Switching from live mice to frozen thawed rats?

Hey guys, I just had a question. I’m pretty interested in picking up a specific young snake, however, it’s currently being fed live mice. Was wondering, if my end goal is to feed FT rats, how should I ‘prep’ accordingly? Some of the things I’ve been thinking about were trying to visit Petco/pet smart and ask if I could have a bit of the bedding for their mice, not touching them/interacting them for over a week, and then scenting with a FT mouse. I know there’s a chance that it’ll just grab the FT rat right off the bat, but I’d rather be safe than sorry and have some back up plans.


Has anyone had to switch from live mice to FT rats and what was your experience with it?

After thawing, I used a hairdryer for a few seconds on high heat right before offering the prey item. BPs have heat pits that detect thermo signals (essentially heat vision) so the hair dryer helps sell the idea that the F/T rodent still "looks" alive.

As for eventually upgrading from mice to rats, for several transitional feedings I put a mouse in a bag with a rat while thawing to mix the scents. I gave the mouse to my chickens as they'll eat anything, but you can otherwise just dispose of the mouse. Burying it next to a plant/tree if possible would be a good way to not let the body go to waste.

With both of these techniques my BP went from live to F/T and then mice to rats without a hitch. :gj:

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Originally Posted by Snagrio

After thawing, I used a hairdryer for a few seconds on high heat right before offering the prey item. BPs have heat pits that detect thermo signals (essentially heat vision) so the hair dryer helps sell the idea that the F/T rodent still "looks" alive.

As for eventually upgrading from mice to rats, for several transitional feedings I put a mouse in a bag with a rat while thawing to mix the scents. I gave the mouse to my chickens as they'll eat anything, but you can otherwise just dispose of the mouse. Burying it next to a plant/tree if possible would be a good way to not let the body go to waste.

With both of these techniques my BP went from live to F/T and then mice to rats without a hitch. :gj:

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Thanks for the reply! I’m not that worried about the switching from live to FT, just the mouse to eat haha. That’s a good idea, I’ll try that if she doesn’t take it right off the bat. Was also wondering if it would be rude to ask the seller about if they’ve tried with rats as some of their snakes are eating FT rats, but don’t want to waste the sellers timeZ

I’ll send you details of the tried and tested ‘Hairdryer feeding method’ :)

You can thank me later

LOL


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

Quote:

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Originally Posted by antinoud

Hey guys, I just had a question. I’m pretty interested in picking up a specific young snake, however, it’s currently being fed live mice. Was wondering, if my end goal is to feed FT rats, how should I ‘prep’ accordingly? Some of the things I’ve been thinking about were trying to visit Petco/pet smart and ask if I could have a bit of the bedding for their mice, not touching them/interacting them for over a week, and then scenting with a FT mouse. I know there’s a chance that it’ll just grab the FT rat right off the bat, but I’d rather be safe than sorry and have some back up plans.


Has anyone had to switch from live mice to FT rats and what was your experience with it?

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That's what I'd do- put the rat in some well-used (dirty-smelly) mouse bedding first, to transfer the scent. A f/t mouse won't have much scent- use the bedding!

It's a bigger jump going from live mouse to f/t rat also- your best bet would be a live baby rat (small & eyes closed!) first, with the mouse scent transferred right before offering the meal.

Switch to f/t rats only after one or more live baby rats are easily taken (use your judgement on that), as it's just hard to convince some snakes using tongs to jiggle the prey just right- & you need the snake to accept the different flavor. Rats don't smell or taste* the same as mice- not at all. (*so they tell me :D )

If you try just a f/t rat first, with mouse scent, you also need to warm it as suggested- like w/ hairdryer, to lifelike warmth, especially on the head.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by antinoud

... Was also wondering if it would be rude to ask the seller about if they’ve tried with rats as some of their snakes are eating FT rats, but don’t want to waste the sellers timeZ

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It's not at ALL "rude" to ask about that- it's essential information for you, the buyer, for best results for everyone, especially for the snake. You also have to hope they're truthful though- sadly not all are, & will just tell you what you want to hear to make a sale. If you can ask in a neutral way (so they cannot tell what you'd prefer to feed the snake) you might get the best info.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Snagrio

After thawing, I used a hairdryer for a few seconds on high heat right before offering the prey item. BPs have heat pits that detect thermo signals (essentially heat vision) so the hair dryer helps sell the idea that the F/T rodent still "looks" alive.

As for eventually upgrading from mice to rats, for several transitional feedings I put a mouse in a bag with a rat while thawing to mix the scents. I gave the mouse to my chickens as they'll eat anything, but you can otherwise just dispose of the mouse. Burying it next to a plant/tree if possible would be a good way to not let the body go to waste.

With both of these techniques my BP went from live to F/T and then mice to rats without a hitch. :gj:

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I did the same thing. After thawing the rat fuzzy out, I take a hair dryer to it and make sure I'm blowing it in the direction of her enclosure to trigger that feeding response and then I spend a little more time on the head to give her a solid target. After that, I double check the temperatures of the rat and then feed it to her. She took to frozen thawed immediately on the first try. She was already on live fuzzy rats when I got her though so I never had to deal with switching from mice to rats.