Quick snatchers?

[lilyskip]

How long does it usually take your balls to snatch up food from a set of tongs? Where do you hold the food in relation to the snake?

Also, I've noticed that Huxley will often try to climb up the tongs and out of the tank, rather than show much interest in the food. The same thing happened when I fed him in a separate enclosure. What's up with that?

[sapphire_moon]

Well prana actually balled away from the first f/t that she took....then she struck, missed, and then crawled away again. I put it beside her face, but by her nose, and she stuck out her tounge then decided it was food......Maybe the shinyness of the tongs are distracting him?

[Andy_G]

Mine did that when I didn't warm the prey enough for her. She would smell food and not know where it was coming from so she of course wanted to find it and the tongs were the closest thing to search lol. Mine almost always nails it and wraps it up right away. I will feed her when she is roaming and I usually can't even get it near her face before she hits it. I don't feed in a separate enclosure so I don't know what is normal that way.

[lilyskip]

Andy--for how long do you usually warm the prey/how do you warm it?

[Linds]

The ones that feed from tongs usually take them within 15 seconds or so, I just dangle it in the cage and they come right up and meet me halfway. If they take longer than that, then they don't take it at all. However, all snakes are different, some may need yout o even tease them with it for 30 minutes or more. You'll get a feel for your snakes preferences and behaviours as you go along ;)

[Andy_G]

Well, I use a cup, a baggie with the food item in it and I use the hottest water out of the tap, I fill the cup with the tap turned on full hot water, enough to cover the rat and baggie but not so much that it will overflow, then I get most of the air out of the bag, and then place the rat in there, I then use hot dog tongs(my feeding tongs lol) to hold the rat underwater by fixing it on the baggie. I leave it for about 5-6 minutes, go change the water, and repeat the process. I then take the rat out of the baggie, refill the cup with very hot water and then I place the rat in there without the baggie(my ball python won't eat anything cold or dry, which is really weird) for about 3 minutes. Then I take it to the snake room, touch it to make sure it isn't too hot, and I open the cage and present it with the tongs and she nails it, wraps it and eats it. The only point in time when I directly touch the rat is to check and see if it's to warm and I do this with my pinkie so the least amount of surface area is covered by my scent.

As long as you get the food item warm to the touch and you feed your snake when it's hungry from tongs, you shouldn't have too much of a feeding problem.

Sometimes if my ball python just finishes roaming(I sometimes warm the rat too late for her and she goes back into a hide for a nap) I will put the rat on a baggie on top of the cage to let the smell enter the cage. When she notices it she will come out and look around, and she wil hit it right away when presented.

I haven't found movement a crucial issue when presenting the food, but she won't eat albino rats, cool food, dry food, when a bright light is on, or if food is not presented with tongs. I also don't think she would eat in a separate enclosure.

[Jeff_Favelle]

Of all the pythons I've owned, BP's are the quickest to snatch their food (when they're eating), followed by Savuu Pythons. A BP strike is lightning fast!

[Andy_G]

I agree Jeff! I still jump when my ball python strikes sometimes because I just don't expect it or I am half asleep lol.

[Jeff_Favelle]

Ha ha, I jump too Andy, only because its so rare that the damn things eat!! (ha ha, just kidding, ....sort of....). :D

[Tim_Cranwill]

Yeah, people think balls are fat and slow but man, they are sooo fast! They are really cool to feed. They always startle me. ;)

[Dev_Man]

My BP won't even eat from the tongs!...i just lay the mouse in the enclosure and she casually goes up and puts her mouth around it lol... as long as she eats i'm happy:D

[Solid Snake]

when i hold it, i put it real close to his face, he should smell it and then kinda move real slow and strike, takes about 10 seconds. If not i put the rat in front of his hide and he ALWAYS takes it.

[lilyskip]

so do you guys all feed wet food?

[Wraith]

My royal is not a quick snatcher and she will not take prey from tongs. She has a large plastic bin that she eats in, I place a rat in with her (pre-killed of course) and then I have to turn of the lights (she will not eat otherwise) and when she is convinced no one is watching she will slowly strike and constrict and then swallow. She will however eat anything I give her.....mouse, rat, wet, dry, pre-killed f/t whatever.