Need Exact Thawing Time Measurements

I've been thawing out my rats by just leaving them out in a bag for a few hours, but I'd like to switch to leaving them in hot water as my BP has trouble aiming and the heat should help (taking a hairdryer to one for a moment has worked before, but is a bit of hassle). Problem is I'm autistic and have a lot of trouble with "just leave it till it looks right" and vague measurements- so how long would I leave each size rat, and how hot should the water be? He's on rat fluffs for now, but is going to be moved to pups really soon.

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Originally Posted by mzh3de

I've been thawing out my rats by just leaving them out in a bag for a few hours, but I'd like to switch to leaving them in hot water as my BP has trouble aiming and the heat should help (taking a hairdryer to one for a moment has worked before, but is a bit of hassle). Problem is I'm autistic and have a lot of trouble with "just leave it till it looks right" and vague measurements- so how long would I leave each size rat, and how hot should the water be? He's on rat fluffs for now, but is going to be moved to pups really soon.

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Body temp of a rat is in the range of 100 degrees. I have no problem soaking in hot tap water, then I use a blow dryer and temp gun to bring it close anywhere between 90° to 100°


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Originally Posted by Thorbp

Body temp of a rat is in the range of 100 degrees. I have no problem soaking in hot tap water, then I use a blow dryer and temp gun to bring it close anywhere between 90° to 100°


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I forgot to mention I bag them to soak.


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I agree that an IR temperature gun will help to determine the actual temps of the rat. I like to let mine thaw out in the fridge for 24 hours (in a plastic bag), then let it sit on top of the cage for 30 minutes, then put hot water in a bowl and put the rat (still in bag) in the bowl until it reaches around 98F or a little higher.

It's going to vary a bit, but if you really need something specific but don't mind a bit of arbitrariness, you could pick something overly generous with the thawing time. I.e. : rat pup or smaller - thaw in water 1 hr. Finish with hot water 100F+ for 3 min. Feed rat at 95F - 105F. That way it's absolutely guaranteed to be finished every time, even if it was really finished a decent bit earlier.

Thaw them over night (24 hours if you want exact measurements) in a refrigerator (most refrigerators are roughly 36 degrees F) then before feeding put them in a container containing the hottest your tap water will get and let it warm for 30 minutes. Halfway through that 30 minute time frame (that is at the 15 minute mark) drain and refill the container with again, the hottest your tap water will get. This will get the rodent to the desired temperature.

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Originally Posted by SDA

Thaw them over night (24 hours if you want exact measurements) in a refrigerator (most refrigerators are roughly 36 degrees F) then before feeding put them in a container containing the hottest your tap water will get and let it warm for 30 minutes. Halfway through that 30 minute time frame (that is at the 15 minute mark) drain and refill the container with again, the hottest your tap water will get. This will get the rodent to the desired temperature.

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Just want to exercise some caution with using the hottest water right away because it's not unknown for some feeders to rupture. Or having them susceptible to bursting when constricted. Had it happen to me when I was thawing a feeder in super hot water, came back to find all the rat's guts where spilled out. Thankfully it was in a ziploc baggie and all contained :p

So it may be better to start thawing in room temp or cooler water before replacing with warm/hot. Otherwise you may end up with a super mushy feeder.

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Originally Posted by MissterDog

So it may be better to start thawing in room temp or cooler water before replacing with warm/hot. Otherwise you may end up with a super mushy feeder.

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That is why I suggested actually thawing in the refrigerator. You are not thawing them in a hot water bath, you are warming them up via heat transfer in a hot water bath. Hot water tanks are recommenced to 120 degrees so that is not enough to burst a thawed rodent that is not already degraded.

So, if you live in a household that someone has modified unsafely the hot water heater to be above 120 degrees, get a candy thermometer or some other water resistant thermometer and test it. If it is above 120 degrees F, cool it to 120 before submersing the rodent.

Also, thaw mine in hot tap water, then I lay them out and use a spare basking light I have from my beardies, place em all under the hotspot about 12" away. Bout 30 mins of that, since I do that right in my snake room and everyone is ready to eat since the smell gets in the air.

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I would be a single man very quickly if a rat ever found it's way into our refrigerator, so I have used the warm water method for years.

I use hot tap water to thaw my rats to the point where I know they're pliable and not frozen in any fashion, they can be then fed directly if they're pups or small rats.

If they are medium/large rats (where the frozen rodent actually cools down the water)......then after thawing in the initial hot water bath, I will drain the water and let them sit in hot tap water again 15 minutes as well before feeding. I have never had one burst in many, many years of keeping snakes and I hope I don't have to (keep in mind my tap water isn't steaming when it's coming out of the faucet though, but you can barely keep your hands under it for more than a few seconds)


Everyone has their own method though, I think most larger breeders actually take a slightly different, but similar approach...

(BHB does this)......thaw all rodents in cold water (5 gallon pails), drain, then refill with hot water and feed.