is it bad for the snake to eat while hes in shed he always eats whenever i tryt to feed him? thanks in advance
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0.1 Black Back
1.0 Yellow Belly
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feeding in shed?
Triton20x
Oct 10, 2009 05:33 PM
Replies (5)
DMong
Oct 10, 2009 06:14 PM
No, not at all. It doesn't hurt anything in the least bit if they eat while in full blue.
~Doug
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"Better to be silent and thought a fool, than to open mouth and remove any doubt!"
brhaco
Oct 11, 2009 08:20 AM
No-but I try to keep the meal smaller than normal, to avoid any stretching of the newly-forming epidermal layer.
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Brad Chambers
WWW.HCU-TX.ORG
The Avalanche has already started-it is too late for the pebbles to vote....
tspuckler
Oct 11, 2009 07:05 PM
The conventional wisdom says that the danger is if the old skin rips before the snake sheds. Some people think there's a greater chance of that happening if the snake has a meal in it and the skin is stretched.
Although I don't see any big risk when feeding a snake in a shed cycle, I tend not to. During a shed cycle snakes are more withdrawn and prone to hiding - it's unlikely that they'd be hunting for food in the wild at this time. I think sometimes it's good idea to give them a break from a constant supply of food and when they're going through a shed cycle is a convenient time to give them this break.
Tim
Third Eye
Godfrey
Oct 12, 2009 02:07 PM
I feel that most snakes in their natural environment are not active while in ecdysis. While many captive snakes will readily accept a meal during this time this is most likely just the instinct to eat whenever food makes itself available. The reasons for not feeding during ecdysis mentioned above as well as the potential for regurgitation are enough to prevent me from feeding during the shed cycle. No snake is going to suffer from going seven to ten days without a meal. Just my thoughts.
mrkent
Oct 19, 2009 09:39 PM
In my experience, young snakes are more likely to eat while in shed, so I go ahead and feed them. As they approach adult size, they are less likely to be interested. As the other posters said, it doesn't hurt them to go 7-10 days without eating.
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Kent
0.1 Hypomelanistic striped cornsnake
1.0 Lavender cornsnake
1.2 Gray-banded kingsnakes, blairs phase
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