14 months since this guy ate....

[wax32]

Hi,

You got lucky.

I'm sorry but that's the plain truth.

A mouse can chew through a plank of wood. A snakes flesh poses no problems.

If you are going to leave a feeder in with a snake unattended then you have to use one young enough not to have that kind of dentition and chewing power developed.

In this case a fuzzy rat would be a better choice for unattended feeding overnight based on size.

I'd take it out and try again at a later date.


dr del

Yeah, I know I was lucky! It was a weaned / hopper mouse so I decided to take a risk. I wouldn't suggest that anyone do that. I also left a nice pile of lab nuggets in there for him plus an apple slice. The apple slice was partially eaten and the nuggets were untouched. I actually did get up in the middle of the night (three hours in) and checked on him. He was cowering in a corner. Three hours later (when I got up) I checked again and that is when I found him in the hide.

I for sure don't condone or recommend leaving an adult mouse or any rat with teeth in with a snake for any length of time. *edit: In fact I don't eschew feeding live prey at all if it can be avoided. I have had snakes (that were finicky with F/T) bitten hard by both adult mice and small rats. Luckily no major injuries, but some scarring occurred!

You are spot on dr del!