Killing but not eating

I bought my 2012 male in June. So far this has been his food schedule:
June 17^th – 1 live mouse
June 24^th – 1 live mouse
July 1^st – 1 live mouse
July 8^th – 1 small frozen rat refused
July 10^th – 1 live mouse

I've been considering switching him to f/t. I tried it once and while he struck and coiled, he didn't eat. His last meal was on the 10th, yesterday I tried another f/t rat and the same thing happened. Struck and coiled, then lost interest. Today I bought a live small rat and he did the same thing, struck and coiled then started cruising around a feeding tub. He's been in there for about 45 minutes with the dead rat, he had zero problems killing it and the rat appears to be the proper size. It's the same size as his thickest part but significantly larger than the mice he had been eating. The reason he is in the tub is because I wasn't 100% sure if hed kill the rat and I didn't want to go fishing around his tub with his water/hides/him if I had to remove the rat.

I've seen on some websites that its okay to leave him in with the dead rat overnight to see if he changes his mind. Honestly, I could have been what spooked him, I put the lid on the feeding tub because I had to leave the room briefly but he was still coiled around it when I came back. Since its a feeding tub and not his actual tub, there is no hide or heating pad, just some holes and some clamps. Should I leave him for a couple hours? All night? Pull him out now?

I'm 99% sure he is hungry because the last few days hes been "looking for food" and as soon as he saw the rat he went right for it. My reasoning for wanting to switch to f/t is because its always been easier (and cheaper) for me to buy whole prey in bulk, if he decides he never wants f/t I am okay with it. I just don't know when to stop trying... I should probably give it more than one refusal before caving and giving him live but I don't like seeing him hungry, I know it's not damaging him, I'm just being a little sensitive girl about it hahaha. Anyway, thoughts/comments/suggestions are appreciated. Thanks.

hey what do you know... I left him alone and went to check a few minutes ago and that rat was gone, instead all I saw was a nice big lump in my snakes belly. But I'm still interested if anyone has any input on the f/t thing.

This is why I feed my girls f/t in their cages and not a separate location. Most of the time, they'll eat right away. When they don't, I just leave the rat on the warm side and it's gone by the next morning (and usually within an hour at the most). They're good about cleaning up after themselves. :gj:

Good to hear the snake decided to eat after all. I have a low white pied male that was fed live for the first five months. I immediately switched him to f/t after reading the horrors of mice/rat bites, mites, and possible causes of IBD (a nasty disease possibly caused by mites). He displayed the same behavior when f/t mice were introduced - striking, but not eating. After four offerings he finally struck, coiled, and ate. I also had the same problem when switching him to rats, I assume because rats and mice have significantly different odors. Also, make sure the food item is warm enough to resemble live prey. You can also try moving it around a bit by the tail in order to generate interest.

Be patient and keep offering, your snake will learn what is food. The F/T vs Live debate is hot and you will have differing opinions from just about everybody. Do your research and decide what is best for your beloved snake. :)

Stop feeding mice.

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Originally Posted by AlexiTLO

hey what do you know... I left him alone and went to check a few minutes ago and that rat was gone, instead all I saw was a nice big lump in my snakes belly. But I'm still interested if anyone has any input on the f/t thing.

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My female normal does that. She does NOT like an audience when she eats. So normally when I feed her I walk away,then check again in about 20 minutes and the rat is gone.

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Originally Posted by elduki

Stop feeding mice.

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I have to feed mice unless he takes f/t. I have had zero luck finding live rats small enough for him with the exception of last night.

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Originally Posted by AlexiTLO

I have to feed mice unless he takes f/t. I have had zero luck finding live rats small enough for him with the exception of last night.

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I had been going to the same place for over a year now. I just found out 2 weeks ago they have smaller sizes. They have the small mediums and larges in the display pinks, pups, and weens behind the counter.

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Originally Posted by BPLuvr

I had been going to the same place for over a year now. I just found out 2 weeks ago they have smaller sizes. They have the small mediums and larges in the display pinks, pups, and weens behind the counter.

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Today I asked if they had any smaller "small" rats in the back and sure enough, they did. The smalls for sale were questionable but I was able to get something for my ball, he's now devouring rats!

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