feeding: inside or outside of cage?

Reticsrule · 05-28-05, 01:53 PM

i had always read that it was best to feed outside of the snakes cage so that when you went to handle the snake, it wouldnt mistake your hand for food. it seemed logical so thats what i have been doing since ive had my boa. then the other day i read somewhere that it is pointless to feed a snake outside of its cage and has no effect on whether or not they will bite you when you go to handle them. then i got to thinking about it and if you fed the snake inside the cage it would be easier(considering youre using newspaper as a substrate) because you wouldnt have to move the snake into a feeding container which may be hard if you are dealing with a large snake. so what do you guys think, is it better to feed inside or outside of the cage?

steelnink · 05-28-05, 02:29 PM

Depends on the size of the snake and the substrate you use.
I feed my ratsnakes, bps, and smaller boas in seperate feeding boxes, as i use natural substrate.As for the retic, big boas, and burms i feed inside the enclosures. As for snakes being conditioned to where they are fed,,, both ways could be risky.
Eitherway, i dont believe they will THINK food when you open the cage or when they come out.Prey scents and motion get the feeding response, anything else is just defensive.

thunder · 05-28-05, 03:56 PM

i used to feed all my rodent feeders in seperate enclosures, but it got to be too much of a hassle. now i feed anyone who wont take it right off the tongs in a tupperware within their enclosure.

justinO · 05-28-05, 04:20 PM

we feed everyone in their enclosures. Last thing I want is to move a burm that is still in feeding mode back into its enclosure.

I also dont like moving snakes right after they eat.

-justin

Reticsrule · 05-28-05, 06:08 PM

do any of you that feed inside the cage have any problems with aggression(when not feeding)? if not them im probably going to start feeding my boa inside his cage.

steelnink · 05-28-05, 07:12 PM

No more than the ones fed outside of the cage.
If you'll be overly nervous, use a hook to transfer the snake from the enclosure to your hand.

Linds · 05-28-05, 07:30 PM

There is absolutely no evidence to even suggest that feeding inside the enclosure can have any impact on the animal's level of aggression towards us. There once was a time where I had also heard you should feed out of the enclosure was best, but I have been feeding inside their enclosures for years and noticed absoltuely no difference... other than I'm at a considerably lower risk for getting nailed by one of my snakes, and I'm not bothering them when they are eating :flick: While feeding in the enclosure I've had:
-snakes that were agressive when I aquired them calm down with time
-snakes that weren't agressive become moreso
-snakes stay the same

The level of aggression a snake may have is directly related to both how much work you have put in to acclimating it to being handled, as well as the amount of stress (environmental, internal, etc.) the snake is is subjected to, not whether or not it is fed in it's enclosure

Reticsrule · 05-28-05, 07:58 PM

im not worried about being bitten as i feed my boa outside his cage now and i have no aggression problems but after what linds said i think ill begin feeding him inside his cage once i switch him over from Reptibark to newspaper.

mykee · 05-28-05, 08:27 PM

My balls: ALL fed inside their enclosures.

Artemis · 06-02-05, 11:30 PM

I feed my BP and my corn inside the enclosure. Might depend on the temperment of your individual specimens what you decide to do. Mine have been fine inside, never mistaken my hand for lunch. Just make sure your hands smell NOTHING like their food when you plunge them in there. In fact, I always wash my hands with the same soap before I handle or clean enclosures, so they know its me coming sans food by THAT smell.

If you are worried about a bite from your boa, dont be, just make sure your hands dont smell like food if you put them in the enclosure, and you will be fine to feed in the enclosure, too.

HTH-

Artemis

justinO · 06-03-05, 03:23 PM

some of our snakes with strong feeding responses think that everytime I open the cage they are getting food and come towards me. On these occasions, I gently tap them on the nose with a hook. This seems to make them "snap out of it" and then I can just reach in and pick them up.

Justin