Welcome to the forum and the wonderful world of snake keeping!!
Wow, that headstamp is AWESOME!!
Like mentioned above, switching to F/T is easier with young snakes. Just something to keep in mind.
I feed F/T for the following reasons:
1) much cheaper. I can stock the freezer a few times a year, easy breezy. I pay less weekly to feed all 4 snakes this way than feeding one snake buying locally.
2) refusals can be re-frozen (the general rule of thumb is one time, then throw it away if refused again) which is super convenient when you nly habe 1 snake and can't feed refusals to other snakes. Refusals of live means you have a temporary pet mouse/rat.
3) this is the main reason: the safety of my snakes. Dead prey doesn't fight back. Mice aren't too bad, but get bit by a rat and you know it. Once your snake is bigger and requires bigger prey, rats can be vicious little buggers and can cause serious harm to a snake. Good luck pulling a rat out of your enclosure if the rat is fighting for its life while the snake is trying to eat it.
4) I just don't like watching any animal die if I don't have to. With F/T I just see food, not a living animal. I hate watching or hearing the mouse/rat die when there's another option.
Anyway, good luck with your new pet!! Feel free to ask any questions you may have.
That being said, I am not opposed to feeding live, as long as it's done safely and properly.
Reply With Quote