as far as the actual act of feeding, i use a separate tub for feeding, and either dangle the rat/mouse (for feeding adults) by their tail, and let the snake take it from my hand. with juvies feeding on fuzzies and less mobile prey, i just put it in the tank with 'em and let them go at their own pace. my juvie is shy, so i leave the fuzzy in the brown paper bag they come in from the store, lay it on its side and the snake will go in and take the fuzzy from there. after they strike, i pull the bag away, and the last two feedings i cut the bag down to less than half the height, so it's less and less "cover"...hoping to "train" the juvie BP out of being shy by slowly giving them less and less hide each feeding. eventually (hopefully) they won't need it anymore.