Bite wound

I just feed my female and I noticed she got nipped, what should I do is their anything you guy's gal's recommend????

I'm still relatively new to snake keeping but I am currently dealing with a problem like this and am basing my advice on what I've learnt from my reptile specialist and vet - so if I've said anything wrong please let me know.


Try washing it with boiled (but not hot) water - then use a product called Tamodine available from reptile shops. Keep an eye on the bite and if it doesn't seem to be healing see a vet. I'm currently treating (with the help of my vet) a corn snake that was bitten by another corn - (not mine - a rescue). Basically it got bit by its cage-mate (a corn of a different type) and the owners couldn't be bothered to treat it. Result = one great fat swollen abcess which now requires 10 days of injecting antibiotics followed by lancing, draining and 2-3 days hospitalization.

Use a little bit on Neosporin. If it doesn't come off with the next shed maybe take it to a vet, but it should be fine. and remember, never feed a snake live prey, I mean frozen/thawed or even pre-killed are fine for your snake, and then you don't have to worry about it getting bitten. take some tongs and wiggle the mouse/rat in front of the snake, maybe even tap the nose of your snake, this should be enough for it to stike and coil, let the mouse go and there ya go!
-Colin

Colin,


With all due respect, you'll find that many people here feed live and find it just as safe as feeding f/t. The bulk of the people here will not promote one type of feeding over the other, but do try to dispel the mis-information that feeding live is wrong, somehow.

There are many threads on this subject ad nauseum that you can search on, but if done in a responsible manner, there is nothing wrong with feeding live.

WARNING WARNING WARNING!!

You are officially put on notice of an Adam Wysocki alert! Enter the rest of this discussion at your own risk!!

Plus that tap the snake with the rodent thing, will more than likely get you a noneating snake. BPs are very shy and don't like being attacked no matter how gently. :rolleyes: You're best bet is the rodent zombie dance. :D

I alway's feed live , the day my bp got nipped I didn't knock the rat out. My mistake won't happen again.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by lucky08

and remember, never feed a snake live prey, I mean frozen/thawed or even pre-killed are fine for your snake, and then you don't have to worry about it getting bitten.

---

I feed live and I never worry about my snakes getting bitten. ;)

There's nothing wrong with feeding live as long as it's done in a safe, controlled, and responsible way.

-adam

. . .and again everyone is so judgemental. I'm sorry, but I'd rather feed my snakes f/t or pre-killed and have NO chance of them getting hurt. And for all of you who feed live prey, Way To Go!

I feed Karma live and never have the slightest problem. She's always been fed live prey and never been a fussy eater :)

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by lucky08

. . .and again everyone is so judgemental. I'm sorry, but I'd rather feed my snakes f/t or pre-killed and have NO chance of them getting hurt. And for all of you who feed live prey, Way To Go!

---

You do realize that if you improperly prepare f/t you can kill your snake right? Plus some snakes will ONLY eat live, so do you just starve them? Just some food for thought. No matter how you feed, you need to be responsible. :rolleyes:

I used to feed my male ball live about 2 and a half years ago he got nipped on a tail..luckily it wasnt a bad bite and some neosporin did the trick but feeding live really isent a good idea if your snake with take pre killed or f/t its much safer for the snake and should be considerd by anyone who wants their snake "bite free"

After reading some of the previous posts im in no way saying that feeding live is "wrong" ive just seen enough bad bites and snakes that leave ugly scars all because the snake dident grab it right or missed if you wanna feed live then do it but be ready to take action if the rat gets the upperhand

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Diceman

I used to feed my male ball live about 2 and a half years ago he got nipped on a tail..luckily it wasnt a bad bite and some neosporin did the trick but feeding live really isent a good idea if your snake with take pre killed or f/t its much safer for the snake and should be considerd by anyone who wants their snake "bite free"

After reading some of the previous posts im in no way saying that feeding live is "wrong" ive just seen enough bad bites and snakes that leave ugly scars all because the snake dident grab it right or missed if you wanna feed live then do it but be ready to take action if the rat gets the upperhand

---

Sorry to say it, but if you're feeding live and your snakes getting bit, you're doing it wrong.

I feed live every week and I've never had a snake get bit. ;)

-adam

listen in my opinion feeding live is fine i do it myself.
but pk or ft definatly sounds like less of a hassell(?) in terms of watching the feed not that anyone is better or worse

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Adam_Wysocki

Sorry to say it, but if you're feeding live and your snakes getting bit, you're doing it wrong.

I feed live every week and I've never had a snake get bit. ;)

-adam

---

Far be it from me to disagree with my favorite member of this site (Adam, that would be YOU) but I saw my friend's BP get tagged by a mouse and he did not do anything wrong. The snake simply hammered the mouse on the hiny and the mouse bent himself around and bit the side of the BP's neck. There was nothing wrong with how he fed the snake, it was just a bad hit by the snake. What can ya do about that!!??

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Eddie_Z

Far be it from me to disagree with my favorite member of this site (Adam, that would be YOU) but I saw my friend's BP get tagged by a mouse and he did not do anything wrong. The snake simply hammered the mouse on the hiny and the mouse bent himself around and bit the side of the BP's neck. There was nothing wrong with how he fed the snake, it was just a bad hit by the snake. What can ya do about that!!??

