First time feeding multiple. Seeking advice on best method

So the fuzzies only weigh in at 5g a piece. Based on his weight he should be eating 11-13g a feeding, unless i'm misinterpreting the calculations. Anyway, I bought two fuzzies today and plan on giving him both for his feeding but I'm wondering how best to do so.

1) Do I wait until he has downed the first one and rehinged his jaw and attempt to get him to strike again (would he be ready to just chill at that point?)

2) Do I wait until he has most of the first swallowed and attempt to introduce the head of the second one into his mouth so that he would instinctively just continue swallowing? (I would think that would cause stress and potentially ruin the entire feed via regurg or refusal, but I read of someone doing this)

3)some other method that someone with more experience undoubtedly knows of.

If it helps, Kaa is about 80g, not currently starting a new shed (still getting rid of the last try), fed in enclosure, and fed f/t.

Thanks in advance :)

When I feed multiples I feed the first and do not give the second until the first has reached the thicker part of the snake. Watch your snake. It will be very clear when it is ready for the second.

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Originally Posted by KMG

When I feed multiples I feed the first and do not give the second until the first has reached the thicker part of the snake. Watch your snake. It will be very clear when it is ready for the second.

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He will exhibit the same behavior as before he struck the first? I've never fed multiple, so I always thought once he ate he'd immediately want to be left alone.

strike 1: got the tail, wrestled aroound and couldn't find the head so he gave up

strike 2: struck at me not the mouse

strike 3: landed in the water bowl...

....seriously?

Alright so in the end he eventually got down the first one (the water bowl one) but since it dropped in the water, it got a little bedding on it and it took him awhile. I waited until the first mouse was almost past halfway when I introduced the second. Went to his hide after smelling the second, no interest at all. I imagine the discomfort of swallowing aspen bedding put him off his appetite. punctured the skull and left it in front of his hide. I'll check on it in a few hours to see if he took the second by then.

I am curious now that i've seen him do this multiple times, Does anyone else have experience with their snake trying to follow the tongs up to your hand rather than just go for the mouse immediately? I'm using tongs obviously but both times he's been fed he looks up from the mouse and starts moving towards my fingers, I raise the tongs and he keeps going to the point of him not striking the mouse until he's halfway in the air of his enclosure. Do I just stay still and trust he isn't going to strike my hand or what. I don't touch the f/t with my hands ever, I use the tongs to remove them from the bag, dry them with the dryer, and feed him.

Sounds to me like your f/t isn't warm enough. These guys strike at heat, and if you are warmer than the food, then you ARE the food. :D

In feeding multiple prey items, I always wait until the first is completely swallowed and the snake is looking for more { all but a very few will do this } then I heat the second and offer it. Usually there is little trouble getting them to strike and coil a second item if they are hungry.

Gale

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Originally Posted by Karokash

=I am curious now that i've seen him do this multiple times, Does anyone else have experience with their snake trying to follow the tongs up to your hand rather than just go for the mouse immediately? I'm using tongs obviously but both times he's been fed he looks up from the mouse and starts moving towards my fingers, I raise the tongs and he keeps going to the point of him not striking the mouse until he's halfway in the air of his enclosure. Do I just stay still and trust he isn't going to strike my hand or what. I don't touch the f/t with my hands ever, I use the tongs to remove them from the bag, dry them with the dryer, and feed him.

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Oh yeah, mine do this a lot, particularly the ones that are used to live food. Your hand is warmer with a heartbeat than the thawed mouse you're dangling in there, so it isn't weird to me that my snakes would be more interested in my hand than actual food. When it happens to me, I'll move the food closer to my snakes face which usually gets the job done. Only two of my eight are known for wild strikes, the others go for whatever is closest to them (eh, Ed is still small, and Gio's wobble is so pronounced that he can't hit anything if it isn't less than an inch from his face).

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Originally Posted by angllady2

Sounds to me like your f/t isn't warm enough. These guys strike at heat, and if you are warmer than the food, then you ARE the food. :D

In feeding multiple prey items, I always wait until the first is completely swallowed and the snake is looking for more { all but a very few will do this } then I heat the second and offer it. Usually there is little trouble getting them to strike and coil a second item if they are hungry.

