Feeding Tongs Question

[Myrmida]

I've only fed our ball python a few times now. Usually, my son and I do it together. He likes to make the rat "dance", as our girl won't strike unless it's moving a bit. We use quite long tongs (haemostat?) and usually once our girl strikes and coils around her rat, I can just slide them out. Last time, she had a really strong grip and it seemed like anytime I pulled she came with the tongs (it was also a little too close to the entrance to her enclosure (it opens at the front), so pulling would have pulled her right out!). I just held the tongs until she relaxed a little (probably thought she had sufficiently killed her prey).

Am I doing this right? Should I wait until she thinks she's "killed" and relaxes a bit to remove the tongs? What do other people do? Also, I don't know if I have locking or non-locking tongs - I didn't even know there was a difference until I did a quick search and read a bit - now I'll have to check, but I think they might be locking ones.

[Bogertophis]

The feeding tongs I use are either 12" tweezers, or 18" non-locking hemostats; I also still have 24" from keeping hots, no longer do that, but useful now & then for fishing things out of sink drain etc.
You really want NON-locking hemostats to feed snakes, so they don't hurt their mouth before you can release. Either kind I use will slide out easily. The locking hemostats have teeth that ratchet together.

Also, when I feed snakes, I hold the rodent by the back end to make it dance, & try to aim the head so that's what the snake grabs. It's no fun trying to get tongs away from a hungry 7' constrictor...

[Myrmida]

The feeding tongs I use are either 12" tweezers, or 18" non-locking hemostats; I also still have 24" from keeping hots, no longer do that, but useful now & then for fishing things out of sink drain etc.
You really want NON-locking hemostats to feed snakes, so they don't hurt their mouth before you can release. Either kind I use will slide out easily. The locking hemostats have teeth that ratchet together.

Also, when I feed snakes, I hold the rodent by the back end to make it dance, & try to aim the head so that's what the snake grabs. It's no fun trying to get tongs away from a hungry 7' constrictor...

Thanks so much! I think they are locking ones because they do have teeth at the handle end. I'll get a pair of non-locking, so I don't hurt Lilith. I've mostly been working on not being just a little grossed out by dead rats to be really systematic in how we hold it, but I will acquire more finesse as I learn more. (And we will not be getting a 7' constrictor anytime soon! It took me a couple of years to talk myself into getting a ball python, but my son adores her, so it's worth it.)

[Meghenebk]

I also tend to grab prey close to the hips, and hold lightly so they can basically grab it away from my tongs. Mine typically grab hard and pull back to wrap their dinner, so it's not so much me letting go as them takng it away from me.

[Bogertophis]

Thanks so much! I think they are locking ones because they do have teeth at the handle end. I'll get a pair of non-locking, so I don't hurt Lilith. I've mostly been working on not being just a little grossed out by dead rats to be really systematic in how we hold it, but I will acquire more finesse as I learn more. (And we will not be getting a 7' constrictor anytime soon! It took me a couple of years to talk myself into getting a ball python, but my son adores her, so it's worth it.)

This all gets easier...I never expected to get into snakes at all, but that ship sailed over 3 decades ago, lol. I'm an animal-lover & kept an open mind, even though feeding rodents bothered me at first. (I've had many rodent pets before I got into snakes...) It's so nice that you can share this interest with your son, & it should encourage him to read & learn more too. (pretty sneaky, lol)

The locking hemostats are also called "clamps" in the medical world...they're used to "hold things" firmly, like during a surgery. Very awkward though for feeding snakes, & fyi, the 12" tweezers are the most comfortable to hold & use, at least to me, but if you're wanting 18" (over-kill for a ball python, IMO) you don't want the tweezers; for that length, non-locking hemostats are easier to use. 18" tweezers are too long to easily squeeze & control- too much distance to transfer your hand pressure effectively.

