Wild mice

Like Gray said, how do you KNOW it doesn't have parasites? Are you doing fecals? Not just a single fecal test but multiple ones weeks apart.
I am going to go ahead and make a blanket statement that all wild animals carry one parasite or another, the parasite usually never causes a problem until the immune system drops and then the parasites may be noticed.

You have said you already did it before so why ask now? It's up to you, but I value my animals more than to take that unnecessary risk.

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Originally Posted by aldebono

Like Gray said, how do you KNOW it doesn't have parasites? Are you doing fecals? Not just a single fecal test but multiple ones weeks apart.
I am going to go ahead and make a blanket statement that all wild animals carry one parasite or another, the parasite usually never causes a problem until the immune system drops and then the parasites may be noticed.

You have said you already did it before so why ask now? It's up to you, but I value my animals more than to take that unnecessary risk.

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I've actually heard from a few hunters of squirrels that you can't eat squirrel during spring/summer because they have worms and other parasites. But once fall/early winter hits and it gets to freezing temperatures at night the worms and parasites die off from the cold. Would this be true for wild mice too? Also I only fed her wild mice that had been in the freezer for more than 24 hours.

im looking at the replies here,,, and everyone has said they wouldent do it...
are you looking for a yes?
spooky

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Originally Posted by evan385

Can I feed him this wild mouse live? Because he's never eaten anything but live.

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If the point of this post was to ask if you could feed the mouse live, then freezing to kill parasites is a moot point. If you're going to take the risk of feeding a wild caught rodent to your snake, then you have to accept the risk of what you could be exposing your pet to also. It is very possible, even likely, that the wild mouse is carrying parasites. It is possible that freezing it off would kill the parasites, but you'd be left in the same situation, with a F/T rodent and a hungry snake...

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Originally Posted by mr.spooky

im looking at the replies here,,, and everyone has said they wouldent do it...
are you looking for a yes?
spooky

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I didn't ask whether I should do it or not. I'm going to, my question was more like should I feed it live because I know he'll eat it or freeze it to be sure any parasites are killed off. It has been below 32F several nights in a row so i'm not really that worried about parasites.

Well fecals will run you anywhere from $15-$35 if a vet will do them local, sometimes you have to get them shipped overnight if you don't have a local vet that will do it. Then you will be sending out another fecal in 3 weeks because they may or may not be detected the first time around. Generally a record of 3 clean fecals means you have a healthy animal so that is going to range from $45-$105 for a local vet or about $69-$126 to ship them out.

I have no idea what meds would cost.

OR you could get a vet to do a autopsy on the mice to see if they have parasites. I hear that's expensive too.

Well hell if I had a car I would just drive to Knoxville and buy some live mice, but I don't. I just want him to eat..

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Originally Posted by evan385

I didn't ask whether I should do it or not. I'm going to, my question was more like should I feed it live because I know he'll eat it or freeze it to be sure any parasites are killed off. It has been below 32F several nights in a row so i'm not really that worried about parasites.

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Make sure you save your pennies for the vet bill... Why do you even bother posting questions and asking for advice? I consistently see you ask for advice, then disregard what everyone has told you. You already knew you were going to feed this wild caught mouse to your bp, so why did you bother to come ask if it was safe? We've all told you that no, it's not "safe" and we have told you why, yet you are going to ignore what we've told you and do it anyway... I don't get it...

Oh well, I'm sure there will be other people who will continue to try, but I won't waste my time and efforts anymore...

Here, since this is what you wanted... YES, it's perfectly fine to feed that mouse to your snake... Don't worry about what all these other people have said. They're just paranoid and don't know nearly as much YOU do, so ignore all of the answers you've been given and SHOW EVERYONE HOW WRONG THEY WERE!!!

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Originally Posted by evan385

I've actually heard from a few hunters of squirrels that you can't eat squirrel during spring/summer because they have worms and other parasites. But once fall/early winter hits and it gets to freezing temperatures at night the worms and parasites die off from the cold. Would this be true for wild mice too? Also I only fed her wild mice that had been in the freezer for more than 24 hours.

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Originally Posted by evan385

I didn't ask whether I should do it or not. I'm going to, my question was more like should I feed it live because I know he'll eat it or freeze it to be sure any parasites are killed off. It has been below 32F several nights in a row so i'm not really that worried about parasites.

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Sorry but that's is incorrect info and a false sense of security. The parasites inside a living mammal will survive just fine when the outside temps drop.

Many toxins will be unaffected by freezing and there are diseases and parasites that can also survive for considerable periods of time below zero (usually in the egg stage ).

http://www.popularpets.net/snakes/di...homoniasis.php

http://www.perfectpet.net/faqs.html

http://www.reptilebuzz.com/caresheet...-mice-rats.php


But, since you don't want our advice, I'll just ignore the fact you are intentionally playing russian roulette with your snakes health and assume you also eat crap from the dumpster as your main diet.

Feed your snake a meal from a clean, healthy supply. Everone else has had these ideas before and there is a very compelling set of reasons you don't find the hobby as a whole running around with moustraps. :rolleyes:

Meh, fine i'll just let him go hungry until the rat pups are big enough to interest him. After that he should be slamming them down. The evidence is overwhelming that this would be at my own risk and i'd rather just not take the risk and have to pay a vet bill later. As much as I want him to eat, a parasite would be much more damaging to his health than waiting another week or two for the rat pups to grow. Thanks everyone.