Feeding questions

[fire-eyes]

First, use very small rats if you can, as they are supposed to be more nutritious. I'm not a scientist but that's the going theory. Mice are not bad, but rats are supposed to be better.

Second, size. The general rule is to aim for using one item, and that if the snake were to eat it, it would leave a moderate (not massive) bulge in its widest point. If you look at its widest point, and then its neck, you may think this is insane advice. It took me a long time to try it and mine was fine, they really are quite capable. Failing one item of appropriate size, two of a smaller size is okay. Three is too many.

Third, where to feed? This can start arguments. Some people just feed the snake in their home. Others prefer to take the snake out and put it into a dedicated feeding container. Reasons that are often cited for feeding it outside of its home include reducing the chance of cage aggression (thinking your hand is food), reducing the chance of ingesting substrate, and so on. Personally, I used to feed in its home. Then one day it ingested a very small piece of shredded bark, nothing serious but it really freaked me out. From then on I have fed in another enclosure. This is working out well for me, because when the snake gets put into this enclosure, it KNOWS it's going to be fed and it goes into feeding mode.

Fourth, preparing the meal. There are many ways of doing this. But the basics are to get it thawed out and then warm enough to be an obvious target to their thermal sensors. You don't want it too hot, or things can get messy, either by the item bursting during heating, or the item being "overcooked" and thus having a better chance of bursting when the snake hits it.

Fifth, presenting. Once the item is fully thawed out and also warm enough to be noticed by the snake, use something like tongs or forceps to present. If the snake is still small, it may make sense to hold the item so it is facing the snake horizontally, face-first, this will help the snake have a better chance of getting it head-on. Never present with your hands, the snake will simply mistake your warm, item-smelling fingers for the item sometimes.

Details of how I thaw and present, there are many ways, this works for me:

1) Leave the items out at room temperature to begin thawing, in the general area of the snakes home
2) Immediately take the snake out and handle it as usual, in another room
3) After I'm done, I intentionally bring the snake near the thawing food until it picks up the smell. Get the snake out of striking distance, because they just might have a go at it right there.
4) Put the snake in its feeding enclosure. Get your hands and fingers out of there quickly, a snake that is really in the mood may have a swing at you
5) Put enough water -- WATER ONLY, no items yet -- in a bowl that will handle the food item(s), microwave it until it is close to but not actually boiling
6) Take the water out, let it cool. If you have a temp gun, let the surface drop to 140F (60C)
7) Place the item(s) in the water, let them thaw, and let them reach about 105F (40C)
8) Present with tongs or forceps. Presenting them horizontally and face-first (grabbing by the back skin/fur) may be needed for young snakes. Get it into the enclosure quickly and hold it until the strike happens. If you are too slow, the snake may lunge out at the item and find itself falling out of the enclosure.
9) At the moment of strike, open the tongs or forceps. Extremely strong strikes may grab the tongs or forceps with the item, if you are fast enough you can push the snake off of them, but if you are slow, you'll have to let go and wait for the snake to release them

Things vary a bit when you move to larger items, as they will take longer to thaw, thus the water should maybe be 150F (65C) but not much hotter as that could cause bursting problems.

If the snake hits but later drops it, simply re-use your still-warm water to bring the temp back up, and try again. If the snake keeps getting confused because it is grabbing in the middle of the body and then doesn't know what to do with it, be sure to present it horizontally (grab by the back fur or skin), and face first. You may have to repeat this for stubborn feeders. After about three or four re-presents, the snake will probably get annoyed and you'll have to try again some other time.

Don't panic if they won't eat. They can and do go months in the wild without eating. Many people report that their BPs regularly go on feeding strikes, but that it eventually ends. If it starts losing weight, that is when it is time to be concerned. If this persists, a visit to the vet and a forced feeding may be in order, though this should be a last option as it is very stressful to the snake.

Hopefully this wasn't too confusing, these are the tactics and conclusions I've come to after a lot of experimenting and trial and error. Each snake can be different and react well (or not) to certain tactics.