Feeding in Tub vs. Separate Container

[snakehobbyist]

I am in the process of switching my corns into their tubs on my rack. I had to fix the rack because two escaped (they were barely in there for a week). Now that it's back into working order, they will be moving in tonight. I usually feed them in a separate container. Do I need to continue to do this or can I feed them in their tubs? I worry about cage aggression. I know my ball pythons don't get cage aggression so I feed them in their tubs on my rack but I want to know if corns are the same way. I have a female who ALWAYS poops in her feeding container while she waits for dinner and it's such a hassle to go in and clean then disinfect it while trying to find another container for her. It's just so much easier to open the tub they are in and feed them then close it again. Anyway, sorry for rambling!

 

[Jaded_Heart]

I do it both ways. I feed in-tub unless its major cleaning week. Then its easier to move them. Feed. Then return them to a clean tub. I have not noticed any reliable correlation to cage aggression from tub feeding. I have 2 corns that have an insane feeding responded. But my other 9 are typical sweeties

 

[snakehobbyist]

Out of my 5 corns, only one is super feeding aggressive. I literally have to pour her out of her feeding container into her cage or else she WILL tag me. She will even try to tag me through the container. She's really the one I worry about. The other four will let me pick them up and transfer them no problem.

 

[Lennycorn]

I do it both ways. I feed in-tub unless its major cleaning week. Then its easier to move them. Feed. Then return them to a clean tub. I have not noticed any reliable correlation to cage aggression from tub feeding. I have 2 corns that have an insane feeding responded. But my other 9 are typical sweeties

I concur, it depends on the snake more or less.

 

[pheonix]

I feed in tub. I don't believe in cage aggression. Lol I have 2 very aggressive feeders. The big one has actually bit the tub before. When I reach in to get her, I just don't act like my hands a mouse. Lol I just grab her. She has never tagged me. The other one has, but I have reason to believe she is just a dumb snake. Haha! To take them out and put them into another cage is dumb in my opinion unless it helps you out. That means that after you feed them, you have to "handle" them to put them back into their tub. Which you're not supposed to do. Lol

 

[snakehobbyist]

So would you suggest I feed the one female who is food aggressive in another tub? I just don't want every time I go to handle her for her to tag me because she thinks I'm dinner. It doesn't hurt now because she's only 30g...but a 300g snake lunging at my fingers is bound to hurt.

 

[Mutumbo]

my male will hit a mouse as i drop it in, sometimes before it hits the floor. hes super aggressive toward food. and has bitten me a few times in the past, mostly because i think he was hungry more than anything, not because he was confused. ive stepped up his feeding schedule slightly, and his mood has greatly improved. my female acts almost as if shes scared of a moving mouse. she will shy away from a zombie mouse, for some reason. i know for a fact that she has never eaten anything other than F/T, so idk what her problem is, but anyway, ill just put the mouse in there and she will get around to eating it when she pleases, so long story short, neither of my snakes are food aggressive toward me, so long as they arent hungry, haha.

 

[toxiclight]

I feed mine in their vivs. Mine have a strong enough feeding response, but have never tried to tag me (except for one, who really doesn't like to be handled at all).

 

[Nanci]

I feed in tub. I don't believe in cage aggression.

I wish I could invite you to come open the door of my Florida King Janine's cage...

I don't think snakes are "stupid," I just think some like to take advantage of a perceived feeding opportunity more than others.

 

[Chip]

I feed in tub. I don't believe in cage aggression.

I have had more than a couple that were flat out cage defensive at very least, but none have been corns. Asian rats are notorious for it, and getula kings can certainly be. That said, I don't believe in cage aggression from being fed in their viv. Which might have been what you were trying to say. Do what works for you and your snakes.

 

[Nanci]

You're invited too!!

 

[Chip]

Not to play my dad can beat up your dad, but an 8 foot Elaphe just isn't going to be less inclined to bite my face because I put him in something else at dinner time. Assuming I could even get him in a feeding container. :laugh:

 

[Nanci]

This is a super-gentle snake. I'm not saying she wouldn't bite if placed in a feeding container. I'm saying she will bite anything that moves if you go anywhere near her viv. Scares the c out of me every time! (If I get down a cookbook or do something on the counter or whatever).

 

[Nanci]

And she wasn't like that when she was in the regular rack and not used day in, day out as the clean-up snake.

 

[Chip]

Do you feed her in a separate viv too?

 

[Nanci]

Nope. Only when she falls out of her cage attacking the tongs! Then I put her on the kitchen floor. She can strike with such force/momentum that she will rip a mouse in half and flal to the counter with it. Once she's actually out, she's safe.

 

[snakehobbyist]

Man, I wish my girl was like that. She's fine until I get her into the container. Then, when I open it up, she's already lunging at my fingers to get the mouse. Then, if I open it again to move her back into her cage, she's still lunging at my fingers.

 

[Nanci]

Man, I wish my girl was like that. She's fine until I get her into the container. Then, when I open it up, she's already lunging at my fingers to get the mouse. Then, if I open it again to move her back into her cage, she's still lunging at my fingers.

I have several corns like that. I get them out and into their feeding containers before starting to thaw. Once they know it's feeding day, for _anyone_, they are going to bite.

After feeding, if I let them settle for 30-60 minutes, they get out of feeding mode and are safe to put back in their vivs. Otherwise, I either pour them back into their bins or pick them up with a hook. It's the moving hand that makes them strike.

I feed in bins because it gives me an opportunity to remove the water bowls and scrub them, and spot clean the bins. Also, if I set out all the feeding bins on my list, then feed everyone that goes into those bins, no one gets left out. If all my feeding groups align on one day, I am feeding about 40 adults. It's just way easier for me to keep track of them. Plus, I like to get a weight at every feeding. I am able to spot trouble much faster if I actually have my hands on a snake.

 

[AliCat37]

I know that the conversation has moved on a bit, but has anyone noticed a difference in feeding in tubs versus in display tanks? I've noticed that the ones in the sliding door vivs are much more eager to give me a love bite than the ones in the rack. Don't know why.
I think it could depend on the individual snake. I had one that I *really* did not like feeding in the cage, and when I sold her I recommended that she be fed separately. But all my current ones could care less. Envy has a nice feeding response, but she tends to ignore my hand once I lift up her hide. I think she knows that that means there's no food.

 

[Chip]

It's been a while since I've used a big Vision for a corn, but I can say for SURE that the yearlings I put in glass front display vivs are "bite first and ask if it's a mouse later" feeders.