Feeding Today

Well 1) I used to switch tubs when feeding my snakes, but thought id try to feed in their enclosures, the first time they ate fine, now this the second time they ate fine again but for the first time ever one of my snakes struck at me when i put my hand in the tub to switch out some paper the rat pooped on.
now for my question....my new het piebald male struck at his rat killed it but now has no interest, ive left them in their for two hours how long can i leave it for im thinking of taking it out and throwing it in the freezer and thawing it tomorrow since hes used to eating frozen thawes anyways.

Try warming the rat back up and offering it again. Sometimes they get distracted.

I have a caulker cay boa female that will constrict and kill and if i distract her at a certain point after the process, she will not eat that prey item. I offer her another prey item ( or the same one again) and she will constrict and eat that prey afterwards.

It happens. Try messing with the prey again.

fa sho gracias amigo

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Originally Posted by azpythons

fa sho gracias amigo

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It would be Amiga..

I used to feed in a seperate enclosure, what a pain when you have several snakes :rolleyes:, I started feeding them in their own enclosures 3 weeks ago, my Pheobe now thinks that when she hears me opening her enclosure or the tank under hers that it's feeding time lol, she will come out of her...oops his hide in feed mode.

I keep a misting bottle handy now so when I open the enclosure and he comes out I mist him to let him know it's not feed time he goes back into hide and stays so I can spot clean etc. hope this helps. :)

aaaah no gracias amiga lo siento

hahha...

get back snake...or ill spray you!!!

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Originally Posted by llovelace

I used to feed in a seperate enclosure, what a pain when you have several snakes :rolleyes:, I started feeding them in their own enclosures 3 weeks ago, my Pheobe now thinks that when she hears me opening her enclosure or the tank under hers that it's feeding time lol, she will come out of her...oops his hide in feed mode.

I keep a misting bottle handy now so when I open the enclosure and he comes out I mist him to let him know it's not feed time he goes back into hide and stays so I can spot clean etc. hope this helps. :)

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so when you open your enclosure you irritate and strike fear into your python rather then just opening it and allowing a few seconds for them to realize the smell nothing? i highly doubt your snake will strike at you they are comming out to see whats up.

as for the BP that struck at his owner. i bet that the snake smelled the poop thought there was something over there and then tracked your hand movement when you stuck your hand in its cage, made a mistake.

perhaps you shouldnt be putting your hand in there to fix paper while feeding. if you need to i usually just let the snake take the rodent then do what i have to do before it uncoils it.

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Originally Posted by JeffJ

so when you open your enclosure you irritate and strike fear into your python rather then just opening it and allowing a few seconds for them to realize the smell nothing? i highly doubt your snake will strike at you they are comming out to see whats up.

as for the BP that struck at his owner. i bet that the snake smelled the poop thought there was something over there and then tracked your hand movement when you stuck your hand in its cage, made a mistake.

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No a little mist just snaps him out of feed mode, does not irritate nor strike fear into him.

When you mess around in their enclosure while they're in feeding mode they will sometimes take a swing a your warm hand. The spary bottle is a good way to snap them out of it, or you can wait till they're out of feeding mode and curled up in a hide, digesting.

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Originally Posted by llovelace

No a little mist just snaps him out of feed mode, does not irritate nor strike fear into him.

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does he retreat back into his hide? if so then youve either scared him or irritated him

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Originally Posted by Slim

When you mess around in their enclosure while they're in feeding mode they will sometimes take a swing a your warm hand. The spary bottle is a good way to snap them out of it, or you can wait till they're out of feeding mode and curled up in a hide, digesting.

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Thanks Slim, and my fella would eat a rat every other day if I allowed it lol.

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Originally Posted by JeffJ

does he retreat back into his hide? if so then youve either scared him or irritated him

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Yes he retreats some but leaves his head out watching hoping I'll drop a meal in or either take him out.

