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Live Feed Option

A

asymons

The Lab Rat
Hey guys! So of course there's always controversy about whether to feed live or frozen, however I wonder if I'm not the only one who's ever fed live-unconscious?

My former boa wouldn't eat frozen (or anything but jumbo rats for that matter), so we used to, well, literally knock the rat unconscious before dangling above her cage to allow her to strike and feed.

Has anyone else tried this method? It worked quite well and was safe to both the snake and rat, and ultimately a good compromise for live feeding. I'm not sure if this would be different in corns, but I would reccomend it for anyone without the option of feeding frozen.

Cheers!
Ashley
 
I've done that before too. The only thing I can see that would be wrong with this method is that you can't protect against disease or parasites this way. Freezing them eliminates this possibility.

I personally think that while freezing them is safer, it's not exactly healthier. I feel that freezing changes the meat and when thawed it's not as healthy for my snakes. I try to feed live/bashed when available.

I know that OUR meats and veggies lose a lot of vitamins when they go through the freezing process so I figured it's the same for my snakies.

So when you say you "knock the mouse unconscious" how do you do that? I guess maybe mine are unconscious sometimes... I figured they were just dead though... :p
 
I've fed FK in the past to try to break a male feeding strike before I knew about feeding strikes. Once you pay to deworm a snake, though, you won't be anxious to feed prey that hasn't been frozen ever again.
 
I feed almost all of my snakes F/T, just because it is more convenient and safer... I did get a couple non-feeders started on live but after a couple meals I switched them to F/T... I currently have a pair that my boyfriend bought me as a gift that refuse F/T and I will have to feed live, but I will continue to try to switch them over to F/T, simply because I want them to be safe and healthy... :)
 
If you're buying your feeders from a reputable source (or breeding your own like I do) there should not be any risk of parasites. I usually feed pk or stunned and I've never had any issues with parasites and yes I have had fecal floats done on all of my BPs within the last month. There's enough natural bacteria in a snakes stomach that most parasites which may be in a rodent would be killed.
 
All of my snakes get freshly killed rodents. I buy from a wholesaler weekly and have never had any problems out of his stock. All but one of my snakes will happily take either frozen/thawed or freshly killed, and if someone doesn't feed for me their mouse or rat is simply put in the freezer so I can use it at the next feed.

I've read before that there is some debate over the nutritional value of a freshly killed rodent versus a frozen rodent, but ultimately I think as long as your snake is being fed something that isn't capable of inflicting serious harm to it you're on the right track.
 
Feeding stunned/pre-killed is a great option for people with a ready supply of live rodents. The time involved when you have a large collection does add up, though. I feed everything that will take f/t (which is most), f/t. And to be honest, even after killing my 1,000th mouse or rat, I'm embarrassed to say it still bothers me.
 
I went into the local pet shop around here during feeding time not too long ago.
A girl had a container full of mice and would take them out by their tails and smack them off the counter then drop them in with the corn snakes etc. That is how they fed all of their bigger snakes. They fed all hatchlings live pinkies.

A girl shopper was horrified and began crying but still watched the snakes eat.
 
I put mine in a bag and bash them that way... I couldn't imagine just doing it with their tails! I would be afraid that the tail would rip off or something :s.

I know that my fiance told me once when he was little that his brother went to grab his gerbil out from under the couch by her tail and the skin slid off the bone. The gerbil then proceeded to eat her bone tail until it was just a nub... not sure if the same would happen with mice but I don't know if I wanna find out x_x.
 
Jadie.Glitch said:
I put mine in a bag and bash them that way... I couldn't imagine just doing it with their tails! I would be afraid that the tail would rip off or something :s.

I know that my fiance told me once when he was little that his brother went to grab his gerbil out from under the couch by her tail and the skin slid off the bone. The gerbil then proceeded to eat her bone tail until it was just a nub... not sure if the same would happen with mice but I don't know if I wanna find out x_x.
Click to expand...

I've had that happen before with a rat. It was horrible! I tried to stun the thing a couple of times and he just would not stun! Then he started spinning around while I was holding his tail and the skin slid right off. It was absolutely disgusting. Then to top it all off the stupid snake didn't even eat him..... :puke02:
 
Sorry but that last post made me sick to my stomach.
I keep rats as pets, and find them clean, loyal and nearly as intelligent as dogs.
I have no problem with rats as food for other animals, as long as they don't suffer.
The idea that someone could be so cruel to a creature that intelligent....well it's hard for me to wrap my mind around it.

Are you normally a monster?
 
starsevol said:
Sorry but that last post made me sick to my stomach.
I keep rats as pets, and find them clean, loyal and nearly as intelligent as dogs.
I have no problem with rats as food for other animals, as long as they don't suffer.
The idea that someone could be so cruel to a creature that intelligent....well it's hard for me to wrap my mind around it.

Are you normally a monster?
Click to expand...

Excuse me? I keep rats as pets and breeders also. It was not an intentional thing. I love my rats and it killed me when that happened to that guy. The only reason I even tried to stun him was because the snake had already tried to constrict him and wound up hurting him extremely bad. I don't appreciate being labeled as a monster for trying to put the rat out of his misery.
 
That was why I ASKED you if you were normally a monster.
And the words "rat eradicator" above your avatar does say a bit about you......

According to your post you tried to stun him, and he would not stun.
Sure doesn't sound to me like you were trying to put him out of his misery.
 
starsevol said:
That was why I ASKED you if you were normally a monster.
And the words "rat eradicator" above your avatar does say a bit about you......

According to your post you tried to stun him, and he would not stun.
Sure doesn't sound to me like you were trying to put him out of his misery.
Click to expand...

I was trying to put him out of his misery. That's all I was trying to do. I worded it incorrectly the first time and for that I'm sorry. The line above my avatar is meant as a joke more than anything. I have 10 snakes who eat rats regularly (most f/t) so I'm going through about 40 rats a month. It's a joke please don't make it into something that it's not.
 
Thank you for that.
Besides corns, rats are pretty near and dear to my heart as pets, so I'm a bit sensitive (especially because they are treated cruelly by alot of people who don't see feeders as animals who can FEEL).

My friend Nanci (on this site) is a pigeon lover, the way I am a rat lover.
Ask her how she would react to anyone who admitted to stunning a pigeon.....
 
anendeloflorien said:
I was trying to put him out of his misery. That's all I was trying to do. I worded it incorrectly the first time and for that I'm sorry. The line above my avatar is meant as a joke more than anything. I have 10 snakes who eat rats regularly (most f/t) so I'm going through about 40 rats a month. It's a joke please don't make it into something that it's not.
Click to expand...

Maybe your not a monster... But please do us a favor and leave out the disgusting details of killing rats, mice, etc... I understand it sometimes needs to be done, but the way you did it I personally would consider cruel and the fact it lived through all of that torture makes me sick to my stomach...
 
I actually have two rats (Gibbs and Yogi) who I rescued, as I work in a lab that uses rats and mice (controversial yes, but it's my research). Holding them by their tails isn't cruel in any way whatsoever, and causes them no pain. With larger rats (jumbo) as the ones we used to feed my boa with, knocking them out that way, if discretely and done in a quick, short motion, is not at all "monster"-like. Certainly kinder than being strangled consciously. With larger rats, it is just more difficult to knock them unconscious. :(
 
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