Quote Originally Posted by West Coast Jungle View Post
There are two things that a ball python uses as feeding signals, scent and heat signature. All living warm blooded animals have a heat signature. When you drop a dead rodent it will have a scent which it recognizes and then it will go for the heat signature. This is how folks get bit sometimes when feeding because your hand has a heat signature and if a snake smells rodent it could mistake your hand as lunch. That's why he is striking at the heat.
That was what we thought was happening with the lamp. You mentioned dropping the rat, though. I hold it out for her by the base of the tail with the plastic coated monster tweezers (technical term ) until she grabs it. Is it better just to drop it on the substrate?