How long should you wait before handling after feeding?

Hey everyone,

Checked all over and I keep finding three repeated answers:

1 day,
2 days,
3 days.

I have been waiting 3 days to handle my snake after feeding, but I am just curious about what other people do. Each post I read seemed to pick one of those three but they all seemed to be opinions, and I wouldn’t say I saw one answer stand out more than the rest.

What does everyone do? I’d love for 3 days to be overkill to gain back an extra day of handling, but since I’m not sure the safest option is the longest.


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From some reading that I've done I've heard 36 to 48 hours is the best way to go, I've seen it where people handle them the same day tho.. I believe I saw it from Brian From snake bytes tv, but you know I guess it all depends on your snake, for example my little noodle he is all chill the second day, but I give him some extra space unless is necessary for me to dig in and clean up the tank for some reason.


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Would you say there are indicators of when a BP is ready to be moving around again? I find my BP will eat and go to his hide, and stay there occasionally sticking his head out for the next few days or so. I can never tell if he is ready to be handled or not


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Give it 2 days. It's a nice time frame that gets you into a routine that only benefits your snake.

I think it depends on the snake. My son will take his snake out just before feeding and play with it a while then put it back and feed it a few minutes later and then get him out the day after feeding (within 24 hrs)and we have not had any issues. I take it a little easier on my new girl.

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The ball pythons and corns get 48 hours. The hognoses get 24 because they have a much higher metabolism.

I think it varies by snake, I give my boy 48 hours.

2 days is the standard I think. Some species / snakes need longer. The breeder I got my BCA from (boa) told me to wait 4 days after feeding to handle. he only eats every 4-6 weeks though, so I still have plenty of handling time.

Thanks everyone! I’ll start handling after a full 48 hours!


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I wait 24 hours. I Do know that it depends on the meal size if your feeding your snake something bigger than I suggest waiting longer (48 to 36 hrs) but I feed my nine month old bp fuzzy rats and wait 24 hours to handle and I have not had any problems with him! :snake:

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Bumblebee my snake

I wait 24 hours. I Do know that it depends on the meal size if your feeding your snake something bigger than I suggest waiting longer (48 to 36 hrs) but I feed my nine month old bp fuzzy rats and wait 24 hours to handle and I have not had any problems with him! :snake:

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This thread is over two and a half years old...

I wait at least 4 days for my boas. Two or three for the others.

The beauty of having more than one snake ( a lot more than one for some of us ) is that when they’re digesting or in shed mode and can’t be held .. you’ve always got options :)


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Agreed with 2 days being the standard! I've started waiting 3 days for my BP though because I noticed once he started eating small rats sometimes he was still lethargic and uncomfortable about being touched after 48 hours.

I've always given a 2 days minimum, and usually go longer.

But while everyone says "based on the snake", that's a disposition based question.

What about its physiology? How soon can you handle one before their insides decide to regurgitate, that's what I always wonder?