Gale

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I have a hard time feeling the internal temps when I warm them so i'll just do so longer. They definitely aren't cold but i can see where there would be room for higher temps. i'll try that. Thank you.

I find that zombie dancing the ft rodent really helps. One of my bigger ball pythons won't take frozen unless it "acts" alive. The rest of them are either on live or just don't care. My burm and my retic being the best examples of the bite first ask questions layer club. When it comes to multiple feedings it really varies from snake to snake, but I always wait until they are actively looking for more food before offering the second.

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Originally Posted by Artemisace

I find that zombie dancing the ft rodent really helps. One of my bigger ball pythons won't take frozen unless it "acts" alive. The rest of them are either on live or just don't care. My burm and my retic being the best examples of the bite first ask questions layer club. When it comes to multiple feedings it really varies from snake to snake, but I always wait until they are actively looking for more food before offering the second.

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I dance them, he doesn't seem to really notice the difference whether I do or not. He is kind of an odd boy. But I'm sure the heating thing is to blame. I'll wait to offer the second until I see him hunting, I imagine he won't immediately go back into the hide if he is still hungry.

Probably not, but I do have one snake that just won't eat more than one rat per sitting. I tend to heat mine until they are just barely warm to the touch and then I dry them off with paper towels

That's a good question that I had myself. Where I am there's a gap in the sizing in stores between the large mice and the small rats. Eventually he'll be in a transition of small rats and large mice and I'll need to feed two (since there's no in between size offered) so I was wondering how to go about that myself. After feeding the first one he always goes into his hide, but his head is always poking out and he gets VERY interested if I stick my hand back in (to the point I have to keep him in the hide with a snake hook) so I imagine he'd strike a second time.

I was lucky enough that my local pet store let me pick out the biggest adult mice I could find in the bag they have. I've got 3 more in the freezer so I should be good for a while anyways.

ETA: I always heat mine by putting it in a plastic bag and running it under the tap as hot as it'll go for a couple minutes.

Mine always settled and starting hunting for more food and then I would entice them with the 2nd. Because they're in hunt mode it should be easy.

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Update: I got him eating two per feeding. I do the blow dryer trick to get him hungry, I've been heating them for longer to ensure interest, and i wear a glove to make sure he doesn't get confused with my hand. Once he takes the first and is fully ready, he starts moving around, then i start blow drying the second.
The time it takes to warm gives him enough time to get hungry again. So last night he ate about 12g, which is right where he should be for his last weight. i will weigh him again tomorrow night. Fingers crossed.

Tonight we will be moving up to two small mice up from two fuzzies. The fuzzies were about 5g apiece so he was eating around 10g-12g per feeding but he has gained weight so he is needing to eat 15g-20g now. The small mice weigh in at about 7.5g a piece give or take so that should put him around the correct amount but i'm sort of nervous because the mice seem almost twice the size. I'm a little overly cautious I think but I'm just worried about him hurting himself or regurgitating. However, the mice do seem to fall within the "widest part of the snake" rule so I may just be being paranoid. I will try to update post feed with the results, but wish us luck...

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Originally Posted by Karokash

Tonight we will be moving up to two small mice up from two fuzzies. The fuzzies were about 5g apiece so he was eating around 10g-12g per feeding but he has gained weight so he is needing to eat 15g-20g now. The small mice weigh in at about 7.5g a piece give or take so that should put him around the correct amount but i'm sort of nervous because the mice seem almost twice the size. I'm a little overly cautious I think but I'm just worried about him hurting himself or regurgitating. However, the mice do seem to fall within the "widest part of the snake" rule so I may just be being paranoid. I will try to update post feed with the results, but wish us luck...

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I was paranoid too lol it'll pass

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Update: He weighed in at 135g his last feeding day so I bumped him up to eating two 12.5 mice. He ate both without any issue. I hope to see him continue to gain weight, but he already looks markedly healthier than when I purchased him.