Quote:
Originally Posted by schilsound
Just a quick question- why would you suggest never feeding the fuzzies live?
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Because it's massively unethical to torture a rodent to death simply to see your snake eat a live prey item. Because freezing kills parasites and germs. Because rodents bite back. Because frozen rodents are infinitely cheaper. Because some of us own snakes because we like them, not because we like to see them kill things. I mean, where should I stop? For all the perceived benefits of live feeding (exercise, etc.) there are ways to do that that do not require a rodent to be squashed to death.
And as for the argument that live prey is "natural"--trapping live rodents in a container with a predator on a regular basis is about as natural as breeding snakes for genetic mutations, keeping them confined indoors, and treating them as pets. Likewise, having a rodent escape completely, leaving the snake hungry; or having the rodent kill the snake, are both "natural" outcomes.
Also, on a purely personal note, unless you feel like having your mice's feces tested for worms and other ectoparasites, you really might NOT see any indication of infestation. I can't understand, with all the risks, why anyone would deliberately expose their pets to dangers that are totally avoidable in almost all cases.