she tagged me!

A little background first. My hog is about 9 months old. I handle her 5 min a day. Whenever its feeding time, i take her out and hold her for five minutes, place paper towels down in her tank over the walnut shell substrate, place the mouse ontop of the towls, and put the snake back in the tank to eat. I used to feed her every three days, but switched to once a week in fear of overfeeding her.

Today i took the snake out, but when i was holding it, it was pressing its nose against my finger. I had the snake in the left hand, and the mouse (in paper bag ready to drop into the tank) in the right hand. I felt a little pinch on my left finger. The snake didn't break the skin, but i'm pretty sure i was bitten. When i put the snake in the cage, the snake chased the mouse down and sucked it down fast.

question 1: How can i avoid being bitten. It didn't hurt, but when she gets fully grown, i wouldn't want to deal w/her venom.
question 2: I hear people feed snakes in separate containers to avoid a feeding reaction bite when the tank is opened. I also heard that snakes shouldn't be handled after they eat. How can you transport the snake back to its cage after its eaten without disturbing its digestion of the mouse?
question 3: Do you think she smelled the mouse and went for my finger as a mistake? Should i go back to feeding her 2 or 3 times a week? She seemed very hungry, but i don't want to powerfeed her.

Thanks,

David

I think odor may have played a big part. I also wouldn't recommend that routine, always holding her just before feeding. I would make sure any holding time and feeding time were well seperated. As far as not handling after feeding, I think that generally means no "play time" or major handling. Handling her just briefly to return her to the cage should not be a problem.

Well first off, yes feed it in a separate container. You will not harm the snake by holding it for a couple min while placing it back in it's cage at all.
What is the size of the mouse that you are feeding it?
I would place the snake in a separate container then toss in the prey, let the snake eat and go wash your hands completely. Then when it is done place it back in it's cage. If you are only feeding it one per week I might up it to 2 per week depending on the size of the prey. Hogs can be a bit finicky though at times. If you are not allergic to bees then with a bite you should be fine maybe possible a tiny bit of swelling at the bite site, in some people it does not even affect them when bit, me a completely different story, I would have to go to the hospital.
If you can answer these questions I'm sure we can come up with a solution for you. Shanell.

I was giving her two fuzzies a week. But for the past two weeks, i was feeding her large fuzzies. I'm going to take all of your advice and start feeding her in a separate container, making sure my hands are mouse-scent free. Here are a couple feeding pics.

<img src="http://i46.photobucket.com/albums/f106/thekingofprague/infinity.jpg">
<img src="http://i46.photobucket.com/albums/f106/thekingofprague/peepee.jpg">
<img src="http://i46.photobucket.com/albums/f106/thekingofprague/centerfold.jpg">

oh wow..shes nine months old and she can already handle large fuzzies..just becareful they dont get a chance to bite her....i also suggest feeding her in a sperated container...i feed mine in the brown paper bag i buy the fuzzy in...i just put her in there with the fuzzy...and when shes done..i let her slide out of the bag into her cage..so i dont even have to hold her...dont handle her after feeding so her digesting time isnt interrupted...with these snakes.......its very rare anyone gets bitten..and if it happens its USUALLY during feeding time..even when shes older..you dont really need to worry about the venom...because they have to actually chew on you to even release some..and its mild..so basically..theres not much to worry bout.