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lindsey_marshall00
Joined: 05 Jul 2006
Posts: 568
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 Posted: Tue Jul 25, 2006 10:11 am Post subject: my peanut |
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this is my peanut-he was a little impaitent come feeding time and took it apon himself to engage in dinner..I had to wait until he was through killing the mouse before moving him--I did not want him to try for my hand. 
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Moshi
Joined: 23 Jul 2006
Posts: 303
Location: Pinellas Park Fl
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| Posted: Tue Jul 25, 2006 10:35 pm Post subject: |
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Ha! I knew it!
my mom said she (my ball python, Takara) was only big enough to eat pinkys. I think our snakes are about the same size... Takara is 19 inches long how big is Peanut?
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lindsey_marshall00
Joined: 05 Jul 2006
Posts: 568
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| Posted: Wed Jul 26, 2006 9:13 am Post subject: |
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He is around 22" long.. I was told that a snake can eat a mouse that is no wider than the fattest part of his/her body. I have a 6'9" red tail that eats a very large and disscusting size rat-she will be moving to rabbits next feeding. 
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deborahbroadus
Moderator
Joined: 16 Jul 2006
Posts: 6746
Location: Baltimore, MD
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| Posted: Wed Jul 26, 2006 3:54 pm Post subject: |
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| lindsey_marshall00 wrote: | | He is around 22" long.. I was told that a snake can eat a mouse that is no wider than the fattest part of his/her body. I have a 6'9" red tail that eats a very large and disscusting size rat-she will be moving to rabbits next feeding. |
That is correct. 8)
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Moshi
Joined: 23 Jul 2006
Posts: 303
Location: Pinellas Park Fl
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| Posted: Wed Aug 02, 2006 12:04 am Post subject: |
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I wonder if my pet store will let me compare the size of my snake to the mice they have labled as "small".
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deborahbroadus
Moderator
Joined: 16 Jul 2006
Posts: 6746
Location: Baltimore, MD
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| Posted: Wed Aug 02, 2006 5:18 am Post subject: |
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| Moshi wrote: | | I wonder if my pet store will let me compare the size of my snake to the mice they have labled as "small". |
Suggestion: Hold the snake, use some string to measure the girth in your hand. Take the string with you to the pet store, and hold a mouse then measure the girth with the string. or Just hold the snake and get a general idea of the width of his middle.
p.s. Does your pet store sell feeders? Mine made me sign a statement saying that I was buying the mouse for a pet when my grandson inadvertly let it slip that we were feeding our snake.  I go to the feeder store now. *and yeah, I fed it to my baby anyway*
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lindsey_marshall00
Joined: 05 Jul 2006
Posts: 568
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| Posted: Wed Aug 02, 2006 8:32 am Post subject: |
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Peanut will eat anything I put in front of him-as long as it does not try to eat him first..If you feel that the mouse may be a "biter" then ( a little harsh here) knock his head against something ( side of tank) not enough to kill but only to stun for a moment so that the snake can "pop" him.
This is a little hard to do when the snake gets big and starts eating larger animals. I have a 7 foot red tail and she just had to eat a very large Guinea pig..thank god my husband was there to knock it around.
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deborahbroadus
Moderator
Joined: 16 Jul 2006
Posts: 6746
Location: Baltimore, MD
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| Posted: Wed Aug 02, 2006 8:48 am Post subject: |
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| lindsey_marshall00 wrote: | Peanut will eat anything I put in front of him-as long as it does not try to eat him first..If you feel that the mouse may be a "biter" then ( a little harsh here) knock his head against something ( side of tank) not enough to kill but only to stun for a moment so that the snake can "pop" him.
This is a little hard to do when the snake gets big and starts eating larger animals. I have a 7 foot red tail and she just had to eat a very large Guinea pig..thank god my husband was there to knock it around. |
I don't think that's harsh; it's necessary, and helps those that are sensitive feel that they are helping the rat bear it's fate. I was doing that at first too, but some of those buggers were fighters! A few escaped (I caught them) It was getting more difficult to knock them out as they got bigger. My babies are eating rats that almost weight about a quarter of a pound and they are BIG suckers. If one bit me, I wouldn't be trying to knock it out gently..I would be pounding it with a hammer! 
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lindsey_marshall00
Joined: 05 Jul 2006
Posts: 568
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| Posted: Wed Aug 02, 2006 9:09 am Post subject: |
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We don't have a problem with the mice we feed Peanut-he will let them wear themselves out before hitting them but the other two will try to hit as soon as you put it in there..we are not starving them, they are just impatient. We use the large end of a loooooonng skrewdriver to hit the big rats and now guinea pigs.
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deborahbroadus
Moderator
Joined: 16 Jul 2006
Posts: 6746
Location: Baltimore, MD
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| Posted: Wed Aug 02, 2006 9:13 am Post subject: |
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| lindsey_marshall00 wrote: | | We don't have a problem with the mice we feed Peanut-he will let them wear themselves out before hitting them but the other two will try to hit as soon as you put it in there..we are not starving them, they are just impatient. We use the large end of a loooooonng skrewdriver to hit the big rats and now guinea pigs. |
Lindsey, we don't think you starving them. You seem to be a responsible pet owner.  Some balls are just what we call: "agressive feeders"
"Looooooong screwdriver" I HEARD that. These things have a wicked bite, and they can dodge like a dodgeball professional!
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Moshi
Joined: 23 Jul 2006
Posts: 303
Location: Pinellas Park Fl
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| Posted: Wed Aug 02, 2006 3:01 pm Post subject: |
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My mom had to thump the mice for Sneeky. She wouldnt eat them dead or while they just walked around.
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RonCrawford
Site Admin
Joined: 04 May 2006
Posts: 2020
Location: Pottsville, PA (USA)
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| Posted: Wed Aug 02, 2006 3:21 pm Post subject: |
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While everyone is on the subject of rats, I thought I'd share a pic of a rat that was actually fed to one of my 4,000 gram female ball pythons. The rat was a breeder but his unacceptable behavior got him a free pass out of my rodent breeding program. The shoe in the photo is a men's size 13 for comparison. He was a BIG rat! 
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deborahbroadus
Moderator
Joined: 16 Jul 2006
Posts: 6746
Location: Baltimore, MD
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| Posted: Wed Aug 02, 2006 3:32 pm Post subject: |
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I'm a believer! "Unacceptable behavior?" I take it he was agressive? That's part of what scares me about raising them. What if I breed a Willard!? ((imagination getting away from me again)).
Mo'Money is fed on Jumbo rats. I wouldn't want to have to wrestle one of them!
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RonCrawford
Site Admin
Joined: 04 May 2006
Posts: 2020
Location: Pottsville, PA (USA)
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| Posted: Wed Aug 02, 2006 3:40 pm Post subject: |
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| deborahbroadus wrote: | I'm a believer! "Unacceptable behavior?" I take it he was agressive? That's part of what scares me about raising them. What if I breed a Willard!? ((imagination getting away from me again)).
Mo'Money is fed on Jumbo rats. I wouldn't want to have to wrestle one of them! |
When the rat cages are cleaned, the entire colony from the tank are moved to a temporary tub while their cage is cleaned. This rat in particular kept jumping upwards of 3ft in an effort to escape. He tried countless times so he was retired early for his actions. I keep a docile rodent colony and any escapers, biters, etc. are retired early.
I would NEVER try to feed a rat of this size as a live prey item to my ball pythons. Yes, they can take live prey this size but the rat would most certainly do some damage in the interim. Just take a look at the scars on most imported wild caught ball pythons.
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deborahbroadus
Moderator
Joined: 16 Jul 2006
Posts: 6746
Location: Baltimore, MD
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| Posted: Wed Aug 02, 2006 11:49 pm Post subject: |
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| RonCrawford wrote: | | deborahbroadus wrote: | I'm a believer! "Unacceptable behavior?" I take it he was agressive? That's part of what scares me about raising them. What if I breed a Willard!? ((imagination getting away from me again)).
Mo'Money is fed on Jumbo rats. I wouldn't want to have to wrestle one of them! |
When the rat cages are cleaned, the entire colony from the tank are moved to a temporary tub while their cage is cleaned. This rat in particular kept jumping upwards of 3ft in an effort to escape. He tried countless times so he was retired early for his actions. I keep a docile rodent colony and any escapers, biters, etc. are retired early.
I would NEVER try to feed a rat of this size as a live prey item to my ball pythons. Yes, they can take live prey this size but the rat would most certainly do some damage in the interim. Just take a look at the scars on most imported wild caught ball pythons. |
I heartly concur. They must not try to escape, nor bite, but go meekly to their deaths, resigned to their fates in the meantime, or they will get that fate earlier. However, if they are meek and resigned to their fates, they may live a few days longer. LOL Do you blame the rat?? lol That was Willard!
Joking aside, I do understand. However, I still would not want to deal with live rats of that size. That is one of the main reasons that I switched to F/T.
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