Just a thought, just wanted to check out this idea

[Miss. Araco]

So I've been surfing around, asking questions, getting into trouble and so forth on here and Im at it again... This may sound stupid but Im asking before I try it...

My snake Arien eats like it's her job, today for her weekly feeding she at 3 fuzzies with no problem and last time I checked she was thinking of eating the last one, which she ate 4 last week also...

Now for the idea... She has always eaten f/t and I have played with her food and try to get her to constict but all she dose is wait till it stops moving then moves in... Now that dose not make any different with f/t, but I really want her to learn to eat live, and I know that it can be dangeres and I probably will not move her over at all, but Im worried, my pet shop that I trust to give me good food for my animals, ran out of f/t of the size I needed for Arien right after I bought enouph for my girl... Also I think that I could help with nutrien as a supliment, not the full course... Also when she can eat hoppers i think it would be a good stimulant for her... Is this pointless or would it not matter, I like my pets to have as natural a life as I can make it, but still making it so that they are the healthiest that they can be...


-Miss Araco :noevil:

[diamondlil]

There are quite a few threads about live vs f/t, and they get quite argumentative. If you already know it can be dangerous, why try it? Just my opinion, but if you don't want to risk your snake, stick to f/t or fresh killed then there's no risk.
As for nutritional supplements, no safe dosage has been proven for corns

[MerlinsPop]

Miss A -

If she can put down 4 fuzzies, she probably already can eat hoppers. 4 of anything is a lot to eat.

As for trying to feed her live, you've obviously already read up on that, as you acknowledged that there are dangers involved. You need make up your own mind in that regard, as there are dangers involved! Some snakes, once fed live, will be hard to get to take a f/t after that. Be ready to run out and buy live mice for every meal if yours does that.

If you want to give her more stimulation, then take her out and let her crawl around your arms and hands every day (except for the after-dinner days). I just don't understand the argument for feeding snakes live food because it's "more natural." I wonder if these same people feed mice to their cats and cats to their dogs? You can make it really natural for the snake by driving to the nearest National Forest... (no, I'm not advocating releasing snakes into the wild, just being sarcastic).

I've wondered about providing a supplement. Healthy, well fed feeder mice are probably all the nutrition your snake will need, but a very small amount probably won't hurt. If nothing else, she'll have very nutritious poop!

I'm glad you're asking questions. That means you want to learn, which is great.

[Miss. Araco]

She's not small but her head is, but I may think of trying her on hoppers, but she eats all her fuzzies with gusto and Im only feeding her till she has a good sized bulge, she has not regured and another person was talking about cutting up her f/t to make them smaller so it's easier to digest.... wouldn't that be the same as feeding smaller with more? (Just a question on that point, not saying Im going to do that)

Also I was told she could not handle hoppers yet so I feed her what she wants, is that bad... I know horses can over eat, but a snake and a horse is so far apart, Im is such an new world

[Rich in KY]

Miss Araco snakes can handle prey that is 1 1/2 times the thickness of their body. You would be amazed how much their mouth and neck area stretches when they eat. 4 fuzzies are much more expensive than 1 hopper. But continue to feed your snake the way you are comfortable with.

Also, some people like to make cuts on the mouse to aid in digestion. I would recommend this before actually cutting a mouse into pieces. That would be very messy. :)

[MerlinsPop]

Also I was told she could not handle hoppers yet so I feed her what she wants, is that bad... I know horses can over eat, but a snake and a horse is so far apart, Im is such an new world

Keep in mind that a snake in the wild are hunters that take advantage of opportunities as they come. If they happen upon a next of mice, they'll eat as much as they can stuff in, as their next meal might be months away. Your captive snake won't know that they've got a steady source of food, even if they've eaten every 5 days their entire life, so they will eat more than they oughta.

[starsevol]

First thing, about the live food/ natural life issue.
You already know that feeding live CAN be risky. So,ask yourself, why do you want your PET to be able to take down live food? Would you expect your pet dog or cat or anything else you keep in your home to kill its dinner? So why is your pet snake any different?

As far as a "natural life"...it is not a natural life to be in a tank and have food provided...does that make it a bad thing?

It IS completely natural to get killed and eaten by a hawk at the tender age of 13 months. Does that make it a good thing?

And yes, Merlin's Pop knows exactly what he's talking about. When I was very young and very stupid, I had a beautiful garter snake named Talia. She loved nightcrawlers, and I loved to watch her eat. I accidently fed her to death. She got round and I had no idea how dangerous that was. One day she stopped eating. 3 days later she was dead. I later learned that it was my fault. I haven't quite forgiven myself yet, I really liked her!

[Miss. Araco]

The thing is that I also herd that a snake should have a bulge in them for 24 hourse, it's been 24 hours and her bulge is gone... dose that make it the right amount, and the same thing with horses they will, if left alone eat them selves to death,


the wild thing, my cat was expected to bring in at least one mouse a day before we would feed her at one of my houses cause we had so many houses, she still dose try but Im at a really nice and young place in the city and have yet to see a mouse I have not brought in my self, also my dog is aloud to chase the squarels and if she got one I would love her to death, and my father would too, since she lives with him...

[diamondlil]

If you weigh your snake, you could use that to see what size prey to give her but generally the bulge should be there more than 24 hours. Weighing once a month gives you a good idea of how your snake is growing.
Even if your snake does take live prey without getting injured, that also increases the chance of her getting parasites too

[bitsy]

Something else to bear in mind as well as parasites, is that you don't know what wild-caught mice have eaten. In built-up areas, they could get hold of rat poison - eating a mouse that had eaten rat poison would certainly kill your snake.

"Farmed" mice will have been raised as feeder animals - fed exactly the right diet to maximise their nutritional value, and guaranteed pest-free. Defrost mice really are the best option as far as I can see.

[Jessicat]

I can't think of ANY good reason why you'd want to switch over to live if your snake is readily taking ft. If you want to stimulate constriction get a pair of thongs or chopsticks and tease feed. Depending on how aggressive and/or hungry your snake is it may or may not strike and constrict.

Live rodents purchased from pet stores should be killed before feeding anyway.

[wax32]

Is this pointless?

Yes it is pointless...