If you're wondering where to get them, here's one place I've bought from in the past: https://tongs.com/

Here's a link to their giant tweezers: https://tongs.com/product/tweezers/ They have them with rubber coated tips (good idea!) https://tongs.com/product/rubber-coated-tweezers/
and they also have the hemostats in various sizes: https://tongs.com/product/hemostat-straight/

[Bogertophis]

I also tend to grab prey close to the hips, and hold lightly so they can basically grab it away from my tongs. Mine typically grab hard and pull back to wrap their dinner, so it's not so much me letting go as them taking it away from me.

I know what you mean. It does help if we don't have a vise-grip on the prey...being prepared to let go gets easier with practice.

[gunkle]

My girl Peanut Butter strikes and wraps so fast and so tight that once in a while she wraps the non locking hemostats I use and I struggle to get it out. What I do is just reach in and lightly hold her in place while I pull with a little extra force and they slide out. But if that doesn't work I would wait same as you did instead of taking a chance of hurting her. But she would eat at noon in the middle of a crowded mall I think. Nothing interrupts her meals. She has a very strong feeding response. Most times she strikes before I get it into the enclosure.

[Myrmida]

This all gets easier...I never expected to get into snakes at all, but that ship sailed over 3 decades ago, lol. I'm an animal-lover & kept an open mind, even though feeding rodents bothered me at first. (I've had many rodent pets before I got into snakes...) It's so nice that you can share this interest with your son, & it should encourage him to read & learn more too. (pretty sneaky, lol)

The locking hemostats are also called "clamps" in the medical world...they're used to "hold things" firmly, like during a surgery. Very awkward though for feeding snakes, & fyi, the 12" tweezers are the most comfortable to hold & use, at least to me, but if you're wanting 18" (over-kill for a ball python, IMO) you don't want the tweezers; for that length, non-locking hemostats are easier to use. 18" tweezers are too long to easily squeeze & control- too much distance to transfer your hand pressure effectively.

If you're wondering where to get them, here's one place I've bought from in the past: https://tongs.com/

Here's a link to their giant tweezers: https://tongs.com/product/tweezers/ They have them with rubber coated tips (good idea!) https://tongs.com/product/rubber-coated-tweezers/
and they also have the hemostats in various sizes: https://tongs.com/product/hemostat-straight/

Thanks! I am very glad we got Lilith. I talk to her when I'm home by myself (in a non-crazy way). I think I got the longest tongs I could find because I'm still a bit nervous of her. My son has no such issues, though. He adores her. And I'm getting used to her and better at "reading" her movements. We have a lovely business in town that makes reptile enclosures (both custom and standard) and also supplies lots of equipment. They have both 12" and 18" non-locking hemostats.

[Myrmida]

My girl Peanut Butter strikes and wraps so fast and so tight that once in a while she wraps the non locking hemostats I use and I struggle to get it out. What I do is just reach in and lightly hold her in place while I pull with a little extra force and they slide out. But if that doesn't work I would wait same as you did instead of taking a chance of hurting her. But she would eat at noon in the middle of a crowded mall I think. Nothing interrupts her meals. She has a very strong feeding response. Most times she strikes before I get it into the enclosure.

Thanks for the advice. I didn't think to hold her. She already seemed a little stressed out (my daughter was kind of dancing around, which I think was startling her a bit). She has been a very good eater to date, taking a rat each time we've offered. The breeder we bought her from was very good about helping us choose a pretty relaxed snake.

[gunkle]

Thanks for the advice. I didn't think to hold her. She already seemed a little stressed out (my daughter was kind of dancing around, which I think was startling her a bit). She has been a very good eater to date, taking a rat each time we've offered. The breeder we bought her from was very good about helping us choose a pretty relaxed snake.

That's great. My girl is always watching us through the glass and we talk to her all the time and handle her allot. She doesn't even flinch when I hold her in place and remove the tongs. But that is probably rare. Our male is way more skittish and sometimes closeing the enclosure while he is wrapped scares him. I know I couldn't do the same with him.