How do I keep from jumping when I feed my snakes?

So I’ve been feeding for about 6 months, and I still jump really bad when I feed them frozen rats lol I’m worried I’m going to hurt their teeth? Is that possible? It’s not that I’m afraid of them or even afraid of getting bit, I’m just a jumpy person in general and the fast striking catches me by surprise no matter how prepared I think I am for it. Any tips? I’m worried I’m gonna hurt their teeth by jumping too hard.

Longer tongs or hemostats. :)

Lol I can relate. I'm not scared of my BP or being bitten but I'm the kind of person who jumps 3 feet when the toaster goes off. I tend to let go with my tongs instinctively when my BP strikes though.

Maybe you could try letting go of the rat when it gets to the distance your BP usually strikes or wiggling the rat up to the opening of the hide and just placing it there? Depends on the snake though, I know some really like to see the zombie dance, and it can be really hard to predict when they strike especially if they are in a hide and you can't see them.

I can totally understand this! I still don't like to watch it. In doing some research about Ball Pythons in the wild, I learned that they normally will find a rodent burrow, go inside, and eat the prey. I have changed the way I feed my BP now based on this.
1. I thaw out the rat and make sure it's nice and warm.
2. I remove the snake from the enclosure.
3. I put the nice warm rat deep inside the warm hide.
4. I put the snake back in the enclosure and direct his head so that he goes inside the warm hide.

He will go in partway, see the rat, pause, breathe hard, and then THUMP and he's got it! :rofl: It's all very entertaining!

Practice! You need to get more snakes! :rofl: (or practice with a toaster or a 'Jack in the Box'- remember those? LOL)

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Originally Posted by Luvyna

Lol I can relate. I'm not scared of my BP or being bitten but I'm the kind of person who jumps 3 feet when the toaster goes off. I tend to let go with my tongs instinctively when my BP strikes though.

Maybe you could try letting go of the rat when it gets to the distance your BP usually strikes or wiggling the rat up to the opening of the hide and just placing it there? Depends on the snake though, I know some really like to see the zombie dance, and it can be really hard to predict when they strike especially if they are in a hide and you can't see them.

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Lol my baby I just recently got has been fed live, but he’s doing well with frozen so far. He gets all the way up to the rat and puts his nose on it for a few seconds before backing away and striking. It’s so weird and alarming :rofl:

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Originally Posted by Bogertophis

Practice! You need to get more snakes! :rofl: (or practice with a toaster or a 'Jack in the Box'- remember those? LOL)

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lol the toaster thing is a good idea! I’d love to get another but after the one I just got my boyfriend told me no more snakes for a while :rofl:maybe I’ll go to reptile expo and say “oh honey I have no idea how he got in my pocket!” Lol!

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Originally Posted by Shadowy

So I’ve been feeding for about 6 months, and I still jump really bad when I feed them frozen rats lol I’m worried I’m going to hurt their teeth? Is that possible? It’s not that I’m afraid of them or even afraid of getting bit, I’m just a jumpy person in general and the fast striking catches me by surprise no matter how prepared I think I am for it. Any tips? I’m worried I’m gonna hurt their teeth by jumping too hard.

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What are you holding the rat/mouse with? A pair of vice grips?

Jumping, that’s were the fun is. I’m not bragging, a lot of us have been doing this a long time. I might not jump on the outside, but every once in a while I jump on the inside, lmfao. I think most the long time keepers do, lol. It makes it interesting. Especially with balls, you think their not even remotely interested, gotta try every trick in the book. Then bam outta nowhere they hit like a small explosion. Gotta love it.

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Originally Posted by Sonny1318

Jumping, that’s were the fun is. I’m not bragging, a lot of us have been doing this a long time. I might not jump on the outside, but every once in a while I jump on the inside, lmfao. I think most the long time keepers do, lol. It makes it interesting. Especially with balls, you think their not even remotely interested, gotta try every trick in the book. Then bam outta nowhere they hit like a small explosion. Gotta love it.

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Exactly! A little adrenaline is good for ya! We really don't want snakes that eat in slow motion, do we? I mean, I have a few "polite" snakes but I wouldn't want
them all to be that way. The way they are capable of explosive action one minute, & then still be sweet to handle, is part of their charm & mystique. :snake2:

I managed to feed my 6 month old a pinky rat tonight and I barely flinched! Lol I think I just get in my head too much. I really do love feeding though! I always look forward to it.

I have been feeding snakes since I was 11 years old and I still jump like 75% of the time, lmao. It’s like those scenes in horror movies where stuff pops out at you.... you know it’s gonna happen and keep telling yourself it will but sometimes it still spooks you lol.




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Originally Posted by Shadowy

I managed to feed my 6 month old a pinky rat tonight and I barely flinched! Lol I think I just get in my head too much. I really do love feeding though! I always look forward to it.

