The great feeding debate. Out or in the in Enclosure

[Derek1]

Curious on what y'all do and thinking about it. I was a out of enclosure feeder, but switched to feeding in for the most part, no real reason why. They just seem more comfortable and happy. Never been bit or thought as food yet, and I handle my snakes regularly.

What do y'all do?

[Shann]

I don't see any real benefit to feeding outside of the enclosure. I don't buy that a snake will become "aggressive" because they are fed in the enclosure. The only argument I can understand in favor of feeding outside is to avoid substrate ingestion. But if you're that concerned about it, it's easy to lay down a plastic placemat. And I have no desire to move a six foot boa in feeding mode to a separate enclosure and back. In fact that increases my chance of being bitten. Or making a more shy snake too stressed to eat. I just don't see the point, personally.

[NewHerp293]

I fed in a separate enclosure when i first got my snake because i had read so much about "tub association" with being fed. I realized it was much better to just feed in the enclosure when i started feeding 3+ pinkies and i went to take my little girl out of her feeding tub and she swung her head around towards my fingers....literally the only sign of "aggression" ever shown. Ive had a few feeds now within her enclosure and she is still never nippy when i go to take her out. So i am forever sold on feeding inside the enclosure!

[dave himself]

We feed in the viv as most of our snakes are pretty big. We've tap trained ours so they know when it's food coming into the viv or not

[David VB]

Inside. Faster, easier and more fun (in a natural setup). Even feed 2 snakes in one enclosure without problems (gtp).

[bigsnakegirl785]

I also see no benefit to feeding out of the enclosure. When I first got my boa constrictor, and when I first joined this forum, I was advised to feed separately. I did so for maybe a year and a half before I figured that maybe it was kinda pointless, and when some others pointed out the same thing I stopped.

Now I just thaw out the food, either set it in the enclosure or wave it in front of them, and then leave. Most of the time they drag their food into their hide to eat in privacy. It's a lot easier on me and on them, so I see no reason to begin separate feeding again.

I'm also worried about damaging their skeleton or internal organs by moving them with a meal in their stomach, and there's always the chance of a regurge which is really hard on their bodies.

[Tsubaki]

When i first started keeping snakes, back in 97' i think it was.. I fed outside the tub, this was the common practice all around the country back then. I was just a kid completely new to reptiles, i wasn't going to argue with people who had experience. I only did it for a while, then i started putting a plate with the food inside. I did not believe it would make them that much meaner, as i already had to touch them with something first to assure them i wasn't food.. So if they are already expecting food, why would it make a difference? Turned out i was right. The myth of food 'aggression' being caused by feeding inside a tub, is still a very popular myth around here though.

I used the plate because of the fear of substrate being eaten, was/is poured in your head by the community. Up unto the point where they had sticky warning topics about it, i personally think if substrate being eaten causes a problem the animal probably has some underlying issue (like dehydration). I would however be careful with unnaturally sharp beddings.. I did see a snake that had a piece of hemp stuck in his gums, that looked awfully painful!

Anyway i stopped using the plate when i watched a video of a retic in the wild, eating a not so very fresh carcass that was smeared with dirt, leaves, and .. well goo of sorts. I was like well, then why on earth would a bit of cocopeat matter? Hell why would anything matter if they can eat sh*t like that? Obviously not going to try feeding anything close to spoiled/rotten.. But i seriously don't think twice about refreezing 15,- feeder rabbits or whatever. Into the freezer they go, and then hope they don't thaw out too messy, bellies ripping open is very gross...

I did not have any snakes that were aggressive from being fed inside, i did own my fair share of *******'s though. But that had nothing to do with food, my heart just goes out to the bad boys (To the great frustration of my so :D He does Not like to handle nippy snakes, so i always have to handle the front ends) And i never had any problems with snakes eating substrate, i do always use natural substrates or newspaper for quarantine (papers wouldn't get eaten obviously)

[Jim Smith]

I also started by feeding my snakes outside their enclosure for the same reasons stated above. I have a couple of "shy" feeders who do not like feeding outside their enclosures so I started feeding them inside. I thaw my mice in warm water and feed them wet, so I place the mice on small dishes to keep them off of the substrate (sani-chips) since it sticks to the wet fur. The snakes started to eat more readily with much less stress with no change in temperament. I now feed all of my snakes inside the enclosure which is easier on both me and the snakes. No big debate here, just a preference based on what I've learned here on sSNAKESs and personal experience.

