should I let her explorer.

[lorenhavens]

When I take her out of her cage she like to try and get on the floor. I let her go for awhile then pick her back up and start over. when I put her back in the cage it seems to me that she's not happy with it and just goes around the cage looking for a way out. What should I do? On top of that her first feed for me is coming up. I bought a separate cage for that to feed her in. Should I put aspen in that as well? I also don't want her stuck in that cage for that time period. How should I go about getting her back into her main cage?

[Archimedes]

Feed her in her enclosure, then you don't need to worry about getting her back into it. If it worries you, lay down a paper towel under where you offer food so aspen doesn't stick to it. If you hope to avoid being tagged by feeding her in a different enclosure, you're doing it wrong; you're way more likely to get bitten by a snake still in feeding mode when you reach for it than you are any other time.
As for her nightly rounds, some snakes just do it and need a bit to wind down after handling.

[lorenhavens]

Wouldn't she the start associating her main cage for feeding.? Then after the 48hrs of letting her be couldn't she nip at me? Thinking it's food?

[vangarret2000]

Do not feed her in a seperate container. It's old bad informations that just won't I away because newbies read about it, it makes sense the way it's written, so they keep doing it until someone more experienced gets them to stop. If you are worried about being bit from feeding in the tank just learn the hook technique and it stops that from happeneing. When feeding just feed. When wanna hold poke it with a hook. It learns poke means no food don't bite. It doesn't have to actually be a hook, just something long enoug to reach in and poke it without your hand being in the tank.

[Sonny1318]

It's an on going debate which is better. Some people swear by feeding in the same enclosure. Others feed in a separate one. If your going with a feeding enclosure, skip the aspen and paper towels. Paper towels can be a real hazard. I personally use a feeding cage. One of the reasons for using a separate feeding cage is to avoid the ingestion of bedding materials. If you worried about feeding mode aggression, just use a snake hook or place a towel over the snakes head. That should calm it down no problem.

[albinos_rule]

I think it all comes down to personal preference, and there is no right or wrong way to do it. I personally do not feed in a separate enclosure, and have never had any problems.

[Mr. Misha]

I think it all comes down to personal preference, and there is no right or wrong way to do it. I personally do not feed in a separate enclosure, and have never had any problems.

I absolutely agree. It's personal preference. I feed live so I feel more comfortable feeding in a seperate enclosure and never gotten bit or striked (sp?) at. My BPs know that once they go into their feeding box, it's meal time.

Do what works for you.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I747 using Tapatalk

[NH93]

Wouldn't she the start associating her main cage for feeding.? Then after the 48hrs of letting her be couldn't she nip at me? Thinking it's food?

Short answer: no.



Long(er) answer: she can strike at you whenever she wants. She has that ability. Every animal with teeth (or a mouth) can bite. But unless you ONLY open the cage to feed, the chances of her mistaking your clean, dry hand for food... I just don't see it.

Handlers do get bitten and mistaken for food, but that is often with a mouse or rat scent on their hands. Snakes are instinctual, but have good "resources" for hunting. Ball pythons specifically have heat pits and can sense minute differences between you and its food.


I don't know if I'm explaining this well enough, so I hope someone already has and I missed reading it in the comments. Or maybe someone better at explaining and with more experience will come along!





To answer your original question. I wouldn't let her/him go. They can be quick. If you are new or newish to snakes, then that's really a chance I think. I used to let one of my snakes crawl around on the back of a wire chair when she was smaller, but as soon as she hit the floor I picked her up.
You can never really trust reptiles, or animals in general. Or people. Don't trust anyone.
Kidding

But my suggestion is to get to know your snake's personality and patterns for quite awhile before you do anything too adventurous like taking her/him outside, or letting them roam further than you have.

[lorenhavens]

Has anyone handle their bp and feed it right after? Plan on feeding it tomorrow just want to make sure she eats. Could i use a sandwich container lid to put the mouse on so the aspen doesn't get on it or could that hurt my bp?

[NH93]

Has anyone handle their bp and feed it right after? Plan on feeding it tomorrow just want to make sure she eats. Could i use a sandwich container lid to put the mouse on so the aspen doesn't get on it or could that hurt my bp?

Why are you handling right before/after feeding?


Usually "handling" refers more to longer duration of handling, as in more than just a couple seconds/minutes when moving the animal, for example, from one place to the next, or weighing/measuring it.

Keep in mind that any handling, especially to a young or new snake, can be stressful. Stress can cause a snake to refuse a meal.

I think putting the mouse on a lid on the aspen is a great idea. My corn snake takes her mouse right out of a small ice cream container. My ball python is picky though, and I have to do a whole show for him which includes warming up his rat and and putting it in tongs not too bad I should say! Fun to watch.