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Not to get too much off topic, but is this a 6 month old BP? If so, an actual pinky rat is most likely too small. There are some very helpful feeding charts on this site. You want to offer prey that is roughly as thick around as the widest point of the snake. :)

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Originally Posted by WhompingWillow

Not to get too much off topic, but is this a 6 month old BP? If so, an actual pinky rat is most likely too small. There are some very helpful feeding charts on this site. You want to offer prey that is roughly as thick around as the widest point of the snake. :)

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I know it’s too small, I actually fed 2 of them. My supplier was out of the size I needed so I got these temporarily and have just been feeding 2 at a time.

I've jumped many times while feeding Crowley, he is just so fast it catches you off guard even when you're expecting it. If you are using regular tongs your ball python should be fine. Anytime I jumped to feeding Crowley the rat got ripped from the tongs faster than I could even pull back. I've jumped a lot while feeding and never had any issues with pulling teeth out.

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Originally Posted by alittleFREE

I have been feeding snakes since I was 11 years old and I still jump like 75% of the time, lmao. It’s like those scenes in horror movies where stuff pops out at you.... you know it’s gonna happen and keep telling yourself it will but sometimes it still spooks you lol.




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LOL... With my bigger snakes, they hit it so hard it is hard not to jump. I just work hard to control how far I jump. As for my BPs... Shiva is the one that is excited when it comes to food and she hits hard as she can every time. I have learned her method of attack but she surprises me from time to time. Is a fun part of the hobby. Love these guys.

I always jump inside when Punch, my 8 foot Boa strikes.

I never see the actual strike. The stack of cages shake, there’s a loud noise, all I see is him coiling around the rat. He is my most aggressive feeding snake. He will strike if the prey is 90 degrees from him. He will even strike like a gator if the prey is directly behind him.

I am always on extra alert when feeding him.

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...7716d6cb97.jpg

Punch, Wild Type BI

Feeding snakes definitely counts as entertainment. When I feed my big yellow rat snakes, they strike so hard that if they're in their branches at the time, they often
tumble down, rolling around with their f/t prey as if doing serious battle. Eleven years old & they STILL don't believe prey is ever dead...LMAO.

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Originally Posted by Reinz

I always jump inside when Punch, my 8 foot Boa strikes.

I never see the actual strike. The stack of cages shake, there’s a loud noise, all I see is him coiling around the rat. He is my most aggressive feeding snake. He will strike if the prey is 90 degrees from him. He will even strike like a gator if the prey is directly behind him.

I am always on extra alert when feeding him.

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...7716d6cb97.jpg

Punch, Wild Type BI

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Looks like you are putting that exercise machine to good use! LOL

I’m just the type of guy that can not jump. I work on race cars for a living and when u have to do stuff while the car is running and u know no matter what u can’t jump or u will get your hand crushed and chewed up. So I guess that helped. And I can normally tell when they are going to strike

Anyway, I say "jumping is good for you"...if you have enough snakes, it counts as aerobic exercise. ;)

You may enjoy this anecdote. A few months ago I purchased an adult male b.p. who, when I first brought him home was VERY reactive. During his quarantine period he was in a bin, but not a rack. Every time I walked past he'd strike the sides of the bin, and opening it to change water etc. usually ended in my slopping the water all over to avoid his strike. He had two hides, but did't use either initially. After a couple of days, I covered the bin with a towel and he settled down a lot, another couple of weeks and I could handle him.... if I was careful not to make any sudden moves and I was patting myself on the back that I hadn't yet been bitten.

Things were going well, EXCEPT for feeding, he's a very enthusiastic feeder, and for some reason, seems to ignore the f/t rat I'm holding in the forceps and attempts to rise out of the bin, which is a bit disconcerting.

Fast forward a few months and he's just graduated to a rack, all is well but the first feeding in the rack was interesting. He's in one of the lower bins. On feeding day, he's waiting at the front of the bin and as soon as I open the bin, he rises up and out, looking for dinner. I offered the rat, he struck and missed, I jumped, the rat landed in the front of the bin, but the snake isn't seeing it, and when I lower the forceps to grab the rat, the snake strikes at the forceps. I grabbed the closest thing (a water bottle) to block him from striking the hand holding the forceps and attempt to gentle push him back into the bin... he's about 18 inches above the bin now and HUNGRY. I'm feeling a bit vulnerable, but happy I haven't been bitten............forgetting that the hand holding the water bottle that I'm using as a shield, was the one that was originally used to transfer the rat to the forceps. Sooooo, the snake ignored the forceps, and nailed the hand holding the water bottle. I jumped, dropped the water bottle to the floor, the snake dropped back into the bin and I closed it up. Thirty seconds later, the snake found the rat and was chowing down and I was looking for a tissue to wipe my bleeding hand. All ended well, but I had a good chuckle at my own expense, I knew this one would bite me eventually, I didn't realize I'd make it so easy for him. LOL