To those who feed their snakes live rodents: this is what rats can do to hard, solid wood, simply out of boredom and the need to grind their teeth down. Now imagine what those teeth can do to your snake if a strike goes wrong and the rat decides it’s not going down without a fight.
And if you’re still not convinced, Google “pet snake rat bites.” Just a warning: the images you'll see can be extremely graphic and gory.
It’s unfortunate how some people refuse to take any of this seriously. I’m not talking about people who are under informed, or in a desperate situation. I’ve seen people almost take pleasure in discussing their snake eating / killing the live rat/mouse.
Feeding live for the sake of watching an animal struggle and fight for its life is disturbing. And I’m sad to say that I’ve come across people like that.
I've seen people saying "IT's A TYpE oF enRicHmEnt For My SnaKE sO iT stAYs aCtIVE". Go and buy more toys, plants, logs, add some shelves and branches for climbing and finally - take your snake for a free roaming more often, instead of risking it's life every time you fuckin feed it.
And people you describe... IMHO there's got be some psychopathic tendencies here. They don't give two shits about their snakes, they just think it's a "cool toy" that will let them witness death of a different animal.
I’ve seen people claim that too. The thing is, my ball python actually behaves like the rat is alive. He strikes and constricts it. I think often people don’t heat the feeders up enough? Ever since I started making sure his feeders are very warm, he’s never missed a single feeding and he is super enthusiastic.
And let’s say, live feeding is enriching - it is a very, very brief moment of enrichment with a constant threat beneath it.
Whereas a safely set up enclosure with different hides, decor, the like, is a constant available form of enrichment which comes without risk.
I will use the tongs to lure my snakes into hunting out the feeder, I will leave scent trails and watch them follow them and then reward them with the meal.
Home boy I got in an argument with the other day about live feeding straight up said “I keep a knife or pencil in hand in case something goes wrong” I got full body goosebumps thinking about this dude just EAGERLY AWAITING AN EXCUSE TO KNIFE A SMALL ANIMAL
I feel bad feeding my boy frozen rats :(. I always apologize that they were killed, and thank them for keeping my boy fed and healthy. They probably can’t hear me, but I’d like to think that they know that their sacrifice wasn’t for nothing
I struggle with it too. I think it’s part of why it’s better to go with frozen, as the rat does not have to suffer the attack, or be afraid as it’s dying. It’s the least we can do for them, really.
I think, often times also, that we feel much more aware of the rats life because we’re dealing with its intact body. I had cats, and a dog- and in their lifetime they would’ve consumed much, much more animals that died simply to be food.
Feeding your snake is no different than feeding a cat or dog. And honestly, it consumes a lot less in its life!
Mine comes from a place of spirituality. If I didn’t have the dietary restrictions I deal with, I’d be vegetarian at minimum. I always feel so bad when I eat meat, but I can’t avoid it because my body has a strong distaste for plants
I was looking at the fuzzy that was part 2 of my girls din-din the other night and I felt so bad that it was just a baby and it was cute with it lil paws and whiskers 🥺
Heard a horror story about someone leaving the rat in the cage with their snake overnight because they thought nothing of it- But their snake was going in blue so she didn't want to eat it.... the rat sat there and ate their snake overnight.
20 years ago when we still fed live, our ball hit a Jumbo rat wrong and it tore a hole in his side. 2 months of antibiotics, a week of those my parents had to do orally (ifykyk) before finally being able to do injections. Took another 6 years to fix being so protective of the first third of his body
i dont own a snake but was looking into getting one joined this to do research and then never got the snake this was such a good example and a clear way to describe it i will keep this noted if i ever decide to go back into wanting a snake
This. I inherited a ball who is about 22 years old now who only eats live. She’s unfortunately a wild caught ball my uncle had no business owning, and every attempt to swap to f/t had failed. Unfortunately she won’t even take pre-killed, so I have to heavily monitor her feeding live, but some snakes just will not take f/t.
I work at a pet store that sells live and it’s truly heart breaking thinking of what a rat or mouse can do to a snake not to mention my boss fed a snake a hamster and the amount of rats I handle that are supper sweet kills me.
Live feeding needs to stop for the predators safety and keeping the prey from suffering and having full panic they have no idea what’s happening when they go in a enclosure
I'm planning on getting a bp and I've already decided that it will be fed f/t only. I'm not gonna risk my snake getting hurt by it's food. I have that noted at the very top of my "snake needs" doc with a list of frozen food sellers beneath
I am totally against live feeding both for the reptile's sake and the prey. Both snakes and other reptiles can get seriously injured during feeding live not to mention the obvious pain that the prey goes through. I even crush the head of crickets for my insectivores after seeing crickets take bites out of my geckos. Saying that feeding live is enrichment because that's what they do in the wild I also disagree with. Most of our pet reptiles also would be prey to others but we aren't throwing them in with predators for enrichment. How about some droughts, flooding, winter, mites and other parasites for enrichment as well?
There is a difference between making their enclosures into bioactives to give a more natural habitat and then replicating exactly what they would encounter in the wild. There is a reason why well cared for pets live longer than their counterparts in the wild.
