Jwedd
Not so new Member
Im just wondering how do people here feed their snakes, i mean do you drop a food item in a bucket and add the snake in question, or do you leave the snake in its home and introduce a food item with forceps/tweezers/etc?
Feeding Time
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- liasis olivaceus
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For my Coastal and Diamond I pop the feeding bucket in front of the enclosure in question, and then open the enclosure. They will leave the enclosure and get into the bucket and strike a cute little hunting pose and wait. Then when i come along with the food on tongs they will grab it.
The Maccie gets fed in a bucket too, but I have to put her in there.
The Olive hatchling will only eat for me in her enclosure so far, I leave food with her and she will eat, she won't take food off the tongs, yet.
The Maccie gets fed in a bucket too, but I have to put her in there.
The Olive hatchling will only eat for me in her enclosure so far, I leave food with her and she will eat, she won't take food off the tongs, yet.
FEEDING
Welcome to the site. Is that avatar you looking in or you looking out?
I think that Nicole's method is the best, as the snake doesn't then associate the enclosure with food.
having said that, probably because I'm a lazy sod, I normally just chuck the food into the enclosure with the snake. Works for me and the snake! :wink:
However, I have, in the past, used both methods including holding the prey item with tongs in front of the snake, particular if the snake in question is a fussy eater. This applies to dead prey items.
I've found (with the notable exception of my new olive, who hasn't eaten a damn thing yet since I got him! :cry: ) that live prey always goes down a treat - they never hesitate to strike. However, be aware that as your snake grows, live prey above the size of, say, a weaner or furrie, can do damage to your snake if it isn't caught JUST right by the snake, so pre-killed or thawed frozen is the go there.
If you feed in the enclosure, I and several others have found that if you use a snake hook to retrieve the snake when NOT feeding, then the snake will associate the hook with a non-feeding event, and generally come out placidly.
.... but like I said, if you have the time and patience to wait while the snake finishes his dinner, Nicole's bucket trick is probably the best.
I'm sure others in the group will give you further (and probably better!) advice.
Hope that helps.
Welcome to the site. Is that avatar you looking in or you looking out?
I think that Nicole's method is the best, as the snake doesn't then associate the enclosure with food.
having said that, probably because I'm a lazy sod, I normally just chuck the food into the enclosure with the snake. Works for me and the snake! :wink:
However, I have, in the past, used both methods including holding the prey item with tongs in front of the snake, particular if the snake in question is a fussy eater. This applies to dead prey items.
I've found (with the notable exception of my new olive, who hasn't eaten a damn thing yet since I got him! :cry: ) that live prey always goes down a treat - they never hesitate to strike. However, be aware that as your snake grows, live prey above the size of, say, a weaner or furrie, can do damage to your snake if it isn't caught JUST right by the snake, so pre-killed or thawed frozen is the go there.
If you feed in the enclosure, I and several others have found that if you use a snake hook to retrieve the snake when NOT feeding, then the snake will associate the hook with a non-feeding event, and generally come out placidly.
.... but like I said, if you have the time and patience to wait while the snake finishes his dinner, Nicole's bucket trick is probably the best.
I'm sure others in the group will give you further (and probably better!) advice.
Hope that helps.
almaron
Well-Known Member
I feed in tub with a lid. I do this 95% of the time, mostly because I like to weigh my snakes, and how much they eat for my records. Either way works ok, just be careful about teaching the snake that opening the cage means dinner time.
Jwedd
Not so new Member
great, thanks for everyones replies so far it seems the removal of the snake for feeding is the clear winner so far.. but keep the replies coming its interesting to see the various methods people use.
Lutzd the avatar is not me at all, but a screen capture from the classic cult horror movie Black Chrismas.. i may like my snakes, but collecting DVDs is my next favourite hobby.
it seems the removal of the snake for feeding is the clear winner so far.. but keep the replies coming its interesting to see the various methods people use.Lutzd the avatar is not me at all, but a screen capture from the classic cult horror movie Black Chrismas.. i may like my snakes, but collecting DVDs is my next favourite hobby.
Jwedd
Not so new Member
Doh! sorry, busy day and concentration levels are extremely low im afraid.
sorry, busy day and concentration levels are extremely low im afraid.
James
Not so new Member
All I do with my Stimson?s is hold a dead pinkie in tweezers shake it a bit wait a few seconds then they strike its so cool.
I might start using a bucket when they get onto bigger prey.
I might start using a bucket when they get onto bigger prey.
stretch
Active Member
I used to feed Charlotte in her home, and retrieve her for handing with a hook. It worked out well.
With Cleo, I remove her and pop her into a creepy critter container with the food. She never takes long to eat if she is hungry.
The huge fuzzy I gave her on the 14th must really be doing her well. She is totally not interested. This is her longest break between feeds so far (and she shed too) and I have wasted a few fuzzies giving her a go.
My dog did not mind so much...he got the fuzzies!
With Cleo, I remove her and pop her into a creepy critter container with the food. She never takes long to eat if she is hungry.
The huge fuzzy I gave her on the 14th must really be doing her well. She is totally not interested. This is her longest break between feeds so far (and she shed too) and I have wasted a few fuzzies giving her a go.
My dog did not mind so much...he got the fuzzies!
Jwedd
Not so new Member
I use a feeding schedule of every 11-days, which just happens to flow down from what the breeder did, so rather than upset the schedule i adopted it
almaron
Well-Known Member
And here I thought I was the only one that that fed my dog mice that my snakes didn't eat.
I just can't resist because he gets soooooo excited whenever I do anything around the mice or rats. You can tell he's just dying to chomp one. Funny story about that actually.
My daughter who is six years old used to get really upset when she knew I was feeding the snakes. She would hassle me about it to no end. "Those poor, helpless little mice" she would cry. Then one night I'm working on the computer, and I hear all kinds of commotion going on in the next room. Turns out my daughter and son (4 years old) had gotten a mouse, and set him loose for the cat to eat. Between the dog and the cat, they were tearing up the place. Took me about 5 minutes of chaos to catch the poor thing. He was pretty tore up, and shaking like crazy from fear. I had to kill him cause he wasn't going to make it.
When I ask my daughter what the heck she was thinking, she told me "But daddy, Mojo (the cat) is such a good boy. He deserves a mouse." I was stunned. She just refused to see that what she did was worse that me quickly killing a mouse and feeding the snake. Oh well. Kids! On the bright side, she doesn't give me a hard time much anymore when I feed the snakes. :?
I just can't resist because he gets soooooo excited whenever I do anything around the mice or rats. You can tell he's just dying to chomp one. Funny story about that actually.
My daughter who is six years old used to get really upset when she knew I was feeding the snakes. She would hassle me about it to no end. "Those poor, helpless little mice" she would cry. Then one night I'm working on the computer, and I hear all kinds of commotion going on in the next room. Turns out my daughter and son (4 years old) had gotten a mouse, and set him loose for the cat to eat. Between the dog and the cat, they were tearing up the place. Took me about 5 minutes of chaos to catch the poor thing. He was pretty tore up, and shaking like crazy from fear. I had to kill him cause he wasn't going to make it.
When I ask my daughter what the heck she was thinking, she told me "But daddy, Mojo (the cat) is such a good boy. He deserves a mouse." I was stunned. She just refused to see that what she did was worse that me quickly killing a mouse and feeding the snake. Oh well. Kids! On the bright side, she doesn't give me a hard time much anymore when I feed the snakes. :?
saikrett
Well-Known Member
i hear ya almaron
i feed the BT the baby mice that the snake doesn't touch
i feed the BT the baby mice that the snake doesn't touch
Alexahnder
Well-Known Member
i feed the shyer childrens in their enclosure, and the other one out of it
dan_lizard
Active Member
I just like to feed the shy children to the snakes..... :twisted:
<Just Kidding!> :lol:
<Just Kidding!> :lol:
Alexahnder
Well-Known Member
:evil:
almaron
Well-Known Member
That actually happen here not too long ago. Seems a pet store around here somewhere was feeding the snakes puppies. From what I could gather, people were bringing in their unwanted litters of puppies to this store. Of course they were under the impression that they would be sold. Turns out one of the store employees was feeding the snakes with the ones they couldn't sell. Management of course denied knowing anything about it when it hit the papers. Not real sure how it all surfaced in the first place, but needless to say pet shop got so much bad press, it put them outta' business. :shock:
Alexahnder
Well-Known Member
wow, really!!
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