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Originally Posted by Slim

When you mess around in their enclosure while they're in feeding mode they will sometimes take a swing a your warm hand. The spary bottle is a good way to snap them out of it, or you can wait till they're out of feeding mode and curled up in a hide, digesting.

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yah i can see that if you just fed them. but 3 days later you open the lid and spray them in fear they are still in feeding mode?

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Originally Posted by JeffJ

does he retreat back into his hide? if so then youve either scared him or irritated him

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Have fun raising children with this mentality. :P
If they are doing something they shouldn't be, you should let them know. Spraying with water doesn't scare them as much as it startled them. Have you ever sprayed a cat with a water bottle when it was doing something it shouldn't be?

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Originally Posted by Kaorte

Have fun raising children with this mentality. :P
If they are doing something they shouldn't be, you should let them know. Spraying with water doesn't scare them as much as it startled them. Have you ever sprayed a cat with a water bottle when it was doing something it shouldn't be?

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yes but your missing what im saying. do you spank your kid when they leave the house because you fear there up to no good? lol maybe i miss understood, i can understand if you just feed them and they are still all hot and bothered for food. but say you open the enclosure 2 days later and he decides to peek out and see whats up so you spray him in fear he is still in feeding mode and about to strike? wouldnt that just teach him to never come out for you?

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Originally Posted by JeffJ

yah i can see that if you just fed them. but 3 days later you open the lid and spray them in fear they are still in feeding mode?

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Sorry, missed the three days later part...I'm batting 1.000 lately:rolleyes:

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Originally Posted by Slim

Sorry, missed the three days later part...I'm batting 1.000 lately:rolleyes:

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:P i would only be armed with the spray bottle if i had to go in immediately after a feed for clean up blood or feces. after they go hide to digest, there is no need they are uninterested for a day or 2 in anything. and after that i have no fear at all of being snapped at. so i would have no use to spray them if they happened to pop out and say hello while i had the top off or the slider open. but thats me, every one has there way i guess.

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Originally Posted by JeffJ

yes but your missing what im saying. do you spank your kid when they leave the house because you fear there up to no good? lol maybe i miss understood, i can understand if you just feed them and they are still all hot and bothered for food. but say you open the enclosure 2 days later and he decides to peek out and see whats up so you spray him in fear he is still in feeding mode and about to strike? wouldnt that just teach him to never come out for you?

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If you have had snakes for a while, you can tell when they are in feeding mode and when they are in "whats going on" mode. If a snake is in feeding mode and you need to preform cage maintenance, wouldn't you rather do it safely without the risk of being bit. If a snake bites you, your reflex is to pull away and this can be dangerous for the snake. Spraying them with a bottle of water might startle them, but its not "inflicting fear" or anything. They usually forget it even happened after a minute or two.

I don't spray my snakes because they don't bite. They just ball up.

I thought he was talking about messing around in the enclosure right after feeding. With my guys, I would EXPECT to get popped if I stuck my hand in right after they got done adjusting their jaws from a feed.

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Originally Posted by Kaorte

If you have had snakes for a while, you can tell when they are in feeding mode and when they are in "whats going on" mode. If a snake is in feeding mode and you need to preform cage maintenance, wouldn't you rather do it safely without the risk of being bit. If a snake bites you, your reflex is to pull away and this can be dangerous for the snake. Spraying them with a bottle of water might startle them, but its not "inflicting fear" or anything. They usually forget it even happened after a minute or two.

I don't spray my snakes because they don't bite. They just ball up.

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i can see it from that aspect and i already can identify the difference between im hungry and whats going on. and mine also ball up if i get things moving around.

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Originally Posted by Slim

I thought he was talking about messing around in the enclosure right after feeding. With my guys, I would EXPECT to get popped if I stuck my hand in right after they got done adjusting their jaws from a feed.

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i agree there thats why i wait 30-45 min.

Personally, if I need to do something in the snake cage and she is looking at me with hungry eyes or I need to weigh her, I just tap her on the head and she usually balls up.

I don't think there is anything wrong with the spray bottle though.