Why does she do this?

When my girl eats live she strikes and eats, end of story. But when I give her f/t which is the majority of the time, she does this weird thing where she smells their feet/butt first, maybe drags them by the feet a little ways, and then she'll get around to eating it. What gives? She did it again tonight but in the end decided she didn't want it, though I expected it because I had to help her finish a shed and she'd had enough of the world for one night. lol

Here's some pics:

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c1...0925.07016.jpg

and again:

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c1...0925.07019.jpg


Also, apparently "Spamalot" was terrible; I wouldn't go see it...

hmm..i dunno why she does that.

My male spider will sometimes strike at FT but then not eat it. One thing that really helps is to give it a tug after he strikes so that he really thinks it's putting up a fight. Sometimes I make squeeking noises like a mouse in pain to really simulate the experience :)

JonV

Hey that's funny because snakes don't really "hear".

Some of my snakes do that too. Most of the times it's my own fault; the rats aren't warm enough...

She's most likely looking for a heat signature to figure out which end is the head (the nose is usually warmest). Try warming the nose of the prey on a heat lamp for 20 seconds or so before giving it to her to help her out.

mine will do that with f/t she will "kill" it but not eat it. so i switched back to live. some snakes are picky about live and f/t and some will eat anything.

Mine did that last night, he went in his hide and I just left it by the hid opening, he ate it then, just give them time :)

Mine doesn't do that, but I do have one that will drag the mouse into her hide before eating after she's killed it.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by nevohraalnavnoj

Sometimes I make squeeking noises like a mouse in pain to really simulate the experience :)

JonV

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But he wouldnt be able to hear it, cause snakes dont have ears!!! :carrot:

I'll try heating the nose then, as that seems like the most logical explanation. The body of the rat was warm enough - I let it sit in a covered pan of hot water for ages, constantly changing the water to keep it hot, and then I let it sit under her heat lamp. I guess she just doesn't know where to begin. Though that doesn't really explain the dragging of the animal. She doesn't take it back to her hide, she just moves it a little.

I should stop trying to explain all the things this girl does. She's always been a little wacky. For example, http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showthread.php?t=53035

Quote:

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Originally Posted by juddb

But he wouldnt be able to hear it, cause snakes dont have ears!!! :carrot:

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Strange...

My Spider always comes out of his hide and starts wobbling when I put on my Red Hot Chili Peppers @ Slane Castle DVD...LOL

Hi,

I feed live, and sometimes it takes him a while to start swallowing, even though he just killed it. He will always sniff up and down the mouse for a minute (I figured he was trying to find the head as well), then he'll take it... he doesn't always pick the right end, though, especially if he gets the middle when he strikes. He's never actually eaten one backwards, but I read that it's not a problem even if they do. He usually just tries for a while then drags it around and readjusts. It makes me want to show him which end is which sometimes!

I've always thought the sniffing/head finding process is normal... perhaps some more experienced people can weigh in. :)

I also read the other thread about the hides- that's funny! Mine will sometimes have his head in one and his butt in the other one! He's also growing a lot, so now his hides look more like hats sometimes... :) He can squeeze in there, but sometimes a coil hangs out... I always go over and say "Hey, your butt's hanging out!" ;)

mine will only eat live. everynow and again, after they constrict, they'll sniff around for a few minutes before beginning to eat. maybe trying to find the best place to start swallowing? dunno...