I feed live, and haven't had any bites. I do stand by with my tongs, ready to stick them in the rodents mouth if I need to, if the snakes hit isn't right on. These guys know what they are doing, and are good at it.
As far as the feeder goes, do not spin, smack, or whack it prior to putting it in. Don't dangle it either. Scared, ticked off feeder is not what you want. Clueless and well fed is. Then they just clean themselves and explore and shove the paper towels around, lol.
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