Hide or no Hide (or no brainer?)

I will admit I was pretty sarcastic and mean but you know what? The new setup doesn't look half bad. I would definitely move to a larger mouse though. I got all excited when I got my ball python and having not setup a mouse supply ran down to petco and rummaged through their freezer picked out the small mice and then got home and found I had grabbed the fuzzies in my haste. I thought what the hell I will feed a fuzzy and see how it goes. Went fine of course but after the second fuzzy I thought man these seam small. I moved to medium adults sorted them by weight and started feeding with the smallest. My Ball Python has now eaten 2 medium sized mice and I am shocked at how good her feeding response is. Keep in mind I have nothing to compare it to but the horror stories I have read on this and other forums but so many people can't all be lying. I count myself lucky.

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Originally Posted by blackcrystal22

Fuzzy mice sound a bit small, so try to feed two at a time if he's eating frozen. (Just put one at the end of the other one as it's going down, and he should keep eating it).

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I don't think that's a good idea. I think the snake should decide whether it wants more or not.

How about the people with snakes in small rack enclosures, are you putting in hides that take up half of the Tupperware?

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Originally Posted by P2R

How about the people with snakes in small rack enclosures, are you putting in hides that take up half of the Tupperware?

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I do not use hides in any of my racks; although, I do use unprinted newspaper, which most of the ball pythons hide under.

Hope this helps.

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Originally Posted by P2R

How about the people with snakes in small rack enclosures, are you putting in hides that take up half of the Tupperware?

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I use one hide in 6 quarts tubs :gj:

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Originally Posted by JayBP

I don't think that's a good idea. I think the snake should decide whether it wants more or not.

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I didn't necessarily mean directly afterwards, but I don't think it would be a good idea to have him constrict a second one after the first, which is what I was getting at.

I personally think it's better to feed a larger animal in one sitting than two at a time. Thats just me though.

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Originally Posted by blackcrystal22

I didn't necessarily mean directly afterwards, but I don't think it would be a good idea to have him constrict a second one after the first, which is what I was getting at.

I personally think it's better to feed a larger animal in one sitting than two at a time. Thats just me though.

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Oh okay. I mis-understood then. I agree with you on the second part.

I have always thought that a hide was not a necessity in a rack setup, but more so in a vivarium type setup. Please give more opinions.

Thanks,

Pat

Hi,

Multiple feedings depend on the snake like everything else. :)

My tiny little 2006 female would point blank refuse to take a second prey item - but then again she wouldn't eat a decent sized meal either. :rolleyes:

I'm happy to say she now does both.

My adult male went off rats and decided he is a mouser - but, since he will happily eat three at one sitting, that doesn't bother me as he is still getting the correct amount of food overall.

Multiples are also a good way to bridge the gap between prey sizes if your snake accepts them.

As to the hides in a rack system it again depends on the snake and the rack system.

I am using quite large rack boxes and all my snakes will use hide boxes if I provide them to a greater or lesser extent.

My largest female (who is a bit of a scaredy-cat) didn't want to eat last week because I removed her hides. Needless to say they are going back in.

Perhaps if I was using smaller boxes it wouldn't matter?


dr del

Some of the members here can come across a bit harsh but those are usually the ones that have the best information! Look past the harshness and listen to what they have to say. If it wasn't for the members here I don't think my girl would have made it this far based on what the petstores told me.

If you are still having temp issues, you could consider getting a red bulb that you can leave on 24/7 provided it's on a dimmer switch at least (thermostat would be ideal). Before switching to a red bulb our temp would drop too low at night but with the red bulb, problem solved. We bought two dimmer switches from Lowes, one for the UTH and one for the bulb.

Because your tank is so bare, I would put something (newspaper, fabric,whatever) around the three sides until you can get something else just to add to the secure feeling.

Hang in there and ask all the questions you have...the folks around here are more than willing to help out...for the snake's sake if nothing else.