It seemed so wrong, but felt so right...

[rabernet]

Sorry about that, but the welfare of my snakes came first. I din't realize how maternal I was about them until I felt like their safety was in jeopardy. I love them sooo much.

For what it's worth, I only feed f/t to my kingsnakes. All my ball pythons (50+) are fed live. In over 4000 live feedings, I've never intervened with the prey and my snakes - from hatchlings taking their first meal to adults. Claws on the rat aren't going to harm your snake. I've had probably 5 minor nicks from teeth in over 4000 feedings that you had to really look for.

Both of your kiddos probably would have been just fine without any intervention on your part, especially since you pre-scented and got them primed to feed.

I have no issues with you feeding live, since that's what I do. I just think you were especially nervous and probably participated more than was necessary.