I posted in a similiar thread so no details here but way back when (like 20 years ago) when I had my first Burm live was all you fed snakes.
Then one day Bogart decided he didn't want to eat the live 7 pound New Zealand white buck rabbit so after keeping it around for a few days (intending to try feeding it to him again in a week or so)...it ended up becoming a family pet for 2 years before dying from cystitus. Thumper turns out was litterbox trained and everything. He was great.
I tried to remain calloused to it all knowing when I got him (the snake that is) that this is what he ate. I knew it going into the hobby. Like someone else posted here one time when he was younger he got a bad wrap on this rat and the thing let out a blood curdling squeeling constantly for what seemed like an eternity. That was kinda nerve-wracking for me though I didn't interceed and just let nature take its course.
Now with F/T's there is no way I'd ever go back to live, particularly when the RTB we got had a good sized gouge from where he was snagged by a live rat as that was what he was raised on. Gopher now eagerly accepts F/T's though it took some phsysiological doin' on my part!
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