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Tail first?

Tavia

Tavia

Elemental Exotics
I just fed my corn & s/he took it tail first. This is the second time, and I just wondered if that can be a problem? Or does it matter which way snakes swallow their prey?
 
Some seem to prefer them that way! It takes a little (or occasionally, lot) longer to get it down, but usually is okay. I have hognose that will eat from the flipping middle! If they get 'em down, I've never had a problem.
 
Butt munching is one of the leading causes of regurgitation. This can be a very serious condition. As the prey item works its way into the snakes digestive system the “butt” starts to digest first while the bulk of the animal is still facing toward the snakes mouth. Due to reflex actions in the prey the animal starts to move away from the digestive fluids until it gets worked up into the throat at which point the snake gags and regurgitates.

If you see that this is happening, you should pick it up and turn it end for end in his cage. This will usually solve the problem.
 
Interesting -I've never correlated a regurge to that, but almost never have had an adult regurge. I can't imagine a pink is hard to digest one way or another, though.
 
wade said:
Butt munching is one of the leading causes of regurgitation. This can be a very serious condition. As the prey item works its way into the snakes digestive system the “butt” starts to digest first while the bulk of the animal is still facing toward the snakes mouth. Due to reflex actions in the prey the animal starts to move away from the digestive fluids until it gets worked up into the throat at which point the snake gags and regurgitates.

If you see that this is happening, you should pick it up and turn it end for end in his cage. This will usually solve the problem.
Click to expand...
Erm......what.......?
 
Wade, are you talking about mainly adult mice? I've seen many hatchlings eat pinkies starting with the tail, and never had a problem.
 
I have an adult female Amel. that has been eating tail first for years and I never had a problem. Hatchlings eat em either way here and I have not had any noted problems.
 
wade said:
Due to reflex actions in the prey the animal starts to move away from the digestive fluids until it gets worked up into the throat at which point the snake gags and regurgitates.
Click to expand...

I'm thinking by this part of the quote this might be referring to a live-feed phenomenon.
 
wade said:
Butt munching is one of the leading causes of regurgitation. This can be a very serious condition. As the prey item works its way into the snakes digestive system the “butt” starts to digest first while the bulk of the animal is still facing toward the snakes mouth. Due to reflex actions in the prey the animal starts to move away from the digestive fluids until it gets worked up into the throat at which point the snake gags and regurgitates.

If you see that this is happening, you should pick it up and turn it end for end in his cage. This will usually solve the problem.
Click to expand...
"....pick it up and turn it end for end..."
Pick what up? Turn the snake around? LOLOL.
I've never seen a "prey animal" try to crawl back out of a snake, just because it went down a-- end first. LOL.
I think Wade just had us all for lunch. An early April Fool's.
 
Welcome to butt munching, everyone here certainly has the badge. It's not uncommon in young snakes. As they get older and take larger, more hairy prey they will consume it properly. It's harder to consume an animal when the hair is going against the way the prey goes down. most snakes learn that and take snout first no problem.
 
vetusvates said:
"....pick it up and turn it end for end..."
Pick what up? Turn the snake around? LOLOL.
I've never seen a "prey animal" try to crawl back out of a snake, just because it went down a-- end first. LOL.
I think Wade just had us all for lunch. An early April Fool's.
Click to expand...
He DID pretty much start his post post with "Butt-munching is a dangerous phenomenon!"
 
IMHO, although I've only been here on the forum for a little over three months, in the history of snake-keeping that question has surely been asked and answered and debated so many times, ad nauseum,...that Wade is trying to inject some very sarcastic humor into an old dead horse.
If that is the case, in that context I think it's quite a jolly answer.
 
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No for reals, this is a serious problem but can be solved by simply turning the snake from end to end. If he is facing to the left turn him to face to the right. Front to back. Be careful that you turn him 180* exactly. If you turn him only 90* you may cause a hernia.
 
wade said:
No for reals, this is a serious problem but can be solved by simply turning the snake from end to end. If he is facing to the left turn him to face to the right. Front to back. Be careful that you turn him 180* exactly. If you turn him only 90* you may cause a hernia.
Click to expand...

I really don't see how that can make a difference. Are you *sure* you're not pulling our collective legs? lol
 
I didn't mean to sound like I was questioning his advice. I'm sorry... I just don't understand how turning the snake from left to right would change the position of the mouse in the snake (?)
 
Well, dogs just must be smarter. Brutus was out in the yard today, yacking up rotten pecans or something. He was facing north, so I tried out Wade's advice and ran and turned him around to face south. But rather than arresting the canine regurge that was theoretically cosmically northbound, Brutus was not fooled by my (Wade's) physics, and proceeded to redirect his vomit southward.
 
iLuvScooter said:
I didn't mean to sound like I was questioning his advice. I'm sorry... I just don't understand how turning the snake from left to right would change the position of the mouse in the snake (?)
Click to expand...

The mouse stays constant. :)
 
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