• Hello!

    Either you have not registered on this site yet, or you are registered but have not logged in. In either case, you will not be able to use the full functionality of this site until you have registered, and then logged in after your registration has been approved.

    Registration is FREE, so please register so you can participate instead of remaining a lurker....

    Please be certain that the location field is correctly filled out when you register. All registrations that appear to be bogus will be rejected. Which means that if your location field does NOT match the actual location of your registration IP address, then your registration will be rejected.

    Sorry about the strictness of this requirement, but it is necessary to block spammers and scammers at the door as much as possible.

awful shed last night, i can never tell when he's gonna shed

7legion77

7legion77

New member
I've had Wraith for about 3 months by now. His first shed caught me by surprise. He's a snow corn so the eye caps are translucent, he never gets "blue" and his scales never seem any shinier or duller.

During his first shed, about 2 weeks ago, I made the mistake of feeding him two live mice. It took him several tries to get the second one. After a while, I handled him and noticed some nicks on his skin, nothing serious at all but they might have been bites, which i guess precipitated an early next shed, which happened yesterday.
I handled him, he was acting normal, and then suddenly some of his skin starts to peel off and I'm surprised to realize he's shedding. So I put him back in the tank, but a wet towel in there, but he has the hardest time making the skin come off. It ended up in ragged pieces all over the tank. When I came home from work there was some stuck to his face and it took several tries for me to get it off (which really annoyed him and stressed him out)

Since he's moved on to adult mice, (mice really scare me and I cannot actually touch them) for him to never get bitten again, I've taken to throwing it in his tank and then bashing it with a wrench, to hopefully kill it, but I haven't succeeded yet, usually the mouse ends up maimed and mangled dying a slow inhumane death :awcrap: but it doesn't stand a fighting chance and wraith will come and finish it off.
 
7legion77 said:
I've had Wraith for about 3 months by now. His first shed caught me by surprise. He's a snow corn so the eye caps are translucent, he never gets "blue" and his scales never seem any shinier or duller.

During his first shed, about 2 weeks ago, I made the mistake of feeding him two live mice. It took him several tries to get the second one. After a while, I handled him and noticed some nicks on his skin, nothing serious at all but they might have been bites, which i guess precipitated an early next shed, which happened yesterday.
I handled him, he was acting normal, and then suddenly some of his skin starts to peel off and I'm surprised to realize he's shedding. So I put him back in the tank, but a wet towel in there, but he has the hardest time making the skin come off. It ended up in ragged pieces all over the tank. When I came home from work there was some stuck to his face and it took several tries for me to get it off (which really annoyed him and stressed him out)

Since he's moved on to adult mice, (mice really scare me and I cannot actually touch them) for him to never get bitten again, I've taken to throwing it in his tank and then bashing it with a wrench, to hopefully kill it, but I haven't succeeded yet, usually the mouse ends up maimed and mangled dying a slow inhumane death :awcrap: but it doesn't stand a fighting chance and wraith will come and finish it off.
Click to expand...

Because I don't want dead mice in my freezer, I don't want to handle frozen mice and watch them thaw in warm water, thats kind of disgusting to me.

And honestly, we're all being cruel here. You're buying mice from someone who had to kill them one way or another.
I admit it's a horrible death for the mouse, I need to figure out a way to prekill it without actually touching it.
 
Also, I honestly believe prekilled is the best way to go. There has to be a difference for the snake between a TV dinner and fresh meal, you know what I mean?
 
I sense 2 possibilities from this post.

1. Snakes aren't the right pet for you.

2. This is a troll thread and ought to be ignored by all.

My bet is on #2
 
I am thinking that knox is right, snakes are definitely not the pets for you.
That, or considering that this is your first post and you come on here and your topic has nothing to do with your post that you are, indeed, a troll. Not to mention that snakes don't shed every two weeks, especially when on adult mice.
 
i love my snake, have enjoyed it immensely. i have every right to own a snake and i feel hurt and insulted by your replies.
 
Snow are hard to see going into blue but you can chart it. that will help the next time.

Also don't feed your snake live, they will get injured.

Also don't feed you snake two food items (mice), try to feed proper size.

Also don't handle your snake for two days after feeding.

Also you could bumping up the humidity to help with bad shed
(do a seach on how to do that).

Also ....nice knowing ya fella.
 
Last edited:
I would also find and reptile store or person who breeds mice who can show you the proper way to kill mice with out inflicting the type of cruelty you are.
 
Last edited:
Well, there are humane ways to kill mice before feeding them to the snake and using a wrench isnt one of them. You can use the search feature at the top of the page to find a better way of killing them. If you dont like touching the mice, then I have to agree with Knox perhaps a snake isnt the right pet because mice is what snakes eat.

