Backwards Eating?

[NinaPeas]

Last night I was watching my new Bredli eating dinner, and after much struggling and trying to swallow the mouse from the middle, it found the tail end, then some more struggling and it eventually swallowed it backwards.

Just curious, can a snake be harmed in anyway by eating it's meals backwards?

Also what happens if a snake trys to take on a meal too big? I was watching a David Attenborough doco last night, and it had a quick bit of footage of a VERY large python of some sort, swallowing what looked to be an impala or gazelle. Do they just give up? or keep eating and stretch things?

 

[craig.a.c]

My coastal used to backwards most of the time when I first got her.
Never had any problems with it, just took her a little longer to swallow thats all.

 

[Magpie]

Yeah it's really really bad for them.
Best thing you can do is get a mouse or rat out and demonstrate to your snake which way it should swallow it.
If you puke afterwards, make sure it doesn't see or you may end up with chronic regurge problems.

 

[NinaPeas]

maybe I should feed it like birds do, and sort of pre-chew it??

 

[pythonkisses]

my bhp eats backwards he sucks it flat from behind the eats the head wired

sammie

 

[Magpie]

my bhp eats backwards he sucks it flat from behind the eats the head wired

sammie

I wired the mouse up once to try and make it look more alive.
Snake didn;t seem to like it, in fact, he looked shocked!

 

[Snake Catcher Victoria]

maybe I should feed it like birds do, and sort of pre-chew it??

ya gotta swallow it digest it a bit and THEN feed it..never seen a bird chew..lol
(unless its a cartoon duck) but seriously
snakes eat backwards often ,and it can be a worry i spose watching them struggle,
but if they cant do it they will usually hack it back up again

 

[serpenttongue]

Also what happens if a snake trys to take on a meal too big? I was watching a David Attenborough doco last night, and it had a quick bit of footage of a VERY large python of some sort, swallowing what looked to be an impala or gazelle. Do they just give up? or keep eating and stretch things?

Sometimes they will get half way, realise they cant swallow the meal and give up. Other times they may swallow it, but can only hold it down for a short period regurgitating it.

 

[Rennie]

Mine have done it before, no problems. Its frustrating watching them trying to find the head, they just keep going to the tail or middle, how hard can it be to find the thin, pointy end?

 

[Already_Gone]

Yes, my olive does it frequently... shes a very speshal snake!!! We have never had any probs other than it taking her ages to eat her dinner.

With mega large prey items. If something is just too big, the snake may have a go but then get so far then spit it out. I have seen the doco you are talking about and i think it is an african rock python, the one where it waits for days in the lake for something to come by... very cool. That snake would have eaten that and then not had to eat for maybe even a year or so afterwards...