Just to clarify, I didn't mean to portray a sheltering hyperventilating style of parenting at all. If the kid is curious about it we would have to have that talk before I exposed them to the actual event to make sure they understood. We would go over step by step exactly what would happen and then and only then would I feed live with them in the room. I also would never force the event or force them to deal with my animals at all. I'd also re-emphasize that this is a case by case subject for sure. I think the biggest thing with exposing kids to death is how its done. Some kids are very traumatized by witnessing live feeding as a youngster in school and they grow up to hate snakes. This is usually due to a non-empathetic non caring teacher who simply throws the classes pet hamster in with the snake. To the OP, if your son is asking questions and wants to experience the whole thing. Again I'd go through exactly what happens and have the death talk. Explain it for what it is, simply the cycle of all life and then allow him to watch if he is ready. I do appreciate you asking the community for their opinions on the matter instead of just jumping into it. That really shows that you care for your sons mental wellbeing in this matter.