Not much difference having frozen chicken, pig, beef or rodents in the freezer. They all keep the same in the freezer!
 
Oi. I know sometimes people are quick to jump to conclusions on posts that seem...off, but I'll assume this is not a troll. Hope OP doesn't prove me wrong.

Legion, in case you are not a troll, here's some advice. Of course if you are trolling, you can just invert it all ;P . The cursing at members thing is greatly frowned on.

Tough love: If you really think snake keeping is right for you, you really do need to man up and do what needs to be done. If you are going to feed pre-killed, you have got to find a decent way of killing. Being grossed out by mice is *fine* but it is not fine to let your squeamishness endanger the pet you love. If your snake is getting bitten by pre-killed rodents, you are doing it wrong.

You may want to invest in a CO2 chamber to euthanize the mice. You could in theory pick them up with tongs, plop them in, turn it on, mouse is dead, pick it up with tongs, no need to touch and your snake gets a fresh killed meal at no risk. There are tons of threads on here about how to construct such a device, or where to buy. Either that, or man up and learn how to bash in skulls effectively, if you want pre-killed.

Frozen/thawed really is recommended though. It's cost-effective, easy for you, easy for snake, and perfectly healthy for snakes. Plenty of long time experienced breeders on here who know way more than my noobishness have been feeding snakes frozen/thawed and they thrive. It's just like any frozen/thawed meat when kept properly (not so much like TV dinners, ya know, more like a frozen slab of fish that you prep however you want). No stranger than keeping frozen chicken and cow and pig parts. Seal it up in a discrete, non-transparent little container and shove it deep in your freezer and you won't know it's there except on feeding days. On feeding days, thaw it out in water, set a timer, don't watch it thawing, and it's just like feeding pre-killed only you don't have to listen to it squeal.

Tell yourself "circle of life", hold your breath, and do what needs to be done.

Now for shedding, man, I don't know what to tell you. I would have a hard time with a snow, my caramel is hard enough and his eyes go plainly blue. Do the eyes turn at all pinkish when getting ready to shed? I've heard of red-eye snakes doing that. Maybe the texture of the skin changes subtly? I think my snake feels a bit more "waxy" when blue, but it's subtle to be sure. Any behavior changes, like staying hidden when normally out?
 
Easy fix, actually. Try Snake Sausages...proper nutrition for your snake, completely safe, and are not "gross" when in your freezer. There is absolutely no having to deal with mice at all, dead or alive.
 
Have to agree that f/t is a better way to go. The way that you are going is inhumane to the mice. The way the mice are killed are humane in a way that they are not "being bashed in with a wrench to lay there and wither." Plus, with f/t you don't have to worry about your snake getting hurt. I had my red tail on live and the first time she ever got bit was the last time she was ever fed live and she had no problem switching over to f/t. It's actually not that gross to have them in your freezer. They are in bags and you can always put a towel over them so as not to see them.
 
Nice to see there's some rational people on this forum who aren't so judgmental and elitist.

Sorry for swearing, I was just hurt because I enjoy my snake so much, and having people tell me basically "you are too inferior to have a snake" is quite the buzzkill!

Heh he wasn't getting bit by "prekilled" mice, that was before I started prekilling them. But feeding live was always a nerve-racking experience. Adult mice look so agile and alert like they could easily injure a snake, while the snake tries to rely purely on stealth & muscle. Plus its unnatural.
I'll try to detect signs and raise the humidity in the tank.

Perhaps I'll get over my phobia, put on gloves and try to snap their neck, because when I die I sure hope my death would be instant and painless. Circle of life indeed.

Thanks for the advice.
 
And I am serious, I am sure there is someone in your area that can teach you how to do it properly. It is not a fun job no matter what, which is why I feed f/t but there are a couple ways to do it properly.
 
i don't understand how keeping mice in the freezer is disgusting to you, though, feeding your corn live ones is fine. what if one of the mice scratches your snake and blinds it?
 
spacecadet said:
i don't understand how keeping mice in the freezer is disgusting to you, though, feeding your corn live ones is fine. what if one of the mice scratches your snake and blinds it?
Click to expand...

that is exactly why my red tail doesnt get live anymore. the last live one she got scratched her near her eye and that was the last one she ever got alive. she is on f/t now. i keep mine in the freezer with a towel over them and i have a variety of guineas, large mice, hoppers, and pinkies
 
Beating them half dead with a wrench? That's messed up how could a phobia of mice allow you to get so close and do that. My girlfriend is afraid of spiders and she can't be in the same room as them let alone beat one to death.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top