What do you do with uneaten rats?

[butterballpython]

My new ball python arrived on Thursday. She spends almost all of her time balled up in a hide. Her last meal was 10 days ago, and I just gave her a f/t rat pup. I was told that's what she was eating. The rat was at 105 degrees, which is how I give them to my male. She balled up even tighter when I put it in her cage, and I left it lying partially on her so she could smell it. What do you do when they don't grab and eat it? Leave it in the cage overnight? Refreeze it? Toss it, and if so, after how long? My male had a strong feeding response from the start, so I hope she's OK.

[dustin860]

It takes time for them to adjust to the new environment . I wouldn't recommend refreezing it . If mine don't eat within 10-15 mins I'll offer it to another .. Picky eaters I'll sometimes leave overnite but if it's still in the morning it gets tossed .


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[butterballpython]

I'll wait until the morning and see what happens. Maybe once it's dark she'll feel safer, but with her spending all her time balled up I'm concerned.

[Brent857]

It takes time for them to adjust to the new environment . I wouldn't recommend refreezing it . If mine don't eat within 10-15 mins I'll offer it to another .. Picky eaters I'll sometimes leave overnite but if it's still in the morning it gets tossed .


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Same here. Usually if mine don't eat within 15-20 minutes they won't eat anyways.

[stickyalvinroll]

If it's only thawed for like under a hour, refreeze it. But any longer than that toss it out.

[Willowy]

I give them to the cats. Yummy!

If you have to dispose of an uneaten rodent, try to put it outside where an animal can find it. Someone might as well get a meal.

[butterballpython]

I give them to the cats. Yummy!

If you have to dispose of an uneaten rodent, try to put it outside where an animal can find it. Someone might as well get a meal.

We have a skunk problem. A former next door neighbor used to feed them because the babies were "so cute." I had a discussion with him about this. They still hang around the area because it hasn't been that long since he left, and the adults remember where the food was. I don't know if skunks would eat a dead rat.

The rat has been thawed for nearly 3 hours, so if she doesn't eat it tonight, it'll need to be disposed of. I don't want to feed it to my other bp because they are both in quarantine. I'll probably need to throw it out. Hopefully it won't smell too bad by tomorrow morning.

[Slim]

I never refreeze a rat. Your mileage may vary, but I've had bad luck with that.

[The Golem]

My new ball python arrived on Thursday. She spends almost all of her time balled up in a hide. Her last meal was 10 days ago, and I just gave her a f/t rat pup. I was told that's what she was eating. The rat was at 105 degrees, which is how I give them to my male. She balled up even tighter when I put it in her cage, and I left it lying partially on her so she could smell it.

I would not do this, it's only going to stress the snake out more. If the snake is in the mood to eat, it will move towards the prey.
Since you received the snake on Thursday, wait a few more days to let it get accustomed to the new environment before trying to feed.

What do you do when they don't grab and eat it? Leave it in the cage overnight? Refreeze it? Toss it, and if so, after how long? My male had a strong feeding response from the start, so I hope she's OK.

Once the temperature of the prey drops to ambient temp, it is not food anymore so there's no point in leaving it in overnight.

One thing I've had success with: I hold and dangle the rat with tongs. If the snake doesn't bite after a few minutes, I remove from the enclosure and re-heat, then give him one more opportunity, and usually he's then in eating mode and strikes quickly.

[Bemottled]

One thing I've had success with: I hold and dangle the rat with tongs. If the snake doesn't bite after a few minutes, I remove from the enclosure and re-heat, then give him one more opportunity, and usually he's then in eating mode and strikes quickly.

+1. I've never had an issue getting my ball to bite if I wiggle it a little bit!