Feeding Day.

[templarknight]

I'd like to hear what everyone's ritual is when it comes to feeding day.

What I have to do to insure that my bp eats is: remove everything in his cage, except for the current hide he is in and his water dish. I move the water dish away from the corner. This is hours before I even get the rat from the pet store. When I come home I remove the hide he is currently in and drop the rat in. Then I have to shut off the lights so it's really dark and then POP he grabs the rat and starts the eating process within a minute of me shutting off the lights.

Do any of your snakes HAVE to have the lights off or it won't eat as well? I get sad because I want to see the whole bite then constrict move just once but the moment I turn off my lights and I hurry back to the cage he has already done this.

[lk_holla]

I used to remove all the furniture in the cages, but i figured out it makes no difference to them. I'll open both boxes and heat up both f/t critters with a hairdryer, and i'll feed my little spider first since she's more food aggressive, that way constantine will have some extra time to get her appetite up and wake up. For her, I have to leave the rat in her hide for her to eat at her leisure, and i have to be far, far away for her to eat. sometimes I have to turn the light off, but sometimes I don't.

[ODoyle90]

I'll take the food outta the freezer and put it on the table for it to defrost. Then I weigh it on my scale so I can record it on my little excel sheet (maps food intake and growth). After an episode or two or arrested development (or whatever netflix has to offer), I'll put the ziplocked bag into a cup of hot/warm water to complete the defrost. The lid of the enclosure is removed and I move the water dish over and remove whichever hide he is under. The food is then offered with forceps and I let Boomer take over from there. All that's left to do from there is move his water bowl and hide back when the food is swallowed.

Luckily, I haven't had to monitor things like lighting or even timing for that matter. Whatever the time line is like, all that matters is that the thawed food makes its way into the tank, for me. I thank the snake gods every time I feed that that's the case.

[Kinra]

I don't really have to do much to get mine to eat. When I get home from work or when it gets to be about 4-5 on a weekend (I feed every 6 days so it's always on a different day ) I take out the correct number of each size rat that I need and a hopper for my little bee. I let them sit and thaw. Then I heat them up with hot water and feed. I have 10 BPs and they all seem to know when it's feeding time. I just go down my rack and feed in order.

I have one that won't take the f/t from the tongs but if I don't harass her with it and just drop it in near her she'll eat. By the time I get towards the bottom of the rack they are all ready to eat. Last night was feeding night for me and when I got down to my enchi he must have been really hungry because I opened his cage took his hide off and then reached up to get his rat and when I turned back he had half his body pariscoping up so he could get the rat faster. I was obviously too slow for him.

[Annarose15]

I never remove my hides. My BPs have learned that the sound of the hair dryer is the dinner bell (to warm after thawing). The ones that want to eat are typically front and center in the rack before I even open the first tub. Anyone who doesn't come out gets a rat left outside the hide for an hour or so, and then it is removed if they haven't eaten.

[FrankieCarbone]

I never remove my hides. My BPs have learned that the sound of the hair dryer is the dinner bell (to warm after thawing). The ones that want to eat are typically front and center in the rack before I even open the first tub.

same with me. As soon as i take the water dish out, by the time i take the dish to the bathroom to spill the water thats in there, i come back and his head is out his hide.

It seems most BP's whenever you feed if u do one specific thing that u dont usually do, they eventually catch on...

[Sarin]

I drop a rat in and they either take it or they don't. I don't like to complicate things, LOL.

If I feel like it/remember, I'll sometimes turn the lights off. It does seem to help one snake in particular. (Cinnamon female)

[RetiredJedi]

Feeding starts at 5am for me. I take the two f/ts out of the freezer, put them in a designated plastic bag, and stick them on the bottom shelf in the back corner of the fridge. When I get home at 5pm (or so) I take the f/t out of the fridge and put them in the snake room next to the enclosures. At around 8:30pm I open the enclosures and remove which ever hide they are under and the water bowl to make room, that way if they miss when they strike they won't hit anything. Then I close the enclures back up and take the f/t in the bathroom. I take out the first f/t, place it on the bathroom counter, and use a hairdryer for about 5 minutes to warm it up (concentrating a little more on head heat). I take the f/t down to the first enclosure, open the lid, and he is usually got half of his body off the bottom looking for his food. Grab the f/t at the scruff of the neck and 5 senconds later it's wrapped up. I keep a hold of it at first and move it a little to amke the BP think it's a struggle. I then close that enclocsure and go abck to the bathroom to do the warming up process again.

I do have the lights in the room off but I keep the closet light on so I can see what's going on.

It's worked so far and both BP seem to know what is going on, so that's what I will stick with.

[jgrant0553]

Open cage, insert rat, stand back and observe..... always a good time, well not for the rat!!

[Skittles1101]

I pull my rats out and put them in ziplock bags, let them thaw, heat them up in hot water (in the bags) until they are warm. I turn the lights off only because one of my guys has stage fright, I just drop the f/t rat in with tongs and most of the time it's gone before I can blink. If not, then I leave it in the doorway of their hide and it's gone by morning. Easy