[Tsubaki]

If you do not want to feed them wet, you could always thaw them inside a small plastic bag :) thats what i do, but more because i don't like all the dripping.

[sharthun]

If you do not want to feed them wet, you could always thaw them inside a small plastic bag :) thats what i do, but more because i don't like all the dripping.

I use the plastic bag thawing technique as wel,l and feed inside the enclosures. I also use the smaller sani chips. No issues with substrate ingestion. Even if you place the prey on a plate they usually drag it all over anyway.

[reptiledude987]

I typically feed inside enclosure and always have. I've never had agression issuses due to it except for my Nile Monitor whos always a mean prick no matter what lol. The only time i remove an animal for a feeding is when I have multiple housed together just to avoid the possibility of one finishing quickly and deciding they want more. Has anyone ever had that problem with multiple animals together?

[Mad Max]

I feed inside my snake's carpeted enclosure. He only gets food aggressive when he smells rodent.

[amousley1]

All of our reptiles are fed in their enclosures. We've not had any aggression issues as the snakes are all hook trained and are relatively well behaved.

[Tsubaki]

I typically feed inside enclosure and always have. I've never had agression issuses due to it except for my Nile Monitor whos always a mean prick no matter what lol. The only time i remove an animal for a feeding is when I have multiple housed together just to avoid the possibility of one finishing quickly and deciding they want more. Has anyone ever had that problem with multiple animals together?

That is one of the many reasons i always advise against housing animals together :)

[amousley1]

That is one of the many reasons i always advise against housing animals together :)

Agreed. We also do not house or plan on housing any reptiles together (unless for breeding purposes).

[Little Wise Owl]

We feed inside the enclosure. I don't like handling any of my snakes on feeding day because I don't want to stress them out or agitate them. I also would prefer not having to move a still-hungry-strike-happy snake back to its enclosure after it's finished eating.

The whole "feeding in the enclosure causes aggression" is bologna.

[reptiledude987]

That is one of the many reasons i always advise against housing animals together :)

So during breeding season when they are together do you seperate the male to feed him?

[Tsubaki]

I don't leave the male and female together for anything other than mating, separating them once they have lost interest in doing so. I see no use in feeding either of them during the mating process, if the male even wants to eat i will feed them once he's back in his own viv. Why worry about a not eating for a few days? (or even weeks)

[millertime89]

I typically feed inside enclosure and always have. I've never had agression issuses due to it except for my Nile Monitor whos always a mean prick no matter what lol. The only time i remove an animal for a feeding is when I have multiple housed together just to avoid the possibility of one finishing quickly and deciding they want more. Has anyone ever had that problem with multiple animals together?

I've seen it happen first hand with some Asian Vine Snakes. Trio kept together and they were anole eaters. One was chowing down and another came along and tried to steal the first one's dinner, the second one ended up biting the first one on it's face.

I too started feeding out of the enclosure but stopped rather quickly. I have never seen first hand proof of an animal become aggressive due to feeding in the enclosure. The problem with this though is that you're still going to have aggressiveness in the feeding enclosure. Removing the animal from it's home to feed only causes undue stress and can even result in injury to animal and/or human.

Take retics for example. Phenominal eating machines. Mine rarely skip a meal once I've determined their preference (thankfully most aren't picky). When they smell food that's all they think about. The last thing I want to do is remove a snake that is keyed in on heat and movement from it's enclosure, especially one that's 15ft+...

But you say, "I'm never going to keep a retic." That's fine, BCC/BCI are very much the same, Blood and Carpet pythons too. Burms? You bet and they're just as long and quite a bit heavier than retics. Hell my corn snake was the same way when she could smell food. These animals are very much prey driven.

[millertime89]

So during breeding season when they are together do you seperate the male to feed him?

Sure do. Pull the male, feed the following day, give 2-3 days to digest, and back in he goes.

[NewSAHSnakeMom]

We still feed Blaze out of his enclosure, because my husband thinks its necessary. He usually feeds him so I don't really care how its done just as long as he gets fed! Blaze actually struck my husband but I think only because my husband stupidly attempted to pick up a dropped fuzzy in front of Blaze! He didn't like that my husband was "stealing" his food! That's a husband mistake not a Blaze issue. If you're stupid enough to steal a snakes food you deserve to get bit! I just drop the mice in there and wait, watch to make sure he doesn't get out then when they are gone let him crawl back in his enclosure. I could just feed him in the enclosure but its not worth arguing over! He seems fine with our arrangement lol we've done it for a while now! He's healthy and happy that's all I care about!

