pre killed?

So what exactly are pre killed rats/mice? Do you buy them live and kill them yourself?

methods used to kill them?

I understand F/T and live as either method of feeding...what are the pros/cons to pre killed?

Thanks...

Yes, you kill the live yourself. Either with CO2 or cervical dislocation. IMO, p/k is normally used as a stepping stone to f/t, but not always.

Pros:
Safer than live
already the correct temperature to interest your animal
zero chance of nutrient loss (due to freezing)
no thawing required

Cons:
Have to kill it yourself
If uneaten, need to discard or freeze (Depending on how long you left it in)
Some bp's just won't take

Yes. The two main ways People pre kill is by either knocking them over their head and instantly killing them, or sticking them in a co2 chamber.
A lot of people using fresh killed are trying to get their animals off of live and making the transition to f/t.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by OsirisRa32

Do you buy them live and kill them yourself?

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yup. some people have little homemade CO2 chambers and some whack them over the head real good. some people get their panties in a wad over this and claim it's not "humane," but with my experience the rat dies a lot quicker from getting knocked over the head than when it's constricted by the snake. either way it's going to die. people might prefer prekilled to f/t because you don't have to wait for them to thaw out, and they're body temperature will be pretty much spot on since they were just living. people might prefer them to live because the rat can't bite the snake back.

i personally don't prekill, i have before, but usually just live or f/t.

Thanks for the info!! kinda feel a little durr right now considering I had just spent the other night looking at all the DIY CO2 contraptions and didn't realize they were for the whole pre-kill process....lol


If you pre-kill and there is enough of a time gap between the kill and the offering to the snake...does blasting it with a hair dryer or heat gun sometimes help? or are those methods really just used in dealing with F/T temp issues?

You could blast it if you needed to. But you can/should offer soon after the kill so rigger doesn't start to set in. ( I can't remember the time frame for rigger starting, sorry :( )

It will not harm the snake to eat a freshly gassed (CO2) rodent.

CO2 Chambers are also used for making your own f/t. (gassing them once they get to the size you need, assuming you're breeding, and storing for later)

k thanks for all the help and info!! :D

Some sellers will kill for you.

One time when we were trying to pick up some frozen feeders, the store was out. They offered to pre-kill for us instead.