Have you ever heard of a python eating itself to death?

[VigdisXX]

I came across a pic of a large snake eating something that was waaay too big for it and ripping its skin away, be it photoshopped or not, i wondered; can a snake eat too much??

[wyomingpython]

At our local museum we had a rattlesnake show. One of them died because the caretakers offered food that was to big for the snake and it choked to death. So yeah it is possible. I have also seen plenty of pics on the internet showing the same thing as you saw.

[Archimedes]

yes it is possible. they are opportunistic feeders, and can't necessarily judge the size of prey by sight. if you didnt know when you would be eating again, you might bite off a bit more than you can actually chew, too.

it has happened, for sure

[Reptile Frenzy]

Yes. I have heard of the same instances of sbakes eating way too big of a meal and choking!

[Archimedes]

to clarify the idea of a snake choking, basically if they eat too big of a meal, their glottial treachea (basically the little tube they use to breathe while swallowing prey) can get lodged beneath the too-large item, leading them to suffocate and die. it's not choking in the sense that we know it, but it is deadly nonetheless.

there is also post-meal herniation, in which the prey item is too large for their internal organs to handle, causing a tear in the digestive tract. that leads to internal bleeding.

[Darkbird]

We wouldn't be talking about that picture I keep seeing on facefail of the snake that tried to eat the giant centipede would we? The one that ate the snakes internal organs and ended up dying just after poking it's head out the side of the snake?

[OctagonGecko729]

Yes, snakes can die in plenty of different ways from feeding. A few more to add, too large of prey can take too long to digest, leading to problems with rot in the stomach. Another thing I saw on retic nation was a guy who fed two or three larger sized prey items and one didnt make it into the stomach all the way, it bloated the snake very severely. I'm not sure if the animal survived or not but it was in very critical condition.