I need some moral support here people

[cutemouse]

Honestly, I am not trying to be harsh when I say this so please don't get upset, but if you eat meat you have probably contributed to immense suffering of animals. Much worse than any little feeder mouse will endure. Of course, free-range animals don't go through the horrible things that factory farms put their animals through, but they still have to die. I don't mean to get off on a soap box, really, but this is a valid point. A box of chicken fingers has a bloody history behind it.

As far as the mouse, as was stated earlier in this thread: the death is quick. Ever seen a croc take a meal? That's not quick. Nature has made constricting snakes ridiculously efficient at killing their prey. My ball was a sloppy eater the first few times, but last night she struck the mouse in about 10 seconds and it passed away in the next 10. She has become very precise and the mice don't suffer, they just pass out.

I'd love to get her on F/T for the sheer convenience of it (driving to the pet store is getting OLD). She won't take them though. I tried last night for almost 20 minutes as I have for the last month. I've tried everything and yes I do mean everything that's not an exaggeration. I have developed carpel tunnel syndrome from wiggling rodents in front of my snake!

I understand your compassion for the mice, as I am an animal lover as well. My boyfriend tries to keep me from watching that animal cops show because it always makes me so angry But there is a vast difference between a hawk taking a field rat to her young and a person not giving a dog water for days. Nature created a food chain for all creatures, and rodents are pretty much at the bottom. Do not feel bad for things that are natural, but instead turn that compassion towards real cruelty and help take out some of these jerks who neglect and abuse their pets.

[dracovolans]

If you don't like to see poor mices dying every week...... DON'T BUY A SNAKE!!!!!!!, becasue if do it is your responsibility to take care of that snake and at some point you would have to try feed live if your snake keep refusing F/T.

[Texas Dan]

After many unsuccessful weeks of offering F/T to our baby BP my boyfriend has decided to try live next. I am VERY sad about this being as I'm normally the girl buying up all of the "feeder mice" at the pet stores to "save them."

So I'm needing lots of comments about how it really isn't cruel, and they really don't suffer, and its nature taking its course, and our little one really needs to eat, and and and....

I just feel so bad for the poor little mouse

What do you do with all the feeder mice? Why do you own a snake if you feel sorry you have to feed it mice? Grow a pair and drop that mouse in there.

Don't really grow a pair, because that'd be pretty unattractive, just know that that's life, and sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do. Why don't you just let your boyfriend feed it while you're not home?

A box of chicken fingers has a bloody history behind it.

Oohh, but they are oh-so-good!!!

[LadyOhh]

I didn't know chickens had fingers....

[frankykeno]

May I remind some of you that comments like "don't buy a snake" and "grow a pair" are VERY unproductive to this thread. This member is asking for help to face an issue she's having, not to be scolded and spoken down to. I think she is trying to deal with something she didn't expect to have to deal and yes, though she likely should have known, she didn't. That's the situation at present.

We are here, as a community, to help newcomers so let's do what we do best please. Remember also, when we help someone we help their snake.

[Texas Dan]

May I remind some of you that comments like "don't buy a snake" and "grow a pair" are VERY unproductive to this thread. This member is asking for help to face an issue she's having, not to be scolded and spoken down to. I think she is trying to deal with something she didn't expect to have to deal and yes, though she likely should have known, she didn't. That's the situation at present.

We are here, as a community, to help newcomers so let's do what we do best please. Remember also, when we help someone we help their snake.

I'm sorry, I feel bad for the rats I feed my snake, because I don't like the screeching noise they make, but it has to be done. What else is there to say? "The rat doesn't suffer", I would think if it's a fast death or not, the rat is picked up, thrown in an unknown environment and then attacked by a snake.

Those squeels you hear aren't sighs of relaxation. To say the rat doesn't suffer is only half right. May not suffer when they are caught, but they surely suffer before hand.

So really there's nothing to say except, do it, or get rid of the snake.

[frankykeno]

I'm sorry, I feel bad for the rats I feed my snake, because I don't like the screeching noise they make, but it has to be done. What else is there to say? "The rat doesn't suffer", I would think if it's a fast death or not, the rat is picked up, thrown in an unknown environment and then attacked by a snake.

There's a lot more that goes into responsible live feeding then "picked up, thrown in". I feed a lot of snakes a lot of rats. Most if not pretty much all of the rats have no concept of what that snake is about to do to them. They've been bred in captivity so long that most of them have no strong prey reactions left in them. I've watched rats literally walk up and sniff the snake's nose - not seeming to have the instinct left in them that says "that is a predator there".

Those squeels you hear aren't sighs of relaxation. To say the rat doesn't suffer is only half right. May not suffer when they are caught, but they surely suffer before hand.

What suffering "before hand"? Please explain what you mean about the time between being "caught" and "before hand". As far as squeels I hear, I can tell you that a snake used to taking live prey, being offered the right size live prey on a consistent basis does not give the rodent much chance to make much noise. It's a rare thing here to hear anything from the snake tubs other than WHUMPPPP as the snake hits, efficiently contains and immediately constricts it's dinner. The rats don't have a chance to squeel a great percentage of the time and in fact if Mike and I hear any squeeling we're concerned the feeding is not going as well as it should.

So really there's nothing to say except, do it, or get rid of the snake.

Helping a new owner is, in my opinion, worth the keystrokes and involves a lot more (especially when it comes to safe live feeding) than just "do it, or get rid of the snake".

[West Coast Jungle]

Feeding live rodents to snakes is something that should be considered prior to getting a Ball Python. Many BP's will never eat FT or even prekilled. The reality is it is unnatural for them. They have heat receptors to measure body heat of their prey even in the blackest of darkness. Some can be condition to eat them but that is usually an established snake with a good feeding response. I prefer live because I can analyze the health of the rodent and I know it is fresh. My concern with frozen is I have no idea if the thing was healthy? how it died? and if there has been any decaying, maggots? prior to packaging, all very scary.

We live in a world where our meat comes packaged nicely in plastic, well folks just because we didn't kill it doesn't mean it didn't die for our consumption. We can eat millions of things other than meat, snakes only eat one thing, rodents, and if was running through your kitchen cabinets you probably wouldn't have any problem killing it. But put it in a cage and everyone gets all emotional.

Thats my take on it.

My wife doesnt like to watch the rodents die and I can appreciate that. I dont enjoy it but I look at it like farming. If I raised chickens or pigs(for consumption) I would have to kill them when it is time to sell the meat. You have to shut off the emotions and turn up the logic, its just the way it is and someones gotta do it.

[littleindiangirl]

OP, I'll be honest with you, I don't like to watch my snakes eat live. I'm a sucker for all animals, and I do go in against my feelings to watch them eat. Luckily, many of my snakes will take FT, but I that also does not me stop whatsoever from feeding them live.

I actually have a harder time gassing rats then watching snakes eat live. I don't know why that is, but it's true.

Somewhere, my fascination for snakes, the way they move, the way they watch us and watching them eat gets me over that initial gut wrenching when the rat get's wrapped. I simply love snakes and I enjoy seeing them live and thrive and watch them in their natural element. It's almost entrancing watching them eat, such a process, but I do not get any sort of pleasure from the intial kill.

It's just a part of life for me, and I imagine over the years I won't even bat an eye when feeding live.

[greghall]

THEY DO WHAT THEY DO,rats & mice are cute my kids have them for pets after my boa would'nt eat one know its a pet I call it the luckiest rat alive. one of my kids don't like it but I explain its what they do & teach them about nature & how life works as with death its a fact not pretty but still a fact.