Feeding live mice and rats is dangerous... Wives tale?

[BT41042]

I feed live. Much easier than f/t. My snakes also have much better feeding responses now. When feeding live I believe the health and condition of the feeder is important as well as the keepers experience.

Ball pythons are coddled WAY too much. Do you people not recieve cuts and scratches in your everyday life? Do you not have a dog or cat? I mean most of you act as if the snake gets bite and its over. Put some ointment on, and move on. If fed responsibily that shouldn't happen though.

Do any of you will snakes getting bitten try to intervene? I just stick my feeding tongs in the feeders mouth if they get a bad strike. Only had to do it once so far.

100+ rodents fed, 0 cuts or bleedings, 1 intervention.

Sweet post...

I feed all my BP's live - rats - mice - ASF's and have for years...I have had a few bites (no scarring) and scatches but no major problems that required intervention...I won't feed any snake over a live medium rat - But that's just me...Do what works for you and to each their own...

BT

[jotay]

I use to feed f/t and it was a pain and half the time my bp turned his nose up @ it. And I didn't blame him...ugh it was disgusting.
Since I switched to live not a problem. All three of my younger bp's have been getting live mice since they day I brought them home from the breeder.
I tend to keep a little more of a watchful eye when switching from mice to rats until the bp becomes use to the larger prey size.
I have had a couple scratches from the rats little claws but nothing that ever broke the skin.

I mean really they are wild animals even if captive breed and born. They don't have their instincts breed out of them.
In the wild they don't eat f/t they eat live and seem to carry on and make it. I don't get the whole f/t live debate.
I figure it came out of someone who was not a responsible feeder.

I agree that some tend to make this a whole lot harder than it really is. Sometimes way to much thinking put in to it rather than just tending to the task at hand.

[frankykeno]

Excellent post Jody! Especially this bit....

I agree that some tend to make this a whole lot harder than it really is. Sometimes way to much thinking put in to it rather than just tending to the task at hand.

Like you I think common sense, knowing your snake(s) and just trusting your own instincts as a keeper are some of the best things you can do.

[LadyOhh]

Live is easier for me.

As long as you are vigilant, on top of things, and can pay attention when there is something amiss, there should be no problems.

[Ophiuchus]

Ball pythons are coddled WAY too much. Do you people not recieve cuts and scratches in your everyday life? Do you not have a dog or cat? I mean most of you act as if the snake gets bite and its over. Put some ointment on, and move on. If fed responsibily that shouldn't happen though.

Right on.

I used to a firm follower of the F/T church, and subscribing to the belief that feeding live means certain death for any snake. But I wisened up. Snakes deal with live prey in nature. Why should it be an issue in captivity? (shrugs)

[bearhart]

Most animals, unless they don't take well to captivity (or domestication), have much shorter lifespans "in the wild" - just like people.

Snakes are eaten by predators in the wild. Snakes are subject to abnormal weather conditions in the wild. Snakes starve in the wild. Snakes get ticks in the wild. Snakes get diseases in the wild. And, snakes get injured by their prey in the wild.

Saying "snakes eat live prey in the wild" is true but I don't think it necessarily means its not dangerous.

I suppose it also depends on what you consider "dangerous". If somebody isn't bothered by a few small scars, and is able to get the snake proper care in case of an infection, then live feeding would be considered as dangerous to them.

[bearhart]

I've never made any such "blanket" claim.



Apparently a lot. Unfortunately, teaching someone to feed live the way that I do isn't something that can be done via messages on an internet forum. All I can say is that feeding live can be done safely ... I know this, because I do it ... week in and week out.

But, there is good news ... I'm in the process of filming a video called "8 Ball Pythons - Feeding Day" that will show me feeding tons and tons of ball pythons and my 'method' for getting it done. Keep an eye out on my YouTube page for it ... shouldn't be long now ...

8 Ball on YouTube

-adam

Looking forward to your video Adam!!

[amystours]

My Burm and my Ball will readily take either. I've been out of frozen, and it's usually more convenient to stop by the close LPS and grab a couple of live critters than it is to drive way over on the other side of town where the frozen goods are.

Personally, I haven't had a rodent bite my snakes yet. I try to pay close attention when they initially grab and begin constricting, to see the position of the rodent's mouth, and if it would pose a threat to my babies...so far, so good!!

[amystours]

Just an afterthought: I think I read somewhere before that sometimes, you can "scent" the feeding enclosure some how? Something along the lines of putting the box with the live rodent on top of the screen? Something so that the snake "knows" it's fixing to be feeding time...I don't think that was mentioned in this thread.

[Ophiuchus]

Most animals, unless they don't take well to captivity (or domestication), have much shorter lifespans "in the wild" - just like people.

Snakes are eaten by predators in the wild. Snakes are subject to abnormal weather conditions in the wild. Snakes starve in the wild. Snakes get ticks in the wild. Snakes get diseases in the wild. And, snakes get injured by their prey in the wild.

Saying "snakes eat live prey in the wild" is true but I don't think it necessarily means its not dangerous.

Can't speak for anyone else, but out of all the WC snakes (ballpark of around 1000) I've come across over the past 14 yrs, only a handful had any kind of skin blemish or scarring. And thats not to say that of all the scarred ones, each injury had come from a prey item. Coulda been something else.

Just putting that out there...