat n clean.(yes i know it will be eat by the snake later.lolz!)but i will give the best for my snake.

Judy got to it before I did. That is definitely not from leaving the rat in there for a few minutes or even over night. That's what happens if you think that your rat and snake are friends and should live together.

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Originally Posted by Daniel Tuttle

That is horrible. I feed my ball live (closely surpervised) because that is what the breeder I got her from did. Maybe I should switch to F/T? Is that possible to do after they have had live their whole life?

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Yes it is possible. Start offering a freshly killed to your snake, using tongs of course, and wiggle it around. It may take a while but they will switch. There are tons of pages that give extra advice to entice a BP into switching. It is usually hardest to get a wild caught to take prekills.

Mine will snatch a frozen up almost the second I put it in the tank. She smells it when I start to dethaw it and starts getting anxious.

Yes, it's sad and graphic, but I also agree with what others have said about this being beneficial to those naive to the risks of leaving a live rodent in with a ball python for days. I really just do not understand why anyone would want to leave a rodent in with a snake for such a long period of time. It's simply irresponsible and should be considered animal cruelty in my opinion.
May the lesson learned be taken to heart!

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Originally Posted by Agent73

Unfortunately yes, this is what can happen if you leave a rat/mouse unattended with your BP.

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Also did not want to see the photo in the beginning of the thread.

This was posted on CS.com some time ago; I'll see if I can find the thread tomorrow.

The story is pretty simple. Someone left a mouse, yes a MOUSE if memory serves me right, over night with this young BP. The animal is still alive in the photos and was put down shortly after.

This is why I refuse to feed live or stunned rodents. If a BP doesn't coil correctly for whatever reason, an adult rat can easily put it's teeth in a snake's head, and with stunned prey, it may not be properly stunned. Just my opinion.