live prey

duroo · 08-16-04, 06:05 PM

will bp's eat any kind of live animals other than mice/rats? will they eat frogs or lizards too? just curious :-)

Kevin McRae · 08-16-04, 06:08 PM

In the wild they would eat lizards, and other types of rodents and possibly birds.

mykee · 08-16-04, 06:14 PM

I doubt the lizard thing, but most rodents would be dinner. Anyone? If you are asking because you are considering a departure from feeding your BP mice or rats, I would serioulsy reconsider. Chances are that unless your bp is WC (slim then also) that your bp wouldn't even recognize those "alternative" items as food.

duroo · 08-16-04, 06:20 PM

im not "considering a departure", i just thought a little variety couldnt hurt anything, and lizards would not be able to hurt the snake if given live like mice or rats would. its more of an experiment for my entertainment than anything else.

Jeff_Favelle · 08-16-04, 06:41 PM

Lizards carry parasites. Any good book will tell you that. Even the outdated ones. And yes, parasites can "hurt" a Ball Python.

mykee · 08-16-04, 11:16 PM

I suggest you purchase a book on the CAPTIVE husbandry of ball pythons. Please.

**Andy_G** · 08-16-04, 11:23 PM

They don't eat lizards...and since they inhabit rodent burrows/bushes/grasslands and are seldom, even never by some, observed in trees (I have a herper friend that lives in Africa), I don't suspect they would very often eat birds...just lots of rodents (and MAYBE the odd bird, who knows). Stick with rats and if you are using mice try to get your snake switched over.

ib_inked · 08-17-04, 12:04 AM

K, just a question, I have 2 balls, and I see alot of people saying that they should be given rats asap. Why is this?
Thanks.

jparker1167 · 08-17-04, 02:54 AM

I think that most people try to switch from mice to rats because rats are bigger. When your bp is an adult you can feed one rat instead of 3 or more mice. You should try switching asap because the longer you wait the harder it might be to switch them. hope this helps, i'm sure someone will be able to give you better reasons but thats all I could think of.

Invictus · 08-17-04, 09:34 AM

So you feed your ball python live prey for your own amusement eh? Well, here's my advice then. This forum has a classfieds section. Post your BP for sale so that maybe someone who CARES about the health and well being of snakes will take on your pet, and ensure that it hits adulthood without any permanent scars. If you want amusement, go to the zoo and watch monkeys throw their feces at each other.

mykee · 08-17-04, 10:33 AM

LOL!

Vengeance · 08-17-04, 11:49 AM

Well I knew somone had to say just wasn't sure who was gonna, but I agree with Invictus.

duroo · 08-17-04, 12:09 PM

ive never fed my ball live prey, ever, for that very reason, thats why i was curious about lizards because they themselves cant hurt the snake like a rodent can. theres no need to be mean and sarcastic...

Vengeance · 08-17-04, 12:37 PM

Just because they can't hurt them as much, which should really be taken lightly I think, doesn't mean they can't hurt them. Any live creature when it feels it's life is threatned will do whatever it can to try and remove itself from that threat. Lizards just like rats have claws and teeth and given an oppertunity they will use them. So although the damage may not be as severe as that of a full grown rat there still is the possiblity of damage being done.

Also when I said I agreed with Inv, I wasn't being sarcastic, even if Inv was. If you think watching your Ball python kill another animal is a form of entertainment then you shouldn't be allowed to own your Ball python. We feed snakes what we feed them because that is what they need to survive, not because "we think it's cool".

Invictus · 08-17-04, 02:58 PM

Sorry, but in your post you said:

Quote:

its more of an experiment for my entertainment than anything else.

So how else am I to take it? People who feed live prey for their own amusement shouldn't be owning snakes. I'm happy to hear that you don't feed live, but maybe you could have clarified that in your posting?

Here is a good reason not to feed lizards - they don't have anywhere near the amount of protein, fat, or vitamins that a BP needs to be healthy. If you have your BP on prekilled food, CHERISH it. They can be picky, and can get "addicted" to only one type of food.

Sorry for the sarcasm, and thank you for clarifying.