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Top Poster: JLC (31,651)
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i just witnessed the coolest killing of a rat i've ever seen... peanut was sniffing around the rat, looking interested but not quite ready to strike... he moved over top of the rat and then sort of sniffed its butt, then slowly wrapped around the rats neck with his body, and began to choke the rat. he didnt even have his mouth on the rat at all. he choked it until it died, then ate it like usual... but wow, i'm amazed. sneak attack, bp style...
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Were you feeding live or f/t?
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live. peanut eats live, bubba eats dead... well, bubba doesnt eat, but when he does he eats pre-killed.
i like feeding peanut live, he's a very good predator. never had a problem at all, and the only meal he ever skipped was when i switched his cage to a 10 gallon for a couple weeks when i got bubba. if i offer him something dead, he doesnt even acknowledge the fact that it's food. he just slithers on about his merry way.
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So you see no problem in feeding live? Have you tried to switch your snakes to pre-killed or f/t at all? If not, I HIGHLY recommend you do so.
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ive tried a few times actually. and like i said, peanuts the only one that eats live. and i dont see a problem in it if it's closely supervised. although i totally see why you recommend it, i've seen some pretty nasty rat bites.
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back to the point of the post, which was the WAY he killed it. totally awesome.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Wizill
....if i offer him something dead, he doesnt even acknowledge the fact that it's food. he just slithers on about his merry way.
I think that about answers your question about switching to dead prey, David. ;)
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And that sounds awesome how he ate it. Too bad you couldn't catch it on camera somehow. :)
Jennifer
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and ya know jenn, i had the camera ready too... i was going to take another one of those "striking videos", but he seemed so uninterested i put the camera away. about as soon as i got back from putting the camera back in the bag, i noticed him smelling the rat. and the rat just sat there and let him. next thing i knew, the rats face was the only thing i could see, and peanut's head was facing an entirely different direction, nowhere near the rat. i'm still amazed.
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How hard/long have you tried? It may take some effort, but is well worth it in the long run for you and the snake. I have seen snakes KILLED from a mouse......not a rat, but a MOUSE. One of my snakes was bitten on the head by a mouse when I was ignorantly feedng live and I have since been feeding f/t. One of my '03 BPs gave me a hard time switching over to f/t, but is now eating f/t like a champ. You just gotta be willing to put in the extra effort.
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i think i put plenty of effort into the keeping and care of my bp's. i'm not "ignorantly" feeding him live rodents, i'm feeding him live rodents being well-aware of what could happen. i never let him feed unattended. he eats, thats a lot more than some folks can say for their bp's.... but ya know, this is a whole 'nother post in it's own.
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I apologize, Will....I wasn't saying you were ignorant. I was back when I was feeding live because I didn't know any better. Sorry for the mix-up. But do you really think that if a mouse latched onto your snakes neck, you could react quick enough so that the mouse doesn't snap the snake's neck and kill it? It just really irks me when people knowingly feed live.
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well i'm just gonna have to irk you, in that case.
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Thats fine man, I guess we'll just have to agree to disagree. I just don't want you to think I was flaming you or attacking you, that was not my intention at all.
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no it's cool..
and i'm not at all saying i don't agree with you, feeding live prey is dangerous. if only my bp would listen to me when i tell him that.... :D
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Believe me, I know how frustrating it can be....it took me 2 months to get one of my BPs to eat f/t. She has just recently come around, thank goodness.
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i'm gonna' give it another shot when i'm forced to move to a larger prey item. right now, he's only on small rats. a lot less dangerous than the big boys.
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Good idea man. I hope you get him switched.
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I once saw a pic of a baby retis killing a mouse with it's tail, it was awsome.
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Now if we could only get all the snakes in the wild to eat f/t the snake world would be so much better. :roll:
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Ironhead
Now if we could only get all the snakes in the wild to eat f/t the snake world would be so much better. :roll:
But the snakes we have aren't in the wild anymore. Just because they do it in the wild doesn't mean we have to follow along.....if thats the case, then why feed on a schedule? Why supply them with water on a regular basis? Why keep them safe from predators?
