I read many times that people with more than one adult snakes feed the prey that was not eaten by a snake to another snake.Now I would love to know and learn(although mine all eat diffrent sizes of prey at the moment)if there isn't an amount of danger to it by transmiting any kind of deseas to the other snake because the prey first was with another snake,if you know what I mean? Thanks!

not something I would do. Our 2 adult corns, along with the boa, are currently eating the same size prey. When 1 doesn't eat,,,we just throw it away. I'd rather waste the 99 cents than take a chance.

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Ken
"Some people spend an entire lifetime wondering if they made a difference in the world. But, the Marines don't have that problem." -- Ronald Reagan

Great,thanks.That's good to know and very important !

Same here, although I once gave Jack's rat pinky to Sally because when I went to get him to put him in the feeding tank, after digging him out from under his paper towels, I could see his eyes were blue. I wasn't about to give Mr. Sensitive Stomach anything to eat when he was going into shed because I HATED it the two times he left me regurged "presents", so I just gave it to Sally. Jack hadn't been anywhere near it, so it was still uncontaminated.

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~Juliane~

I do it sometimes. It is only done with snakes that have been in my collection a long time. Passed quarantine with flying colors, getting fecals regularly, and having little to no exposure to anything I haven't obsessively sanitized. I figure that with as paranoid and anal as I am in most areas, the chances of me transmitting anything this way are slim to none.
If I was only using a few feeders a week, I might chuck them, but when you are using more than 100 on a LOW feed week, then those chucked-out furballs start to add up. Besides, I guess this is really dumb, but I kind of don't like just throwing something that died to support my hobby in the trash. Granted, it is 'only' a rat or a mouse, and I am not terribly fond of either animal, but I hate to see something killed just so it can rot in my dumpster. I guess I am a bit of a twisted little bleeding heart, but if I am going to kill fuzzy little animals, I like to know that there was at least some benefit that came from it. If you are really worried about germs, you can freeze the fresh-killed ones to kill the germs and use them later. I even know some people who will re-freeze the f/t ones, but I don't.

I don't take any chances. I don't offer refused food to any of my other animals. I'd rather waste the cute fuzzy thing that died for my hobby, than risk any kind of disease transmission.
I don't use that many rats/mice per week; but even a cheap vet bill costs more than a dozen feeders... not to mention the worry if one of my snakes gets ill.

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Andrea

Now, if you are just waving a F/T mouse on a pair of tongs or hemostats and it never touches the snake or the snake's substrate until the snake strikes and takes the mouse, I don't see a big deal with using it on another animal if one is not feeling like feeding at the moment. If you were letting it run around live in the snake's cage for a while or whatever, that might be a different story. But yeah, for Sheila and Akasha (the ball python I am snake sitting for), I try it on Akasha first and if she doesn't take it, it then goes to Sheila (the more aggressive and reliable feeder).

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0.1 jungle/coastal carpet python: Sheila
1.0 anerythristic boa constrictor imperator: Severus Snake
1.1 rats: Eowyn, Gandalf
1.0 ferret: Walker Texas Ranger
0.0.1 gold fish: Tiger
3.0 dogs: Strider (Aussie/husky), Zoso (Belgian Malinois), Buck (husky/Rottweiler)

I got the same problem! I always feel bad for the rat when I have to throw it away.They are cute animals in their own way,even though I wouldn't want one,but still.
Thanks guys for your opinions

I feel bad too if I have to throw it away, but I want to protect my snakes. I'd feel worse if my snakes got sick and/or died. So I feel like I don't have much choice... Just like I wouldn't serve food to my family either if I wasn't sure it was safe...*sigh* Poor little ratties though...

One of the most loving pets I ever had was a rat...he loved to snuggle, played fetch with a little ball, and came when I called him by name (Rizzo). His favorite food was spaghetti with meat sauce, and he also loved frozen blueberries. I wouldn't have believed a rat could be so wonderful until I had one. I miss him terribly, even though it's been years since he died.

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~Juliane~

Juliane,because they are great pets and you will love them very much,that's the reason I don't want one.Sounds confusing? Well,I like animals that live quite long;rats only live about 3 or 4 years,and I couldn't stand the pain of loss every few years.I'm too sensitive in those things . It's such a terrible thing loosing a beloved pet.