I need some help with my pied BP

I am having some difficulties with my pied ball python feeding. I got him a year ago. He is currently in a 20g aquarium with hides, water, everything he needs. I hate the entire room along with supplemental heating pads. I have tried everything to get him to eat frozen thawed for a year now and all he will eat is live. I tried breeding my own rats but I found it to be a very unsatisfying experience (plus my mom outlawed after a while because she thought it was too gross). The only pet store in my area in 30 minutes away and only carries live adult mice or pinky mice, small, medium and large rats. Nothing the right size. There is no where else I can obtain rodents from except frozen and I am no longer to breed rats/mice. My other 4 snakes are on frozen thawed no problem. Should I re home my pied or trade it for one that eats frozen? Please help, all advice appreciated.

If you feel rehoming is best then it would be best. Some snakes just will not take f/t. If you've had him for a year how can you say they don't have the right size in live??? What size are you currently feeding him? When was the last time he ate?

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If he truly will not eat anything but live and you are unable to feed him live, you will have to trade him or sell him.

You've tried all the different methods of feeding frozen? Zombie dances, blow drying, getting him into feed mode with a little mouse hopper, just leaving the FT rodent in front of his hide overnight, and all the others?

I have been feeding him mouse hoppers every eight days.

Some balls just will not eat f/t. I would continue with live and keep trying f/t. Try the frozen first. It might not br warm enough for him. Try some of the suggestions from other post hair dryer, putting it umder a heat lamp, just in general warming it more. Also he might just want privacy to eat it. The first time I tried it my girl "played" with it as I call it. She did finally eat it. If he still won't eat frozen and you don't want to keep him I love the pied look lol. I want a pied so bad I can taste it. I need to go get a rat today for my girl.

Ya. I have tried all of those methods except the feed mode one, I will have to try that. He's eaten frozen a couple times, but on the past 8 months has refused it.

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Originally Posted by ToriTheBallPython

Ya. I have tried all of those methods except the feed mode one, I will have to try that.

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You can also try to scent the frozen with the mouse first. This may help the transition.

Scent the FT rodent with the mouse (just keep them in a little container together for a while...just enough for the mouse scent to rub off on the FT rat a bit).
Feed hopper mouse.
Try feeding the mouse scented FT rodent shortly after the mouse is down the hatch.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by ToriTheBallPython

I have been feeding him mouse hoppers every eight days.

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You've had him a year and you are feeding him hoppers??? He should be on small rats

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If you want to rehome him send him to me. I can get live in any size. But like was said he might never really take to frozen. I have no fear of feeding live as long as I supervise.

Maybe I am a bit harder with my snakes than some, but I have been able to get every ball python I have ever owned to take f/t. Some were a bit more challenging than others, but they all switched. Have you tried practicing tough love with him? I had some that fought me and rarely ate because I would only give them live after a few weeks of refusing f/t. One of my snakes I was told when I got her would only eat live rats or live ASF but she eats f/t with no problem for me now.

How are you thawing your feeders? Mine sit in the reptile room all day while I am work thawing and then at about 7-8pm I get a bucket of super hot water, dump them in and then I don't even dry them. My snakes are right there at the edge of the tub waiting for me to open it so they can grab their rats. No zombie dance required. One of my snakes won't take the f/t from the tongs but I leave it in her tub and then leave the room once everyone has their rat and she eats it. Have you tried leaving it in over night?