Do you believe

I recall as a young snake owner( 30 + yrs ago ) hearing you should not feed hampsters to your snake , now along time has past and haven't heard that again till the other day. From what I understand feeding a hampster will stop your snake from taking mice, rats anything else. I do not believe this but has anyone else heard this and why is this supposed to be true? I believe its just a old tale but if there is any truth (I dought) to this let me know and why its true . Thanks

I know this is true at least for Ball Pythons. BP's are picky eaters and if you offer them a hamster or gerbil or something they may imprint on it and stop accepting mice or rats as food.

Yeah i heard that Ball pythons get addicted to Gerbils and Hamsters,and will stay on one of the two if offered and deny other rodents, I would not feed hamsters your looking at some pretty pricey meals there. Mice and rats are so much more cheaper and safer,Hamsters and gerbils seem to have more larger teeth( i am no rodent expert) than mice and rats from what i can see,so if you got a Bp who only eats live or you only feed live to that will be even more dangerous.

I started a thread with a poll for best feeders for ball pythons,check it out i am sure you will find some pretty good info on this matter.
http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...r-ball-pythons

with some snakes like bps yes that is true but with most colubrids and other snakes no its not true.:snake:

Not only is it possible for them to get hooked on hamsters and gerbils but… both have extremely hard and sharp teeth. They can seriously hurt any snake. They are both extreamly dangerous as feeders. They are aggressive and will not only fight back but go after the snake if it feels threatened. Trauma from feeding can result In especially with a ball being so traumatized it will be extremely hard to feed in the future. These are facts.
Hope this is helpful.
Morgan

Do not plan on using hampsters for food like said to pricey but was woundering why they get hooked on them. Rodent are rodents are they not ? What makes the hamsters so addictive ? I feed only F/T rats an mice. I do not understand why they do this or if its even true. Is there any proof ( some personal exper or a herp paper on this subject)

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Originally Posted by john50

Do not plan on using hampsters for food like said to pricey but was woundering why they get hooked on them. Rodent are rodents are they not ? What makes the hamsters so addictive ? I feed only F/T rats an mice. I do not understand why they do this or if its even true. Is there any proof ( some personal exper or a herp paper on this subject)

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Since BP's don't have taste buds my guess is rats, mice, gerbils and hamsters all have their own distinct smell.

And I am sure that many BP owners/breeders on here can tell you from first hand experience when trying to switch a suborn BP from mice to rats a rodent is NOT just a rodent to them.

what is the proof that feeding a hampster to a snake will stop him from eating mice , rats etc.. I heard this many yrs ago ( 30 + ) but no one has been able to tell me WHY. I think its a ole tale but I can accept if given proof . Anybody got that? I do not feed hampsters to my snakes but was just woundering about this because I heard it again the other day ( first time in 30 + yrs ). Is there a herp paper written on this subject ? Thanks

Ball python unlike other snakes can be very finicky when it comes to food and tend to imprint on preys making it very hard to switch back.

Very rarely will a BP switch back and forth between preys especially if fed HAMSTERS and/or gerbils.

Now other snakes are different many will eat anything you will toss them without issue.

In other word best to keep a BP on what is readily available, not expensive and not overly aggressive which mean to avoid HAMSTERS and gerbils.

I wouldn't feed hamsters to any snake, not because of the impriting prey possibility, but because they are just SO nasty. I have never handled meaner animals than hamsters (and I've been bitten by rats, guinea pigs, gerbils, etc). Hamsters are by far the worst. They are aggressive and there are better feeders out there. I'd just stick to rats and mice for appropriately sized snakes. gpigs, rabbits etc for larger ones.

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Originally Posted by cinderbird

I wouldn't feed hamsters to any snake, not because of the impriting prey possibility, but because they are just SO nasty. I have never handled meaner animals than hamsters (and I've been bitten by rats, guinea pigs, gerbils, etc). Hamsters are by far the worst. They are aggressive and there are better feeders out there. I'd just stick to rats and mice for appropriately sized snakes. gpigs, rabbits etc for larger ones.

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Good point. There right there is enough to make me never want to feed a hamster to any type of snake.

Gerbils are dangerous to feed,notice in the video even before the snake strikes the gerbil is already bitten it
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FHPfcD_N6A0

Most people do not just stay away from gerbils because ball pythons become addicted but because as you can see they are dangerous to feed.

If the ball python favors the smell of the Gerbil(which i hear is one of there natural food sources,so chances are high) it will imprint on gerbils(recognize the one type of rodent as a food source).

I have read that some people would use gerbils to get a ball python who was off feed back on,they say it works best on wild caught though.

Here's three helpful Ball python gerbil threads,none of them explain in detail but the proof is pretty much there if you ask me,
http://www.faunaclassifieds.com/foru...ad.php?t=62782
http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...her-food-types
http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...ed-some-advice

Semi true!!!!Some snakes prefer one diet over another, not just BP's, though they may be the worst. We have used hamsters, ASF and mice, but never gerbils. Some snakes will eat any of them no problem, some prefer one over the other, but will eat other prey, and some really do prefer just one type, though they may eat another if they get hungry enough. ie going without for a couple of weeks. If you stun hamsters before feeding they present no problems.

A good chunk of hamsters are also insaaaanely furry, which isn't the best thing for digesting.