See, the "wild snake" argument doesn't hold up because these animals are now in our care and we have a responsibility to take care of them as best we can......which does NOT include simulating the wild (all of the time).
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Never said to simulate the wild all of the time.
What works for one, does not allways work for another.
I agree that feeding f/t, freshly killed etc. is SAFER..... But does not mean that you should not feed live. My Monty Joe is going on 3 year's of age, he has been fed nothing but live his entire life and never has been hurt, not saying that he cannot be bitten. But I as the owner feed live and will continue to do so until I BELIEVE it to be unsafe for him. I monitor the entire feeding process and believe that I could intervene if necessary. And if he is hurt, then I will take appropriate measures. Feeding live does not mean that I do not care for my snake and that I am not being responsible.
As you said earlier, guess we will have to agree to disagree.
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Been gone
My thoughts are exactly as Ironhead said. BUT just because you, David, successfully switched all your bp's to f/t, does not mean that another household with bp's in it will be able to do the same. I have 11 ball pythons, all ages. I have continously fed f/t from the very first feeding; Because I do believe it is MUCH safer on the animal. Unfortunately, there are two hatchlings in that boat that will absolutely NOT eat f/t. Only live adult mice. Now, are you going to tell me that I should try going in their and talking to them about what's safest for them? It's impossible; the choice is completely up to them. That said, do you honestly think I am, or anyone in the same situation (alot of people) are an irresponsible keeper?
Jennifer
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Building a fake wall
I think you guys give up too easily.....anything is possible. I suppose I am willing to put in more effort and time to get my animals on a healthy safe diet than others.......nothing wrong with that......I guess its better than your snake not eating at all, lol.
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David,
Just because you want to switch your reptiles from eating live over to frozen/thawed does not mean you care more for your snakes than others.
I keep venomous reptiles, and switching from live to frozen/thawed is kinda tough, especially with members of the Crotalus family. Most of them eat lizards, and if you are lucky, can switch them to live mice (or rats for the larger specimens). But I've also had some wild caught specimens that eat frozen/thawed from the very first feeding.
Look, in the wild, they eat whatever the hell they want. Birds, bats, lizards, rodents and even other snakes; but I guess you already knew that, right? And they even stay alive long enough to reproduce! Amazing!
Yes, frozen/thawed is better in a lot of ways:
1. You can buy in bulk to save money!
2. No harm is done to the snake.
3. You don't have to kill them before feeding (in the case of pre-killed).
However, this also has its downsides:
1. If the snake doesn't eat, you can't re-freeze the frozen/thawed prey (thus wasting money).
2. If you buy lab prey (usually cheaper, but they have been experimented on) you might be hurting the snake (hell, you might even immunize it for herpes).
3. You can't test the quality (you don't know how old it is [which could cause some serious problems]).
What about live?
1. It can cause damage to the snake (with supervision it shouldn't matter).
2. You know how fresh it is.
3. Most reptiles prefer live.
4. Reptiles that won't eat anything should eat live!
5. You don't waste money if the snake doesn't eat (either keep it as a pet for a week, or give it to another member of the family; my monitor loves them)!
Basically, the decision is up to the snake. I suggest trying to switch over to pre-killed and buy in bulk from a reputable source (*cough Big Cheese Rodent Factory *cough). But, even then, me and my fiance have two 100% het albino ball pythons that cost us $900.00 and they only eat live! You think I'm afraid that the snakes don't know how to eat live prey?
Just back off and let the reptiles decide :wink: !
Dustin
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Shedding...
fo sheezy.
i like this guy... welcome to the site.
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I get my f/t rodents from RodentPro, so I knw they are o the best quality and are fresh. I am not condemning feeding live prey....I have had to do it in the past and probably will have to in the future. I just think that sometimes people will offer f/t once and then say "My snake won't take f/t!"....well its ALOT of work sometimes and I think its well worth the effort. Just my personal opinion.
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