Thanks Zincubus and others. First meal successful!

[RickyNY]

I used Zincubus hair dryer method and his recommendation to wait until night time. Freddy had his first meal (with me) tonight after getting him on Wed from breeder. I waited until midnight and he was already out of his hide coiled up and looking around. Rat fuzzy was 98f and he struck within 10 seconds. Thanks Zinc and thanks to the other members also with their tips and the feeding chart. I'm happy he ate.

[ckuhn003]

Awesome! I'll be going through these same steps soon. How did you thaw the f/t? Hot water? Sit out at room temp? Etc....

[RickyNY]

Both will work... it doesn't matter the method. What's important is heating the head with the hair dryer so your ball thinks the rat is alive.

[Zincubus]

That's so great to hear !!!
As time goes on you will get more and more confident of course EVEN if he refuses the odd time or so .

Two of my five Royals eat every time but ONLY if I offer every ten to 14 days ... They're just not interested in eating every week ... Oddly the other three would eat every few days given the chance

Snakes are all soooo different !


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[ckuhn003]

Beginner questions here. So if the BP is not interested in eating at the time, are you constantly thawing and throwing out the rat/mouse? How long do you usually dangle the f/t before giving up? Do you ever leave it in the cage for a short time and/or when do you try again?

[Zincubus]

Beginner questions here. So if the BP is not interested in eating at the time, are you constantly thawing and throwing out the rat/mouse? How long do you usually dangle the f/t before giving up? Do you ever leave it in the cage for a short time and/or when do you try again?

I thaw naturally in the snake room , sometimes on a heatmat and sometimes put the rodent/s in a sealed plastic bag and dunk in really warm water ( if I'm short of time)

So then when I'm due to feed , I make sure the viv is unlocked and there's some card on top of the substrate to minimise bark ingestion ... Then I get the mouse/rat by the tail in some tongs and give the rodents head / top half a 10 to 15 second blast with the hairdryer ( hottest setting ) .... then IMMEDIATELY dangle it in front of the snake . They're usually ready and waiting .... Mine all now prefer to strike from inside their hides so I dangle it in front of the entrance for about 15 seconds but no longer as it cools down quickly , if there's a hint of interest such as head movement or tongue flicking then that gives me confidence and I repeat the procedure .... Hot blast and immediately offer ..... repeat as often as it takes ... If there is simply no interest though , either it's going into shed or not hungry ( couple of mine eat every two weeks even though I offer every week just in case ) .


I've tried leaving the rodent in with my Royals but they simply aren't interested ... as soon as I do the hairdryer trick they take it instantly and that's if it's been left in with them for a few hours .

If there is no interest I just try them a week later .

Luckily with 20 snakes inc Boas , Burms , Corns and Kings there are no wasted rats

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[halfnakedlife]

Then I get the mouse/rat by the tail in some tongs and give the rodents head / top half a 10 to 15 second blast with the hairdryer ( hottest setting ) .... then IMMEDIATELY dangle it in front of the snake

this...i did exactly zinc said and it works like a charm. my girl is eating f/t!!
one question: how long can you keep the rats frozen in fridge? is 2-3 months ok? i'm planning to stock up cause delivery is hard and expensive.

[Zincubus]

this...i did exactly zinc said and it works like a charm. my girl is eating f/t!!
one question: how long can you keep the rats frozen in fridge? is 2-3 months ok? i'm planning to stock up cause delivery is hard and expensive.

I'm so pleased to hear about your success !

Spend the word and help anyone else you see having troubles !!


As regards freezing I get a new batch every 6- 8 weeks and have no issues .

I'm sure someone will know how long you / we can keep rodents in the freezer though ..


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[ckuhn003]

I thaw naturally in the snake room , sometimes on a heatmat and sometimes put the rodent/s in a sealed plastic bag and dunk in really warm water ( if I'm short of time)

So then when I'm due to feed , I make sure the viv is unlocked and there's some card on top of the substrate to minimise bark ingestion ... a

very helpful info but I'm not sure what 'card on top of substrate' means..... I've heard of the possibility of the BP ingesting some substrate but wasn't sure if it was a common / serious issue and how to rectify it.

[SPIDERBALL]

Beginner questions here. So if the BP is not interested in eating at the time, are you constantly thawing and throwing out the rat/mouse? How long do you usually dangle the f/t before giving up? Do you ever leave it in the cage for a short time and/or when do you try again?

If one of my f/t eaters don't eat I just throw it back into freezer. You can refreeze at least a couple times.