Live/Killed/Sedated

[Wrath]

Ok, I'm feeding my baby rosy boa live prey because they are just little pinkies. And I planned to incapacitate his future meals when he is eating non-babies.

What's the general thought on live vs. killed food?

Does it matter? Is the concern regarding the prey wounding the snake? or is it more along the lines of supressing instinctive hunting reactions in pet snakes?

I've read, NEVER feed live prey, and I've been told that live prey is just fine. I realize that my snake is not eating rabbits or anything, so that may make a difference...... Don't know. Enlightement please! :dumb:

-Wrath

[marisa]

Dont know if I am right or not but my snakes have eaten both live and dead prey, and their "hunting" reactions are no different of any less after eating dead for months and then being offered live. My snakes strike, constrict and swallow for live or dead prey.

Generally its a risk feeding live prey because it CAN most definitly injure a snake. People say that this would happen in the wild but in the wild a snake is not enclosed in a small area with a mouse who is defending itself over and over again. And not to mention wild snakes aren't always the best looking specimens health wise as many have at least one scar....so if you are using your snakes for display in your home, or even for personal breeding purposes I don't think its exactly pleasing for it to have wounds from a mouse in the case it gets bit. They can chew more than a chunk off too.

Recently one of my snakes got a large live hopper, (this is the reason why i only fed dead from now on) and it was constricting it but the mouse had plenty of time to bit right into his middle. He was o.k. but when I saw that I decided no more live because it could have been his eye.

marisa

[Gorelith]

is the live prey can injure you snake, live prey can kill your snake, or live prey can actually scare some species of snake out of eating at all. I only have one ball python that give me a problem with feeding so I give him live gerbils, BUT...I stay there the entire time to make sure the gerbil doesn't get a strike in. All it takes is one injury to the head or spine of a snake to incapacitate it for life and it can happen in a split second, but if you must feed live, just pay very close attention to the prey, nobody wants to hear about you putting prey in the cage and the snake becomming prey. I find also if you put some rodent food in with the snake may help, after all, usually the prey will eat or sample the snake 'cause stupid owners leave the prey in the enclosure overnight with no food.

[Grant vg]

Wrath....I know some ppl find it really cool to see a snake eat live prey(trust me..friends come over all the time and ask to see it) But in all actuality, its not that great...as the others mentioned....it can reallyhurt ur snake and the longer u keep feeding it live the harder it will be to switch it to F/T...
I had a bp once that took F/t all the time and one day i only had live mice available and instead of wackin its head...i through it in live and to this day (now owned by someone else)...she will only eat live!
Feeding live also means weekly trips to the pet store, more expensive meals, or a smelly house if u plan on breeding....
My advice would be to get her/him on F/T and dont look back <-...

[Dom]

True the biggest problem is how a rat can injure / kill your snake but lets not forget the sufferance of the rat itself ..

The advantage of pre-killed, is the rat is generally (lets hope so) instantly killed in a humane manner where he either feels no pain at all or dies instantly ..

To me a rat being grabbed and screaming for his life and slowly suffucating .. trying to bite at everything. This is defenetly not a rat that is not suffering .. I magine it .. put yourself in the rats possition, its probably one of the worst death any one could have ..

For EX. Go under water for as long as you can .. think of that feeling when you're on your last few seconds in there. How much pain you are going thrue??? .. Now imagine being there until u past out???



Anyway just my .02$

Take care!



To me ~ I feed only dead for the snakes and the rats sake ..

[Wrath]

I don't want to have to kill it myself, I'd rather have him do it....grumble. But what does F/T mean?

:hammer:

[sSNAKESs.com]

Frozen / Thawed... thats the best way, buy em already dead, keep them in the freezer, thaw one out by putting it in a plastic bag and submerging it in hot water and when the mouses body temperature is warm feed it :o) easy as that :)

[patricia]

The method that is the least cruel to the prey is the only one that should be used. In almost all cases, if the owner of the snake conditioned to live prey is prepared to outwait the snake's finickiness towards pre-killed, then the snake will eventually take the pre-killed prey once it becomes hungry enough.

Constriction and suffocation is a slow and very painful death. What happens in the wild, doesn't justify allowing it to happen in captivity. Rodents are intelligent animals, they should be killed as quickly and as painlessly as possible.

Tricia

[marisa]

I agree. Its just easier to feed pre-killled in the long run. I mean no matter what the arguments are, there is always many reasons not to fed live, but not really any reason not to fed pre-killed.

marisa