---

Disagreements are all good. I don't take anything personal except someone elses hands on either my balls or my beer. :D

Was the snake fed in the cage? Hides in tact? Given at least 15 - 30 minutes with the mouse in the room prior to being offered? Was the mouse dropped in the cage gently on the opposite side from the snake? Were there people in the room watching to make the snake a little less secure? Was there a change in the usualy feeding routine?

Snakes are very very very good at hitting, killing, and eating live prey ... if there was an injury, there was probably a reason for it. Something made the snake hit the mouse at the wrong "spot". ;)

-adam

You gotta go ahead and allow for the occaisional oddball....I feed live, none of mine ever get bit, and I feel live feeding is the way to go with ball pythons all things considered- BUT, I do have a female that is a complete tard and always grabs the butt end of her rats. She's gotten a few nips here and there, but none that left any damage worth treating and all the nips do is cause her to throw another coil around and do her thing.

You just gotta get to know your snakes and do what works for you and them, whether it be live, pre-killed, f/t, alien-abducted, whatever....

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by tigerlily

You do realize that if you improperly prepare f/t you can kill your snake right? Plus some snakes will ONLY eat live, so do you just starve them? Just some food for thought. No matter how you feed, you need to be responsible. :rolleyes:

---

ok im going to sound stupid here but how would you improperly prepare them? i just want to know so i dont do it.

There's been some cases where people have failed to completely thaw the rodent, and a snake eating a mouse or rat in which their inner skull may still be frozen causes MAJOR digestive issues and possibly even death.

Also, Rodentpro says that essential vitamins begin to break down after about 6 months. If you buy them in bulk and have frozen rats over 6 months old, chances are they aren't getting a whole lot out of them except a bunch of empty calories.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by snakebitten69

ok im going to sound stupid here but how would you improperly prepare them? i just want to know so i dont do it.

---

F/T rodents that are not 100% completely thawed, thawed and then left to sit out too long afterwards, or thawed in a microwave can actually cause big problems for your snake.

-adam

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Adam_Wysocki

Was the snake fed in the cage? Hides in tact? Given at least 15 - 30 minutes with the mouse in the room prior to being offered? Was the mouse dropped in the cage gently on the opposite side from the snake? Were there people in the room watching to make the snake a little less secure? Was there a change in the usualy feeding routine?

---

As always you find a way to make great points.

First of all, there was not a change in usual feeding routine. The snake in question (Diablo was his name-o) had eaten the same way for his entire college career.

However, basically none of the above guidelines were followed. He was fed in a seperate box (I didn't know better at the time and my friend was given the old "you hafta feed them in a different box or they will try to eat you every time you reach into their cage" routine), there were no hides in the box, there was no real waiting period, the mouse WAS dropped in gently and on the other side of the box and there was always an audience.

You win again. Why do I try to disagree with you? Nobody knows more about balls than Adam! :stupidme:

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Eddie_Z

Nobody knows more about balls than Adam! :stupidme:

---

When I try and tell the guys in the locker room at the gym the same thing it's definitely not appreciated! ... Thanks big guy! :P

-adam

hahahahaha adam you crack me UP!

and eddie... feeding his ego isn't just about being nice... you are just soooooooo right!!! adam knows his balls!

*leaves with the song "Big Balls" by AC/DC playing in the background*

Sense I did it wrong do ya care to tell me how the right way is?

Snakes dont always grab the prey right sometimes they get the side putting their body to close to the rats mouth I can make the the situation as perfect as possible but cant the snake still make a mistake when grabbing?

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Diceman

Sense I did it wrong do ya care to tell me how the right way is?

Snakes dont always grab the prey right sometimes they get the side putting their body to close to the rats mouth I can make the the situation as perfect as possible but cant the snake still make a mistake when grabbing?

---

All of mine seem to do a pretty good job every week?

-adam

Thats why im asking how I did it wrong lol can you tell me the right way to feed live?

What are the pluses to feeding live? Only reason I feed dead is cause it leaves no chance not even 1 out of a million of the snake getting bit

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Diceman

Thats why im asking how I did it wrong lol can you tell me the right way to feed live?

What are the pluses to feeding live? Only reason I feed dead is cause it leaves no chance not even 1 out of a million of the snake getting bit

---

If you feed F/T or P/K and it works good for you and your snake ... GREAT! ... no need to switch ... I'm not advocating one way over the other, as long as your snake is eating and your method of choice is convenient for you, it's all good.

If you're worried about a snake getting bit from feeding live, don't do it ... it's pretty simple.

I feed hunderds of thousands of dollars worth of ball pythons live food each week and have done so for the last 10 years because I'm confident that there is not even a 1 out of a million chance of a snake getting bit ... but that's just me.

To each their own. ;)

-adam

So theres no chance the snake can grab it wrong? How do you feed them live properly?

