My BP ate some aspen bedding...

[Skiploder]

Totally different behavior set.

About every snake I has will act defensive when removed from an enclosure. That behavior can manifest by striking, by tail rattling or just by fleeing. In the case of ball pythons, ever wonder why many of them curl up into a ball when removed from their enclosures? Balls are less prone to bite, don't really tail rattle and instead just curl up into, well, a ball.

That is not a by-product of feeding, it is a natural response to being grabbed and removed from it's cage/drawer.

See, when we grab a snake from it's cage, we are mimicking the behavior of a predator. That has absolutely nothing to do with "aggression" and it has absolutely nothing to do with feeding an animal in it's cage.

The myth of cage aggression related to feeding is just that - a myth. The problem is that people keep propagating that myth. People keep mistaking defensive behavior with food conditioning. People keep failing to realize that snakes are hard-wired to act defensive when stimulated by behavior on our part that mimics how a predator would act.

Snakes rarely "coil up and strike" when feeding. A snake fed properly in it's environment will stalk and strike, or just strike. Coiling is, in almost every case, a "defensive" behavior performed to both minimize the footprint of the animal and also make the animal look more intimidating to a predator.

There is absolutely zero reason to bin feed. That has been discussed endlessly on this and other forums. There is no cogent argument in favor of doing it, no benefit to be had by practicing it, and only potential issues and complications by advocating it.

I never said he was that nasty because of being fed in the cage, just that he was cage aggressive. CAGE AGRESION MEANS, VERY TERRITORIAL AND DEFENSIVE IN CAGE BUT MELLOW OUT OF CAGE.
I guess it's been "discussed" and is the "opinion" here makes it so. Explain why my 4' male BP, when I was feeding the other night, and was out of large rats, was sitting and staring from his cage as the others were put in the bins before any rodent was thawed, and he was not, they know totes=dinnertime.

Now wth that being said, a snake is not likley to become cage agressive if the cage is opened more than just at feeding time, and that is not my primary pourpose for bin feeding. I have some animals that co-habitate, therefore to prevent 2 snakes attaching to one mouse, I put them in the bin. This also gives an opportunity for cage cleaning, redecoration,etc.

So sorry to pop you're bubble but it DOES exist, it simply is not caused soley from being cage fed. And I wil advocate any of my husbundry techniques, elementary or advanced for that matter and as I see fit. You don't know the people I know in the hobby, the collections I have access to, or my local reputation for the care I give my animals for that matter in the local herp scene.

Oh boy. Somebody with thin skin has his panties in a wad..........

Before I address your little temper tantrum, I will say this - you are correct that cohabitated snakes should be fed separately. That is the one mitigating instance where using a feeding bin is a valid practice.

Andy, mean old Uncle Skippy didn't mean to chap your tender buttocks. I had no idea that I was dealing with such a celebrity in the herp world. An expert with access to dignitaries in the reptile scene that would no doubt dazzle me if you dared drop their names. A person who has access to collections in the world of exotic pets that would make me fudge my boxers. I will be much more careful in the future, for God only knows I don't want my fragile bubble popped again by someone of your eminence.

Just out of curiosity, which of your snakes are you cohabitating? The IJs?