my mice are in love... too bad i gotta feed 'em to my snake in a couple days

Discussion in 'Pandora's Box' started by IGotTheCottons, Nov 29, 2002.

  1. I had to wear gloves for a while when I had my Kingsnake. She was mistreated for 3 years before I got her and I had to tame her. She would strike at me the best she could and got my hand between my thumb and index finger once. She emitted this smell that would stick to your skin for days, too. It was horrible. She finally calmed down and stopped with the smelly stuff. She never dug being around a lot of people though.



    LOL...the other night when I fed Caesar and Cleopatra, I split them up like always and fed them both. After Cleo was done, I reached into her feeding tub and she went for me, which is so unlike her. She was still hungry and I had no mice. She did it a couple of times. I was completely fried out of my head so I started talking to her. I was telling my snake to chill out, that I wasn't food, I was out of mice and that I was sorry. Once I got her near her tail, she chilled out and I put her up. I might not get so stoned next time I feed them. Or maybe I'll just bring more mice home.
     
  2. jakie won't eat mice anymore. he's all about the small rats... which i don't really see how they're very small, lol. he ate 1 yesterday (thank God). i was starting to get worried when he still wouldn't eat those mice like a week after he shed. i was pleased to see there was no hesitation with the rat. as soon as i dangled it infront of jake, it was history.
     
  3. IGotTheCottons, thank you very much for the info.

    At first, we were just supposed to be snake sitting, but we don't think the owners are going to return from their hippie trek around the country.

    I never intended to have a snake for a pet (not that I don't like them, but if it ain't free then it ain't my pet). So I'm not really that well studied on them.

    I was told not to handle her for a few days after being fed. (Good idea about leaving her when she strikes from her plant.. that'll be fun to watch). I try to pet and handle her as much as possible. She is a lot better than when we first got her, but she still comes back at me pretty fast if she's hungry.

    Hopefully by the time she is full-grown she'll be totally tame.

    So... a thick pair of gloves? So far I handle her barehanded and just put her down quickly if she comes back towards my hand.

    When she's in a non-violent mood, she usually is just trying to get out of her tank when I take the lid off. She doesn't even act like she notices me holding her.

    I've been brave enough to take her out and set her on my lap. I imagine that when I do take a hit from her I'll mellow out about being bitten. You can't even see her teeth but I'm petrified of them. lol One time she missed the mouse and struck herself. One of her microscopic teeth snagged a scale, and it didn't look like too much fun.

    Basically, if she does bite me is she going to do damage? Should I just let her bite and let her release instead of pulling her head off my arm? See... I don't know these answers so I'm just avoiding getting bitten at all costs.
     
  4. usually if you get bit when she's hungry it's because she mistook your hand for food... once she realizes she made a mistake she should let go. if not put a drop or two of some hard alchohol (not rubbing alchohol) on the top of her head and she should let go no problem. make sure to rub the alchohol off with a damp cloth afterwards.

    constrictors have lots of very tiny, needle-like teeth that are curved so they all point inwards towards their throat. this is to keep their food from escaping. if you get bit and try to pull her off it's only going to cause more damage and pain.

    i recommend picking up a booklet about your specific snake. you could probably find one at your local pet store... it'll give you all the info you need to keep her healthy and happy.

    and as for her being fully tame when she grows older... no animals are ever fully tame. you can get her used to being hadled, and by doing so greatly reduce the risk of an incident, but there's always a possibility of something happening.
     

  5. Point well taken.

    I guess I never thought it through that fully. I consider my dogs to be fully tame. But that's because I trust that they'll obey and when it gets right down to the survival of the fittest, I know who is gonna win.

    Fragile animals and I have not been a good match in the past precisely because of that.

    So far I think my snake knows that if she comes back towards my hand that she's getting put down quickly. (Not necessarily a part of some behavior managment objective, I just don't wanna get bit!)


    Little needle like teeth that point in? :eek: I think I'll use a glove before I decide to grow a set and take a hit from her.
     

  6. well, they usually do just bite and let go right away, so it's not entirely that bad. i got bit by a 7' reticulated python once. didn't do much but scare the hell outta me (it only got me on the forehead, so it didn't get a good hold, and let go). but yeah, gloves are good. eventually she'll get used to being handled regularly and not strike at you.
     
  7. That's why I'm trying to pet and handle her as much as possible.

    She really does tolerate being touched a lot better than when we first got her.

    In fact, I don't think she's necessarily coming back to bite when she comes to investigate. When I put her on my lap she just concentrated on one spot on my pant leg and flicked the hell out of her tongue. She didn't bite at all.

    I think she's just curious.

