Ridiculed for live feeding

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Originally Posted by Lesserlove

I feed both f/t and live. With the live I just stun them though and it's over before the rat has a clue what's going on. Then I throw each rat a little funeral.

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I heard stunning can be counter-productive. Like if they come to before getting struck they can be ticked off (naturally) and take it out on what they see, the snake.

Have you had an issue with this or seen them come to their senses angry? Just more of a personal curiosity.

I haven't no all of mine that I do feed live are aggressive eaters and when I stun them... I'm so paranoid about them biting my snakes, they'd have to not be touched at all for them to come to lol I've accidentally killed a few from stunning them too... Roughly... That I felt bad about lol

"Stunning" a live rat is much more inhumane than CO2 or just straight live feeding. If you are feeding appropriately sized prey items, there should be no reason to try to "stun" the rat. Also, there are too many things that can go wrong. What if you have a snake refuse a rat that you decided to "stun?" Sounds like a rat suffering unnecessarily to me. If your snakes have aggressive feeding responses, why not just put the rat in the tub and let the snake do its thing? Just stand by with a pencil, marker, snake hook, popsicle stick or something to put in the rat's mouth if it starts trying to bite.

Feeding live is perfectly safe when it's being done correctly and responsibly. "Stunning" (aka bashing in a rat's head with the intent of injuring, not quickly dispatching) is inhumane and unnecessary.

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Originally Posted by Lesserlove

I haven't no all of mine that I do feed live are aggressive eaters and when I stun them... I'm so paranoid about them biting my snakes, they'd have to not be touched at all for them to come to lol I've accidentally killed a few from stunning them too... Roughly... That I felt bad about lol

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Ok. Was just curious since I heard it and getting a response from a person that does it.

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Originally Posted by Lesserlove

I haven't no all of mine that I do feed live are aggressive eaters and when I stun them... I'm so paranoid about them biting my snakes, they'd have to not be touched at all for them to come to lol I've accidentally killed a few from stunning them too... Roughly... That I felt bad about lol

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I'm not sure I understand why you felt bad about killing a rat when you whacked its head, but you don't when you only hit it hard enough to make it semi-conscious and potentially still able to feel when the snake snags it? If the snakes eat it this way, and you are opposed to having "real" live rats in the tank, why don't you just prekill the rats to save them the potential pain of waking up, and save the snakes the risk of a terrified and potentially dangerous feeder?

I disagree. No matter what size rat they all have teeth, and even with a rat being captured quickly by my aggressive eaters isn't going to stop the rat from biting. And the idea of putting a Popsicle stick in the mouth right as the rat is being wrapped up, there's no way I would be quick enough to beat an instinctual bite. IMO I would rather stun the rat and reduce risks of my snake being bit and keep the rat in a clueless state. I started doing this after my pinstripe was bit. But, like I said that's my opinion and I haven't had any problems since with him or my spider being bit.


Edit: My pinstripe won't touch it if it's not moving. For the one I killed I gave it to one of my snakes I normally fed f/t.

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Originally Posted by Lesserlove

I disagree. No matter what size rat they all have teeth, and even with a rat being captured quickly by my aggressive eaters isn't going to stop the rat from biting. And the idea of putting a Popsicle stick in the mouth right as the rat is being wrapped up, there's no way I would be quick enough to beat an instinctual bite. IMO I would rather stun the rat and reduce risks of my snake being bit and keep the rat in a clueless state. I started doing this after my pinstripe was bit. But, like I said that's my opinion and I haven't had any problems since with him or my spider being bit.


Edit: My pinstripe won't touch it if it's not moving. For the one I killed I gave it to one of my snakes I normally fed f/t.

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Ive had a snake get bit while constricting a live rat before. Oh well, poop happens, next problem and moving on. Not an issue, I have lots of snakes with scars, IDK from where as I bought them that way, but it doesnt bother me a bit, Im breeding them, not flipping them. When you feed live, there is a chance of them biting even under your watchful eye, I do not see it as an issue. She still gets live rats, her fault if she bites them in the butt and not the face.

That being said, there are many other forums, even reptile and snake ones that do not promote live feeding. I suppose this is more so on venomous forums than others. They know people do it, some of them do it, sometimes you HAVE to do it, but the thing is they dont go around everywhere throwing up pictures and videos of live animals being killed on facebook and youtube or even their own forum. I sometimes find the culture here of how excited people get from live feeding and getting bit from their BP strange when in many other places that kind of thing is frowned upon....

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Originally Posted by Lesserlove

I disagree. No matter what size rat they all have teeth, and even with a rat being captured quickly by my aggressive eaters isn't going to stop the rat from biting. And the idea of putting a Popsicle stick in the mouth right as the rat is being wrapped up, there's no way I would be quick enough to beat an instinctual bite. IMO I would rather stun the rat and reduce risks of my snake being bit and keep the rat in a clueless state. I started doing this after my pinstripe was bit. But, like I said that's my opinion and I haven't had any problems since with him or my spider being bit.


Edit: My pinstripe won't touch it if it's not moving. For the one I killed I gave it to one of my snakes I normally fed f/t.

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You don't have to try to put a stick in the rat's mouth the second the snake strikes. You should only have to intervene IF the snake grabs the rat in a way that leaves the head free to move, and where the rat's head is facing the right direction to be able to bite. You're creating your own mental justification for causing undue stress and unnecessary suffering to these rats. How many times have you fed live, not "stunned", not pre-killed? Do you think that your snake is really that fragile, that you have to cause the feeder pain and suffering to try to prevent some highly unlikely scenario from happening? What do you think is going to happen to your snake if the rat DOES manage to bite it while being constricted?

I will never understand anyone who thinks "stunning" is ok. You're ok with bashing a rat's head intending to injure, not kill, yet you feel bad when you manage to give the rat a quick end rather than prolonged pain and suffering?

Both my Ball Pythons eat live rats....They have never taken a F/T rat.....Snakes eat live in the wild, so how is that inhumane?? Its nature...Just like some fish ( Oscars, ect.) eat live goldfish....If your BP is anything like mine, they strike fast, and are very strong...The rat is dead almost instantly..:snake:

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Originally Posted by KMG

Nimkim, that's the second time you stated something about the animals we eat being killed inhumanly. How are any of those processes worse than being choked to death?



I just don't understand how any snake keeper can have a problem feeding live. If they keep snakes and have never had to feed live they are either new to the hobby or have not had enough snakes.

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I've been keeping snakes for 20 years. My collection has ranged from just 2 or 3 to almost 300 at any given time. Ive kept everything from corn snakes to retics, and arboreal vipers to gaboon's. So I thinks it's safe to say that I have a fair amount of experience. And honestly I can't recall a single snake in all this time that has refused to eat f/t feeders. I've had animals that for a time I've had no choice but to feed live, so I have done it when necessary. But with a little effort I've never come across one that can't be converted, even many that I have been told will not ever eat f/t. I don't disagree with feeding live. I just don't understand why anyone would she f/t is so much safer and convenient.