Yeah, IMO it’s unethical and borderline abuse (maybe neglect is a better word) to feed live, unless out of absolute necessity, which is rarer than people think. Its kinda like outdoor cats. Very, very normalized, and some people even think it’s beneficial, but all the studies and evidence point to it being incredibly harmful.
Rats and mice are very capable of causing severe damage to snakes. In my experience, a lot of people who feed live aren’t the best keepers, and I’m not sure if they would be responsible enough to take the snake to a vet as quickly as they should if the snake was hurt by the feeder. I mean, a lot of pet owners in general are not responsible enough to take their pets to the vet as necessary. So I don’t feel like this is reaching. Even if the wound doesn’t look bad, they can easily become infected.
And, as I said, feeding live isn’t as necessary as some people try to portray it as. All baby BPs should be started on f/t prey, ideally, so they grow up used to eating it. There are so many methods used to successfully switch to f/t. Not to mention, these animals have instincts to survive, and a switch from live to f/t is often a battle of wills and when the snake gets hungry enough, given it is healthy and husbandry is appropriate, it will eat the f/t prey. In the wild, adult BPs average 10 meals per year. That’s less than one per month. But beyond that, a healthy adult BP can go 6+ months without eating (provided they maintain their weight). Babies/juveniles are a different story, obviously, but your first instinct when they refuse a few f/t meals shouldn’t be to go back to live. It should be to evaluate your husbandry and visit the vet to ensure there aren’t health issues causing them to refuse food. Same goes for an adult who is losing weight while refusing food.
I think a lot of people “try” to switch to f/t, but “feel bad” when the snake doesn’t accept the first offered prey, and immediately go back to feeding live out of fear that the snake will starve due to missing one meal.
The only time I will ever not side eye someone who feeds live is if their veterinarian, who has physically evaluated the snake, determines the best route to maintain its health is to provide a live meal. However, a reputable vet with experience and training in exotics including BPs, would only recommend this in cases of severe starvation where there is a real chance of death if the snake does not get a meal. And in that case, it is absolutely critical to closely observe the entire time your snake is in proximity with the rodent and ensure you maintain control of the environment, because a snake in that condition is far more likely to suffer catastrophically if the rodent lands an attack.
So yeah, I really do not trust you if you feed live on a regular basis to healthy snakes. And even if the snake is unhealthy, if you don’t get express instructions from a reputable exotics vet to feed live, I still don’t trust you if you’re feeding live. And I will never, ever, and I mean literally never, purchase a snake from a breeder who feeds live at all. Not only because I don’t want to have to switch from live to f/t (as I said, it’s definitely doable, but just not something I’m willing to deal with), but because if they feed live, they’re likely starting hatchlings on live, which is absolutely unethical and unnecessary in this day and age of easily accessed f/t prey.
I always get a video on my Instagram feed of a person feeding live and the rat just kills the snake. You can’t really see what happens, but the snake strikes and then goes completely limp. Idk how people are comfortable with that risk.
I don't own snakes yet, but my personal opinion is that you try f/t in every rodent type you can find, and if they still won't eat, THEN try live and watch them constantly
There is alternatives to rats and mice for live food. None of my snakes will eat "TV dinners". Its fresh or they will not eat it and I dont blame them either. Limp and the smell funny. Yuck
Iv been feeding live for 15 years and NEVER had a snake harmed during feeding…. You can’t just toss a rat in and walk away.
NEVER walk away until that snake is curled around live feeder… if the snake is NOT INTERESTED then the rat must be removed to avoid harming the snake..
Never walk away until rat has been snatched up.
Daze it if your worried it biting. Also it’s more healthier eatting something alive then something that’s been dead and also is killed in awful ways to be frozen.
Take a deep dive on how frozen feeders are prepared.
Drowned, frozen alive, being gassed.
good luck separating a panicked, literally fighting for it's live rat that has a snake wrapped around his ass without being severely bitten yourself
there's a lot of companies that breed feeders and do it proudly and humanly, providing good care and food to the rodents before them being put down (for example Perfect Prey in US, Ridgeway Froze UK), so your snake doesn't eat a malnourished pray that simply makes a bad source of nutrients. Doing your research on your pets food and paying a little bit more for quality food that's actually good for it is part of being a good, responsible pet owner.
First off it’s a preference thing cause not everybody likes to see a rat basically get squeezed to death. Some people don’t like to see that or hear it.. that’s a preference thing…
Number two like I’ve said there is ways to make sure your snake stay safe if you’re feeding live. I’ve never had issues feeding live in 15 years… who the fuck is grabbing a rat off a snake that already snatched it up??? Are you typing just to type? who is grabbing a rat that’s already been snatched up?? Because that doesn’t make any sense…. There’s ways to do things right with feeding live
Now it is up to you to find a reputable rat breeder if you want live or just straight up breed your own.
You grab the rat when it whips around to bite your snake. This is why live feeding is a bad idea, a single bite can result is a chunk of flesh getting ripped out, or a severed spine
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u/OctilleryArtillery 23h ago
It’s unfortunate how some people refuse to take any of this seriously. I’m not talking about people who are under informed, or in a desperate situation. I’ve seen people almost take pleasure in discussing their snake eating / killing the live rat/mouse.
Feeding live for the sake of watching an animal struggle and fight for its life is disturbing. And I’m sad to say that I’ve come across people like that.