I used to thaw them in really hot water, but I started noticing that sometimes the rodents' bellies or organs would bloat. I had a fuzzy do that once and when my snake went to constrict it, it started leaking out nasty stuff everywhere. :/ Now I just toss them in the fridge for the day and then warm them up with hot water once they're already thawed. I think I'm going to try the hairdryer next week though.