    But I usually don't react too well to being bitten. I stopped getting birds precisely because of that. (And that sucks because I like birds!)


    What bothers me most is that she seems to like to strike at my face. (An almost certain death warrant) So I just try to keep up with touching and handling her as much as she'll tolerate. Hopefully she'll mellow out as she matures.

    She is pretty awesome. And people think I'm brave for touching her. (I feel so manly! If they only knew I was a huge wuss!)
     
  8. yeah... a constrictor's primary target is the head... it makes it easier for them to control their food this way.

    i used to have a snake that would hiss and puff up if you went to pick it up, but would never try to strike... although he was a bit intimidating at first...

    when you handle her... does this involve picking her up and letting her crawl around your hands and such? or do you just take her out and set her on your lap?

    also, how often do you feed her, and how much does she eat?
     


  9. Yeah... she gets it right sometimes and it looks pretty cool. I give gently tugs on the mouse to give it a little fight. She just coils round it more and looks like she's about to pop it like a balloon.



    I still haven't gotten over the intimidation yet... and she doesn't make any noise at all! lol


    So far handling her usually consists of picking her up at about the middle of her length. She tightens up and comes right up (at first I was expecting like a cooked spaghetti noodle). Usually right to the rim of her tank, since that's where I almost ALWAYS put her when I pick her up. (I was brave enough for the lap trick twice). I have never let her bring her head close to my bare hand. I put a dishwashing latex glove in there and pet her with it (without my hand in it, when we first got her) and her teeth snagged the latex. I found I liked the feel of her and didn't want to squeeze her too hard through the glove.

    She has amazing balance and I usually let her slither through my hand and put her self right on the edge of the top of her tank. She likes to crawl around the rim of her tank and check out things that are outside her little prison. Usually she's looking for something to wrap her body up in so I have a hard time unraveling her to put her back in.

    The Christmas tree was a favorite... but she likes the phone wire that dangles by her tank and the venetian blind that is by the window she's near.

    While she's up on the rim of her tank I usually pick her up barely in the middle and let her slither through my hand. That feels really cool. I'm trying to teach her that being touched isn't a scary or dangerous thing.

    I just wish she'd teach me that as well. lol


    When we first got her she would eat 2 thawed "pinkies" once a week. Now she's up to 2 fat fuzzies or 3 small fuzzies about once a week. (She's been molting pretty frequently) I have fed her in as little as 4 days after last eating. But she just acts like she's looking around with urgency (weird, but I can tell) when she's hungry.

    Plus I gauge how quickly she comes back at me when touched, or how mischievously she looks when I look at her closely. When she's not hungry (or molting) she could care less if I'm staring at her. When she's hungry she puts herself in the "s" position and looks at me like "lunch time!"

    There have been times, however, that I thought she was hungry, but she wouldn't eat. Some times it's because I just haven't noticed that her eyes are cloudy and she's molting. Other times it's because she's not hungry. I tease her with the mouse by toughing her with it. If she's not hungry she bites and releases. And the poor mice died in vain.


    Thanks for the help!
     
  10. Let's see how these turn out. (I did cut they way back. I cropped and redused image size to take them from 1.2 megs to about 40-50k)

    The dust you see is the "shake n bake" from her latest hunt. lol The fattest part of her body is about as big around as the average thumb. When she's digested enough I'll try to get a picture of her stretched out.

    Now she's just looking at me pissed because I took her lid off and started taking pictures while she's digesting. (Poor thing... she's never regurgitated a meal on me so I must not be too rough on her)
     

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  11. Here's a closer one......
     

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  12. fuck dudes...


    i used to bread rats mice rabbits ..and feed them all to my snakes


    i had \\

    3 types of corn snake

    3 sinlon milks

    a cupple cal kings..banna faze

    2 pair of red tails

    and 3 big fucking burmise pythons....

    albino and het for green...



    i was taught alot by a friend who was reptile currator at the bronx zoo for 14 yrs...


    the reason your ball is not wanting to eat those mice....

    most likely is becose they are very very picky eaters and some times will get a fav meal and not eat anything elts for a long time....i had a ball once that dident eat for 2 yrs....thought she would die for sure ...

    then one day she just started eating again ...


    if you want to bread your own food for your snakes ...try rats alot easyer than mice

    but i can give you all the info you need to raise and sucsessfully bread ither...





    hey woody


    i keep tarintulas too!!!!

    have been keeping them for about 10 yrs...i like the ones you can hold...


    i used to let the kids play with the roase hairs alot!



    i love snakes

    and spiders

    right now i have a fire tarantula
    and a roseie boa


    if you want to freze mice ...i dont remember if someone elts posted this or not yet ...use dry ice....


    frezses them and kills them instantly just about....


    happy hunting...




    btw......big snakes love birds!!!!


    go to the feed store and get chicks for growing boas...


    and full size chickens for large pythons.....




    they will love them!
     

  13. sweet! I'm chicken shit enough of my rosie boa though.... whole chickens? **shudder**


    What is a ball? :eek: My snake chows down on them when she's hungry. I'll have to go back through for somebody with a ball... More than 2 years? Holy shit! I really must not know what a ball is. lol


    Thanks for the advice. It's good to know I can come here with questions. I found a couple of forums on reptiles that were helpful, but not very active.

    BTW, medusa decided to move some. (A kid with his new toy... if all these pics are taking too long to load I will delete some... I tried to make them small)
     
  14. Then I didn't even post the picture!
     

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  15. a ball is short for a ball python (the snake i have). thanks for the info. dirty D. i guess he liked that rat so much he wouldn't even look at the mice. lol. i'd be interested in learning how to breed rats so i don't always gotta go to the store to buy 'em. if you'd be kind enough to PM me the info. i'd appreciate it. i'm not looking for a lot, but enough so i could give him 1 a week and not have to worry about being overrun by 'em, and having to keep too many rats alive.

    i used to have a big ass burmese (9') and a retic. (7') that my dad kept in his bedroom closet. the retic. was mean as hell though... and the burmese didn't eat for 10 months. had us pretty scared for a while. we knew she could go that long without food, but we didn't know why she wouldn't eat.

    if you don't feel like buying chickens or the like you can try brushing a little chicken stock onto the mouse (or whatever) to give it the scent of poultry. this will kinda trick the snake into thinking it's eating a bird.

    i love snakes and spiders as well. my parents wont let me get a tarantula though. back in the day my dad used to have all kinds of snakes (poisonous and non). he was even bitten by a western diamond back once before i was born (he used to milk snakes for some place he used to work).

    some info. for budburner... once your snake has the mouse you don't really need to tug on it. she can feel her food's heart beat and won't let go until it's stopped beating.

    once you get a pair of gloves (ones her teeth wont penetrate) you should hold her a lot. let her crawl around your hands and arms. this is what will get her used to being held without her feeling threatened and trying to bite you. just be sure to keep her away from your face until this happens.

    also, maybe a couple artificial branches for your tank, 'cause the plant in the pics looks a little flimsy. it'll give her more to climb on, and it'd be more like a real tree.
     
  16. btw....holding the food by the tail and leting the snake take it from you is fine for good eaters....


    but big snakes can be very dangerous....birmese and retics get very aggresive when they are hungry....


    and sometimes balls wont eat for a cupple mounths just becouse you put them in a new home....they need time to acclimate...



    and with snakes food is mostly about smell...clean your hands before you handle them so you dont accidentaly smell like dinner
     

  17. Great info! I think I'm going to get gloves ASAP!

    And as for the plant.. I was beginning to think that myself. She was much smaller when we first got her. She used to have a log of sorts in there, but she started getting stuck while trying to slither under it after eating... so it's outta there.

    I really want a bigger tank too, but the previous owners said that's as big as she'll ever need.

    So some branches? Can they be from the yard or should I buy one?

    (Don't want a sick snake!)
     
  18. I don't tug on the mouse because I think it's necessary. I just think it's cool when she squeezes it and coils around it more.

    So they feel the heartbeat? **shudder**

    I guess that's one great natural sphygomonometer! lol
     

  19. branches from the yard or outdoors are infested with parasites that could cause some damage to your snake. the ones at the store are a bit expensive, but well worth it. they're specially treated to kill anything that mighta been living in 'em.

    as for the tank... the general rule of thumb with this is the tank should be 2/3 the length of the snake. (so if you have a 6' snake, you need a 4' long tank, etc.).
     
  20. Cool! Man thanks so much for the help!

    2/3 ey'... she'll be fine then. (At least so far.)

    I've searched for pictures of other rosie boa's and they don't seem to get too big. (perfect for me)

    I read that they are endangered species... is this true? Wouldn't it be illegal to have them for pets if that were the case?

    What a cool snake though. I can't believe I think a snake is beautiful... but she really is. Neat creature indeed!

    I think she'll like a bigger branch in her tank.... I hear her thinking "thank you Cottons.. Thank you!"

    I can't believe how big of a mouse she can eat. When I first switched her to fuzzies I was hoping she'd spit it out if it was too big. She stretched her head around it and chowed it down without a problem. What a sight!

    That's when she first got stuck under her old "log" because of the fat spot the fuzzie made. Poor thing.
     

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