MBK, First Feeding

[Charles8088]

Thank you, everyone!

[Zincubus]

Great news !!

As mentioned as he grows he will no doubt evolve into a feeding monster

I have 4 king snakes including a MBK and I have to check where they are in the viv then slide open the glass door at the opposite side and quickly put the df mouse on some bark ( using tongs !) then close the glass quickly as they lunge for my hand or anything !!

[DennisM]

Have fun with her! I will warn you though that my female MBK mistook my pinkie finger for a mouse pinkie on more than one occasion.

It's a kingsnake thing. I've had this happen countless times over the years with baby kings

[Charles8088]

I'll be sure to use tongs.

It seems, from reading other MBK owners' posts, that these guys are more open to just having their furry meal placed down in the enclosure... as opposed to wiggling the mouse out in front of them.

[Zincubus]

I'll be sure to use tongs.

It seems, from reading other MBK owners' posts, that these guys are more open to just having their furry meal placed down in the enclosure... as opposed to wiggling the mouse out in front of them.

So true

Wiggling the prey item is NOT an option for any of my Kings

I have Boas , Retics , Burms , Corns etcetera but there's nothing quite like a King snake at feeding time to keep your mind focused

[Craiga 01453]

With my King I don't have a chance to set the mouse down and leave it. He's ready and waiting. I actually might try to get a video on Tues. when his next feeding is scheduled.

[Prognathodon]

Our MBK has a great feed response. The Thayeri-phase wants you to just leave it, and then is a reliable feeder.


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[Charles8088]

Ok... going to resurrect this thread. This is the second feeding, which is 5 days after the first. Dropped the f/t pinky mouse in there at 3:45pm. Its 6:57pm now, and she still hasn't touched it. So, as my original question went... how long should I leave it in there for? Overnight? 24 hours? Remove now?

There has been ONE change that I did... maybe it wasn't a good idea?!?

She was doing well in the 6qt. Active... sometimes hiding, sometimes coming out and moving around. But, I picked up a slightly larger tub... just slightly. Paper towels for substrate, 2 hides (the standard mini hides), a bunch of branches/vines to fill in. The temperature gradient is not much better... being low if 77 and high of 84... on point (the Herpstat is great). Was even able to get the humidity to 50-60%. The 6qt was a problem with humidity. This change of tubs was done about an hour before I placed the pinky in.

Ideas?

[Zincubus]

To be fair many snakes would not eat so soon after a habitat change , I'd have waited at least 3 days even a week for it to settle down ...

Anyways. ...


This method WORKS if done properly ...
I wait until evening as they're nocturnal of course . I let the rodent thaw out in the reptile room so they get the smell ..
Then I warm up the mouse / rat with a hairdryer and offer with tongs IMMEDIATELY whilst still warm . If refused simply repeat the heating and offering as many times as needed. .
A couple of mine will only strike feed from within their hides so I dangle the warm rodent in front of the hide's entrance - usually works but if it fails simply reheat the rodent with a hairdryer and immediately offer again whilst it's still warm continue until it's grabbed ...
I always wait until evenings to feed as they're nocturnal of course .

Incidentally , if it shows no interest at all not even a tongue flicker maybe it's best to leave for a week or so.

[Charles8088]

Update ...??

That was the last update. Unfortunately, I had to leave for work. So, can't check now to see if baby mickey is still laying there in the tub, or if it was finally taken. But, I should be home by about midnight tonight (that would be about 4 hours from now, which would technically make the pinky in there for about 7 hours).

If it hasn't been taken, I assume to remove it tonight?

And, if it hasn't been taken, and I do remove it, do I try again tomorrow, or wait?

No panic... everything else seems fine with the gal. Before I left, she was just hanging out in the hide.