New Burm! "Dexter " the Pearl Burmese python progression thread

[Zincubus]

I convinced the little guy to eat his first frozen thawed rat pup with me tonight!

He was on live pups from the breeder so I figured it was going to be a little bit of a challenge to make the transition. Well, he would approach the pup on the tongs super fast like he wanted it....but then he wouldnt strike. After about five minutes I wasnt having luck so I tried something that used to work with BP hatchlings I had years ago....annoy him slightly. It doesnt always work, but sometimes ....it does.

Rubbed the rat slightly against him.....aaaaaaand? Presto! He gave a lethargic bite to it, gave a slow wrap around it and took it! Almost as if to say "Well its not what I wanted but it will work". Get used to it pal, live feeders arent very convenient for me ....but I love ya lol

Excellent !!

Maybe try the hairdryer method to heat the rat seconds before you dangle it in front of him ... if he took a cold rat you'd better watch yourself with a warmed up one


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Pro

[KevinK]

Excellent !!

Maybe try the hairdryer method to heat the rat seconds before you dangle it in front of him ... if he took a cold rat you'd better watch yourself with a warmed up one


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Pro

It was warm, I defrost in luke warm water then let the rat sit in warmer water before drying it off quickly and offering it. I think he was just a little confused because it smelled correct but didn't look exactly the same to what he's used to seeing lol. But boy........did he put the squeeze on it!! I glanced at it before he was eating and he crushed it!

[CALM Pythons]

It was warm, I defrost in luke warm water then let the rat sit in warmer water before drying it off quickly and offering it. I think he was just a little confused because it smelled correct but didn't look exactly the same to what he's used to seeing lol. But boy........did he put the squeeze on it!! I glanced at it before he was eating and he crushed it!

I have 125 frozen Xl mice in my freezer because someone asked me to order them and never paid me so I've thought about trying to feed them off but haven't tried FT in the 30 years ive had snakes. The stories of oozing rat guts and liquid all over the snakes & substrate disgusts me so i just cant do it. Lol


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[KevinK]

I have 125 frozen Xl mice in my freezer because someone asked me to order them and never paid me so I've thought about trying to feed them off but haven't tried FT in the 30 years ive had snakes. The stories of oozing rat guts and liquid all over the snakes & substrate disgusts me so i just cant do it. Lol


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I had a female Hog Island boa (that I technically still own but on loan for breeding purposes) a few years ago that was bit pretty bad by a medium/large live feeder so that is the reason why I won't get near live feeders when I have the choice. It happened under my supervision too, not an unattended feeding story like you see occasionally. Left her with a sizable chunk out of her side that had to be sutured shut and had to have a blood test done on top of it.....over $400 in medical expenses and the vet gave me a smoking good deal on it all because he felt bad.

It's rare, SUPER rare in fact but I won't go down that road anymore.....not to mention keeping and storing live feeders just doesn't work for me personally. I'm not within a decent distance to pull that off, I raised my own at one point and just didn't like it, the smell, the amount of surplus you're always trying to get rid of, tubs being eaten through. No thanks lol. It is nice though because NOTHING convinces them to feed like a live rodent. Ironically, I've never had a f/t pop on me.

When I did raise my own I felt like I was Menards #1 customer of concrete/mortar tubs because they would eat though them all the time....and Vision is INSANE with the price that they want for their rodent tubs.

[CALM Pythons]

I had a female Hog Island boa (that I technically still own but on loan for breeding purposes) a few years ago that was bit pretty bad by a medium/large live feeder so that is the reason why I won't get near live feeders when I have the choice. It happened under my supervision too, not an unattended feeding story like you see occasionally. Left her with a sizable chunk out of her side that had to be sutured shut and had to have a blood test done on top of it.....over $400 in medical expenses and the vet gave me a smoking good deal on it all because he felt bad.

It's rare, SUPER rare in fact but I won't go down that road anymore.....not to mention keeping and storing live feeders just doesn't work for me personally. I'm not within a decent distance to pull that off, I raised my own at one point and just didn't like it, the smell, the amount of surplus you're always trying to get rid of, tubs being eaten through. No thanks lol. It is nice though because NOTHING convinces them to feed like a live rodent. Ironically, I've never had a f/t pop on me.

When I did raise my own I felt like I was Menards #1 customer of concrete/mortar tubs because they would eat though them all the time....and Vision is INSANE with the price that they want for their rodent tubs.

Yeah I gas mine. They are kept in 40 Gallon Breeders and I made a CO2 chamber.. They take them no prob because they are still warm and I drop them right in... Its a Pain to raise them but I have it down pretty good to where it isnt much work. I gotta say ive noticed my well fed rodents helped the growth of my snakes. I wish I could get passed the FT thing. It sure would save time and money.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Valyrian]

There's also the problem of parasites in live feeders. Freezing kills them off.

[CALM Pythons]

Yup I dont buy live. I breed my own and got the originals from a professional Breeder that has the rats tested as he cant sell to Store chains without it. Since the Rat fever case years ago all the Rodents sold in Chain stores "at least by law in this state" have standards. As far as Parasites i can have fecal done easily... With all that said I wish I could feed the FT like i was saying because breeding correctly and feeding correctly cost a lot more.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Valyrian]

Yup I dont buy live. I breed my own and got the originals from a professional Breeder that has the rats tested as he cant sell to Store chains without it. Since the Rat fever case years ago all the Rodents sold in Chain stores "at least by law in this state" have standards. As far as Parasites i can have fecal done easily... With all that said I wish I could feed the FT like i was saying because breeding correctly and feeding correctly cost a lot more.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Jesus, I just read up on rat bite fever. Someone tried to sue Petco after their son died from a rat bite after buying it from them. Nah man, frozen thawed for me all the way. It's illegal to feed live vertebrates in the UK anyway.

[CALM Pythons]

Jesus, I just read up on rat bite fever. Someone tried to sue Petco after their son died from a rat bite after buying it from them. Nah man, frozen thawed for me all the way. It's illegal to feed live vertebrates in the UK anyway.

Thats a odd law to me, thats nature hahahaha. Then again there are a lot of crazy laws too here, we will never know how some of these things get passed hahaha.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Valyrian]

Thats a odd law to me, thats nature hahahaha. Then again there are a lot of crazy laws too here, we will never know how some of these things get passed hahaha.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

The legislation is the Animal Welfare Act 2006. In the UK it's illegal to cause any undue suffering to a vertebrate due to them having an advanced central nervous system and capacity to feel pain and fear.

If you can feed a snake a prey item that has been humanely euthanized then there's no real need to feed live and cause undue pain to the prey animal.

However if live feeding is the only way a snake will feed then I believe there is an exception the law takes account of.

Exposing an animal to a predator isn't seen legally as a humane way to euthanize in the UK unless absolutely necessary. I agree with this.

You could say snakes are exposed to parasites and other predators in nature but we wouldn't do it ha ha.