How to stun/paralyze feeder mice/rats

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Originally Posted by Pixiestix4e

what exactly does this do? if its not painful for the mouse i will try this if (s)he doesnt take the larger frozen/dancing mice/rat

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Sorry I missed your question in this post.

Cevical Dislocation is a fancy way of saying it breaks their necks and spinal cord from the base of the brain. It causes instant death for the rodent when done correctly.

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Originally Posted by jinx667

My big advice with F/T is do not be afraid to let the snake skip a meal or 3 to get hungry enough to eat the F/T. This may not always work, but give it a shot. Also warmth is key. I use a hair dryer for about 45 sec AFTER the rat is fully thawed, right before I offer it, and that does the trick. If they start to immediately track it, then it is hot enough.

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x2 It won't hurt your BP to miss a few meals, but it might get him hungry enough to accept a "microwave dinner" instead of live. (Disclaimer: Do NOT ever actually microwave a rodent. IT WILL EXPLODE.)

ok! so new plan = thaw small rat then blast with blow dryer for 45 sec then dangle in her face (with tongs) :) i def couldnt snap the mouses neck :( so i really hope this works... i see a few problems with my attempt last night :) the mouse was room temp, 2x too small and i just tossed it in there.... didnt bother with any dances :D
my milk snake is a very very non picky eater i guess!

I actually wouldn't dangle it in her face. I have a few still picky on f/t, what I do is zombie dance it around on the other side of the tub then slowly get closer to the snake. That will usually get their attention and when you get close enough they will grab it. I tried to just dangle but they get scared and refuse it. Just a thought if its still being a pain.

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Originally Posted by TimNA

I actually wouldn't dangle it in her face. I have a few still picky on f/t, what I do is zombie dance it around on the other side of the tub then slowly get closer to the snake. That will usually get their attention and when you get close enough they will grab it. I tried to just dangle but they get scared and refuse it. Just a thought if its still being a pain.

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x2 if you bring it right up into their face theyll get scared. Gradually get her attention with it and bring it to her.

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Originally Posted by Pixiestix4e

what exactly does this do? if its not painful for the mouse i will try this if (s)he doesnt take the larger frozen/dancing mice/rat

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It breaks the neck in a way that's as instant and painless as you're going to get without gassing it with CO2 or doing an injection of some pricey euthanasia chemical aids.

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Originally Posted by Mike41793

Whacking them like your bf did kills them instantly... So it may have seemed barbaric but it really wasnt...

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It CAN kill it instantly but it is one of the least guaranteed methods and in terms of barbaric vs humane options, the procedure described for safely breaking its neck above IS more humane and 'thudding' the mouse IS barbaric. Don't give poor advice with anecdotal or no evidence.


Like others have said, just be patient and make it eat the F/T. Ball pythons are opportunistic feeders, meaning the animal will eat something dead against its 'preference' as an alternative to starving. They can also safely fast for extreme periods of time with no negative effects.

Heat and the zombie dance make a huge difference in getting them to switch, but if you're having problems I would recommend leaving it in the cage overnight and keeping the snake in the dark and not disturbed. When it's hungry, it will eat it.

If you do the zombie dance and the snake shys away like it's scared, try warming it up, tossing it in the tub with as little disturbance as possible, turning out the lights, and leaving it alone. My female is very nervous and rarely strikes anything with me around. I have to leave her in the dark and then 2 minutes later she pokes her head out of her hide, sees it, and nails it immediately.

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Originally Posted by Annarose15

(Disclaimer: Do NOT ever actually microwave a rodent. IT WILL EXPLODE.)

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Sadly, this is true...and, it's not a mess you ever want to clean up...or explain to your signicant other :whisper: