question about Kingsnakes

[katsnake]

We have a question about our 50/50 California Kingsnake. She is being strange about her feeding habits. We had the hardest time getting her convinced to eat f/t mice, but finally we could get her to accept a well warmed brained f/t mouse. Now she's being fussy, some weeks she will eat without problem and the next week, she won't eat at all, even if we put her in a quiet spot where there are no people walking by. Last week she learned how to escape from her Sterlite feeding box when we had her in the quiet spot. (Found her within a couple minutes, within 6 inches of where her box was-thank goodness!)

She's the only one that we have had problems feeding. Kroger said she was eating well when we bought her from his space at the indoor swapmeet. She's still musking every time she's picked up too, but we can live with that.

Thanks for any ideas with feeding her.

[Kerwin Ross]

Just feed her live pinkies and you will probably get a great feeding response. When she's bigger, just thump the rodents before putting them in her cage (snake's safety).

But for now I would put a live pinkie in, if you get a good feeding response then next time put a live pinkie and a f/t in at the same time. She should eat both. Then try just a f/t.

Nothing wrong with feeding live though, I do it about 5,000 times a year and have been for quite a few years and never had an incident.

Good luck.

Kerby...

[KKC]

Not to disagree with Kerby but, I had to put a rescue down about 2 months ago due to some one feeding live. If you are going to feed live (even if you stun it), make sure you are not putting the snake in a corner where you can not see it. Keep your eye on it closely. I will hopefully get the pictures from Doctor Johnson and can show you what feeding live can do to your snake. Just a thought for you.

[MikeB]

KKC is right, but that is not really a concern with pinkies and fuzzies. In my opinion, live adult rodents, especially rats, should never be left unsupervised with you animal. If you do feed live, the risk for injury to your animal is small, but still bigger than if feeding f/t or fresh killed.

[Kerwin Ross]

Was it a large snake that was fed a rat? Because the danger to a cal-king (what this topic is about) just isn't there. Feeding live pinkies and fuzzies for awhile and then feeding adult mice later does not prevent a danger to a cal king. I've never seen a thumped mouse do damage to a cal king.

Pics that you see floating around the forums that claim "don't feed live" is nothing but BS. The damage done to those snakes was not from a feeding episode, BUT from neglect by the owner. Putting a large rat in a snake's cage overnight can have a drastic outcome.

Kerby...

[Kerwin Ross]

This pic has been posted on forums for years, and it IS NOT from a bite from a feeding response, but from owner neglect by allowing the rat and snake to cohabitate.

http://ball-pythons.net/careimages/ballchew2.jpg
Not my picture.

Kerby...

[HERPSKEEPER]

My theory,
If the snake hasnt eaten the food item within 10 minutes, it aint going to eat it at all, and there for the food item should be taken out.

[Gmmullen]

This is just my experience. Having fed snakes over the last 48 years I have only had about 3 snakes that I can remember that would not eat dead prey. When people say, "my snake will not eat anything but live prey", I believe it is because they have not tried long or hard enough. On several occasions I have seen snakes in the wild feeding on carrion. Whenever I had to feed live, I would never leave the animal unattended.

[MRC]

There is no danger with pinkies, fuzzys, rat pups etc. I leave them in over night all the time, some of my snakes prefer to eat them in the middle of the night. I do not have the CA King experience that Kerby does, so i'm not one to comment on them or their habits. I know i wont leave a live hopper or adult mouse or rat in a cage. A mouse will chew on a rattlesnake tail in no time, as a rat will feast on a burmese python. I haven't came to the conclusion yet if snakes or stupid, or they just dont have a pain tolerance. The snake that Kristina is talking about was a boa rescue we took in that the owner left a rat in the cage. The injuries were so bad the snake had to be euthanized. Kerby you know that picture you posted almost makes it look like a Piebald Ball Python $$$$$$$ hmmmm peel the pattern away.

[Wlydcard]

I might as well toss my 2 pinkies in on this area,i might not have the exp of Kerby or Micha.

But i have been keeping Herps for 20 years myself and now feed only live to all my snakes,and never have had a incident.

But on to the live vs. f/t,thumped issue. I feed all my snakes live in a large tupperware tote,but i watch them like a hawk.

First i dont power feed anything so when they are fed they want to eat,this way or i should say it has been my expierence the the snake attacks with great gusto:)

I introduce the rat/mouse into the tote first so when the snake is introduced it knows there is prey in the area,again in my expierence if the snake is going to feed mine take about 10 seconds max to snatch the prey item.

And i also feed the correct size prey item,so when the snake atacks it there is ample coverage over the entire preys body when constricting as to avoid scratching/clawing.

But each to their own just adding how i feed,i curently feed the following:

1.1 White Lipped Python's
1.1 Ball Python's
0.1 Children's Python
1.2 50/50 Cal. Kings
0.2 BCI's
0.1 Normal Corn

[HERPSKEEPER]

What does f/t stand for?

[MRC]

f/t is frozen thawed. I can't spend all that time feeding my snakes, and watching everyone of them. I prefer dead i can pull it out of the freezer, thaw it and toss it in. I have about 70 snakes to feed from pythons, boas, crotes, colubrids etc. I just don't have the time to sit there and watch every single one of them. I wait until the next morning, if someone didnt eat it gets thrown out. I have some snakes who like to eat right away, some in the middle of the night, some the next morning. Out of all my snakes i have only 2 that will only eat live so far, they are rattlesnakes that i have recently switched off of lizards.

[HERPSKEEPER]

Many thanks

[katsnake]

I am with MRC on not enough time to watch every one like a hawk, but one problem with live is that this means I have to go get a live mouse every week, as we don't raise our own. I want the option of being able to buy 2-3 weeks of food for them at once, then feed them each weekend as we do. She was given a live hopper mouse a while ago, and ate that, but then we started her on brained thumped mouse, then to brained thawed mouse. We make sure that the mouse is about the same temperature as a live mouse would be. (cause I know I don't like eating my food cold either!) She even took one that wasn't brained once. Anyway, I guess I will just keep braining the darn mice and watching her like a hawk so she won't escape her feeding container - maybe I will use the Pine snake's feeding container, it's too big for her to easily climb out and we can still watch her eat. :Think

Thank you all for the posts. The pic of the snake was gross and it's owner should be locked in a small cage with 100 hungry rats to chew on him for a while! :mad:

[HERPSKEEPER]

Originally posted by katcha777
but then we started her on brained thumped mouse, then to brained thawed mouse. We make sure that the mouse is about the same temperature as a live mouse would be. (cause I know I don't like eating my food cold either!) She even took one that wasn't brained once. Anyway, I guess I will just keep braining the darn




What do you mean by brained?

[Cmpyrrhus]

.. is a term used to desribe the action of opening the skull cavity thus exposing the brain of a feeder animal. This trick is used by some who have snakes that have do not seem interesting in eatting. Although usually used on pinks for newborns that do not eat as fast as others 'regularly' do. I have used it to feed a finicky milk snake.