Im only asking cause due to the slightly cooler weather my ball has been off feed for the past 2 months and im tryin to get him back on feed..ive got a rat in the freezer right now that I plan on trying some chicken broth with first before live but if live is my last resort I wanna do it right..

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Diceman

So theres no chance the snake can grab it wrong?

---

Ball pythons (and snakes in general) are designed through millions of years of evolution to be masterful at striking and killing live prey. That's what they do. ;)

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Diceman

Im only asking cause due to the slightly cooler weather my ball has been off feed for the past 2 months and im tryin to get him back on feed..ive got a rat in the freezer right now that I plan on trying some chicken broth with first before live but if live is my last resort I wanna do it right..

---

Sounds like instead of trying to feed live or playing around with chicken broth you should take a look at your temps. Get those ironed out and consistent and I'm sure you're snake will start taking F/T again. :D

-adam

He goes through this every year lol the temps are good trust me that was the first thing I checked and all the other snakes are eating good ive checked him for parasites and everything other then the fact he wont eat hes acting completely normal maybe one or twice a week we have some fairly cold nights (low 70's in my room) but other then that its the same as always

I got the chicken broth idea from a few other ball keepers on AIM which I plan on trying soon..if you dont wanna tell me how to properly feed live thats fine but im tired of asking lol

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Diceman

He goes through this every year lol the temps are good trust me that was the first thing I checked and all the other snakes are eating good ive checked him for parasites and everything other then the fact he wont eat hes acting completely normal maybe one or twice a week we have some fairly cold nights (low 70's in my room) but other then that its the same as always

---

Low 70's in your room are not "good" as far as temps go. Temperature, humidity, and stress are the top 3 reasons that ball pythons go off feed. Fix those, and your snake will eat.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Diceman

I got the chicken broth idea from a few other ball keepers on AIM which I plan on trying soon..if you dont wanna tell me how to properly feed live thats fine but im tired of asking lol

---

I've heard of using chicken broth on WC import green tree pythons and emerald tree boas, but in 25 years of keeping ball pythons I've never heard of it being needed or effective for them.

-adam

It hits the low 70's maybe 2 nights a week from about id say 11:00-12:00 to probably 8 or 9 in the morning...and trust me I keep an eye on my snakes and where their at and the ball stays on the cool side so im sure when he wants to get warmer he will go on the warm side like he normally does

Ill ask some other experts about how to properly feed live

A member of this forum the one who told me I should try chicken broth has used it to get Sarabi to feed a couple time...so it works

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Diceman

It hits the low 70's maybe 2 nights a week from about id say 11:00-12:00 to probably 8 or 9 in the morning...and trust me I keep an eye on my snakes and where their at and the ball stays on the cool side so im sure when he wants to get warmer he will go on the warm side like he normally does

Ill ask some other experts about how to properly feed live

A member of this forum the one who told me I should try chicken broth has used it to get Sarabi to feed a couple time...so it works

---

I stand corrected then, sounds like you know what you're doing. I'm sure your ball python is fasting and all 250+ of mine are eating because I'm wrong. ;)

Good luck with that. :D

-adam

adam gave some feeding tips on page 2.

feed how you want and what your snake will eat steadily.


vaughn

No need to be a smartass all I asked from the very begining was for you to tell me how to properly feed a snake a live rat so I could do that but instead you gave me a bunch of info I never asked for...doesnt matter how many snakes you have or years youve been doing it doesnt mean you have the right to be a smartass to someone who is trying to learn...if you would like to answer my question id be glad to hear the answer from someone with exp on it but if not a simple no when of been much nicer and saved me time

Im gonna stop posting on this topic before things get any worse if you decide to answer my question feel free to PM me

would you like to know how i feed live to my snakes?

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by mr~python

would you like to know how i feed live to my snakes?

---

LMAO!

-adam

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Adam_Wysocki

Was the snake fed in the cage? Hides in tact? Given at least 15 - 30 minutes with the mouse in the room prior to being offered? Was the mouse dropped in the cage gently on the opposite side from the snake? Were there people in the room watching to make the snake a little less secure? Was there a change in the usualy feeding routine?

Snakes are very very very good at hitting, killing, and eating live prey ... if there was an injury, there was probably a reason for it. Something made the snake hit the mouse at the wrong "spot". ;)

-adam

---

adam,

i used this technique tonight for dexter. normally i don't let the mouse sit for anytime at all, just pop it into his viv, but after reading your post... i would rather do it right all the time than fix a problem later on...

so i sat the box with the mouse beside his viv and removed the lid, getting the water dish as i hadn't cleaned it yet today... when i came back into the room (perhaps 2 minutes later) {kids were watching that dexter didn't leave his viv} - dexter was in strike posture... so i opened the box and gently placed the mouse at the opposite end of his viv (and for the first time didn't remove any of his hides - i was removing all of them except the one he was in) - well he stayed in strike position... waited patiently for the mouse to come over to his side of the viv and WHAM he took the mouse down perfectly. AND as an added treat, he was kind enough to eat it right at the end of his viv so we could sit and watch him! (i put his water dish back in after he coiled on the mouse - very quickly and then put the lid on his viv)

so, thank you for making dexter's dinner even better tonight!
:clap: