Reptile & Amphibian Forums

k it seems to go well, i put it in 105 degree water (the pinky) for 2 1/2 minutes, put it in a small cd plastic cover thing, and then put the snake in, seems like hes always pissed when i pic him up but he still hasnt bit...

took him 10 min to swallow it, seems ok?

had to get pics of course!

i should be able to hold him late sunday like 6pm right? i fed him at 9pm on friday

10 minutes sounds ok to me - if a little on the long side. Meals should be about 1 to 1.5 times the girth of the snake (IOW - you should see a visible lump). If the snake didn't have any problems eating the mouse, it should be fine. As far as handling goes, you want to wait AT LEAST 24 hours. For young snakes, you should wait a day or two more just because they are more likely to regurge if handled too soon.

He looks great!

Thanks, the lump is long and not much bigger then him

You may want to try offering him a couple more pinks too... Most kings will gladly accept multiple food items in one sitting. I generally let my snakes decide when they have had enough to eat; usually that is two to four rodents of an appropriate size every week.
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- Natalie
(San Francisco Bay Area)

1.0 Banded California King
1.0 Mexican Black King
1.0 Goini Kingsnake
1.0 Bay of LA Rosy Boa
0.1 San Ignacio Rosy Boa
0.1 Ortiz Rosy Boa
2.3 Kenyan Sand Boas
0.1 Saharan Sand Boa
1.2 Rubber Boas
0.1 Pickering's Gartersnake

Nice striper! That sized meal is perfect. I would wait until he poops before handling him. You can feed him a pinkie once a week or twice a week. Any more than that is up to you.
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Muhammad Ali

When my cals were that size I just fed them and left them only other then to clean cages... I waited till they were bigger to start handling them on a regular basis, mainly because I tend to be clumsy and figured they were much safer in their cages... They're both over 3 feet long now and the male has always been calm, the female just recently accepted being handled without musking everywere first...

What I'm gettin at is if that little guy were mine, I'd leave him be... I wouldn't want to stress him out to much...

Beautiful snake btw
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~Maggie~

"Not one shred of evidence supports the notion that life is serious."
1.1 Cal Kings
1.0 Brooksi
0.1 Red Belly Piranha
1.0 Australian Shepherd

I agree, I just want him to be aware there's a wrong time to handel them. When I was younger I used to take my snakes out all the time and handel them. I used to get pooped on a lot too. lol I don't do much handling these days. I like to set their cages up real nice and just view them from there, but I do occasionally pull them out and look them over to be sure they're doing fine.
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Muhammad Ali

I must be sleeping, I thought I'd replied to him lol...

The biggest reason I don't handle mine that much is because since my horse threw me last summer, I have some trouble with my balance and coordination... It would really suck to be holding one and lose my balance and drop it, or worse squish it... I wasn't all that graceful before, and I think about one more concussion will render me not responsible for my actions anymore, so my snakes are better off in their cages were I can look at them and not have to do anything but clean and feed...
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~Maggie~

"Not one shred of evidence supports the notion that life is serious."
1.1 Cal Kings
1.0 Brooksi
0.1 Red Belly Piranha
1.0 Australian Shepherd

These message boards are set up kind of funny, no worries. Sorry to hear about your accident. I hope you make a full recovery.
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Muhammad Ali

Thanks... its been almost a year now and as long as I make it to my chriopractor appointments, its not too bad...

As for the forum setup, I don't have a problem with it when I'm paying attention...
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~Maggie~

"Not one shred of evidence supports the notion that life is serious."
1.1 Cal Kings
1.0 Brooksi
0.1 Red Belly Piranha
1.0 Australian Shepherd

same here I hope your doing okay..

I heard if you over feed, it shortens their lifespan a lot, i heard 1 pinky 4-6 days, they could live to be 25, when you start giving them 2 per meal, shortens to 5-10 years.

Is this true? also, hes def. going to get handled, i wouldve never bought him if i didnt want to hang out with him haha.

Thank you...

I haven't heard anything about overfeeding shortening their life span, but I guess if you let them get obese it wouldn't be good for them... I just fed mine whatever they'll eat so they get bigger quicker...
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~Maggie~

"Not one shred of evidence supports the notion that life is serious."
1.1 Cal Kings
1.0 Brooksi
0.1 Red Belly Piranha
1.0 Australian Shepherd