[EL Ziggy]

All of my snakes get fed inside their enclosures. I used to feed in a separate bin when I got my first snake but after being on this forum I quickly realized how unnecessary it was. Things are much easier now.

[virtuousvixen]

I always feed inside the enclosure. The king always waits until you place them before he strikes and drags them around his viv through the substrate. Never had a problem with him ingesting any.

My BP up until last would only take rats if you dangled them in front of her. Now she has taken one from me just placing it in the tank. She is a monster on feeding day and hopefully i can spare my fingers.

[bigsnakegirl785]

We still feed Blaze out of his enclosure, because my husband thinks its necessary. He usually feeds him so I don't really care how its done just as long as he gets fed! Blaze actually struck my husband but I think only because my husband stupidly attempted to pick up a dropped fuzzy in front of Blaze! He didn't like that my husband was "stealing" his food! That's a husband mistake not a Blaze issue. If you're stupid enough to steal a snakes food you deserve to get bit! I just drop the mice in there and wait, watch to make sure he doesn't get out then when they are gone let him crawl back in his enclosure. I could just feed him in the enclosure but its not worth arguing over! He seems fine with our arrangement lol we've done it for a while now! He's healthy and happy that's all I care about!

The snake isn't "defending" his prey, he smells prey, sees movement and heat, and is striking at that moving heat source, thinking your husband's hand is prey. If I were to reach my hand in to grab one of my snake's food I'd get my hand bit, but if I use tongs to grab it they'll follow the food. This is because my hand is warmer than their food, presenting a better target.

[knox]

I feed in the enclosure. No reason NOT to.

[millertime89]

The snake isn't "defending" his prey, he smells prey, sees movement and heat, and is striking at that moving heat source, thinking your husband's hand is prey. If I were to reach my hand in to grab one of my snake's food I'd get my hand bit, but if I use tongs to grab it they'll follow the food. This is because my hand is warmer than their food, presenting a better target.

This is spot on.

[SerpentSteve]

Inside. I had read about feeding in separate bins but didn't really see the need to cause unnecessary stress. I figured if they can do it in the wild they'll be fine in captivity, obviously as long as it's nothing ridiculous like a large piece of bark. Out of all the years I've been keeping/breeding herps the only time I've had an issue with substrate ingestion was from one of my hatchling leopard geckos that had eaten calci-sand by accident.

[NewSAHSnakeMom]

The snake isn't "defending" his prey, he smells prey, sees movement and heat, and is striking at that moving heat source, thinking your husband's hand is prey. If I were to reach my hand in to grab one of my snake's food I'd get my hand bit, but if I use tongs to grab it they'll follow the food. This is because my hand is warmer than their food, presenting a better target.

Ok. Still my husband's fault. He's the idiot who stuck his hand in there!

[guyabano]

I feed in the snake's enclosure. Snakes can take some substrate with their meals. No big deal. As far as behavior goes, hook training does the job of snapping them out of feed mode well enough.

[Mikoh4792]

I feed inside the enclosure.

The idea that snakes develop cage aggression or association between cage and food is an outdated myth in snake husbandry. All you have to do to debunk this myth is to feed your snakes inside their enclosure and see no real difference.

[shaunyboy]

with the snakes i co habit,i take one snake out the tank at feeding time,leave the other snake in the tank,i just take whatever snake looks easiest to get out the tank on feeding day.....

the rest of my snakes i feed in their tanks,imo it's where they feel most secure


cheers shaun

[bigsnakegirl785]

Ok. Still my husband's fault. He's the idiot who stuck his hand in there!

Now that part is true. lol Maybe next time he'll just leave the snake to its devices, snakes are pretty good at finding their food on their own, even if it doesn't move. :)

[LiL Zap]

Ok. Still my husband's fault. He's the idiot who stuck his hand in there!
Just tell your husband to feed in the enclosure and you'll have a happier snake. :) Last thing you wanna do is move a snake to a different enclosure in feeding mode.

[red ink]

I provide a 5 star service for my snakes... they get room service for dinner.

[NewSAHSnakeMom]

Just tell your husband to feed in the enclosure and you'll have a happier snake. :) Last thing you wanna do is move a snake to a different enclosure in feeding mode.

Yea we've through this, my husband isn't changing his mind anytime soon. He won't budge on that one, he does the feedings not my place to tell him how to do it. He and blaze seem happy with it most of the time.