freezing a live rat?

my snake is trying out anorexia. i decided to try live to see if that would coax him to give it up. no. he's sticking to it. is it ok to freeze the rat and save it for next time? is there a special way to kill it? i've bonked em on the head to feed PK before. can i just bonk it and freeze it?

Ya make sure you kill it though otherwise freezing to death will be inhumane and painful for it.

ya, thats my main concern. i dont even really like to bonk em but ya gotta do what ya gotta do right?

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Originally Posted by Mike41793

Ya make sure you kill it though otherwise freezing to death will be inhumane and painful for it.

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I read the title of your post and was rushing in here to say NOOOOOO! Pre-Kill the rat, ziploc it and toss it in the freezer.

haha, i guess the title is a bit misleading. my question was really what is the best way to do it humanely. not just tossing it in the freezer and letting the cold do the work. oops. it kinda makes me sound like a bad dude...

Before you resort to rodent-cide, couple points:

1) What do you mean by anorexia? How long since last meal?
2) Have you always fed live prey?
3) If #2 is yes, it is not likely to accept FT if not accepting now

Just sayin...

How big is the rat? Size of the animal will help us suggest a humane method for you.

I would say the easiest for you would be to use dry ice from a grocery store and euthanize the rat via CO2 chamber.

There is also cervical dislocation (popping the neck), but it can be difficult if you're not comfortable with doing it by hand. Secure the rat down and hold the back of its neck with a ruler or pencil. You have to press down pretty hard so the rat can't get loose and holds the head in place. Then yank its tail down fast and hard if you're unsure of the force.

If its a pink or fuzzy, you can just flick its head. Their skulls a very thin so a quick flick will kill them.

Edit:
Try a live mouse. I've successfully used mice to coax off fed rat feeders to eat in the past.

And is there a reason your snake isn't eating? Whats you're husbandry and set up like?

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Cervical dislocation of the neck on a rat will create a bloody mess. the skin of the tail will come right off. Dry ice CO2 chamber is your best bet

Yeah, the dry ice suffocation seems to be the most humane.

Ditto on the live mice. Hopper mice in particular are hard for most snakes to resist, what with all the hopping.

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Originally Posted by Orijin0XazN

Cervical dislocation of the neck on a rat will create a bloody mess. the skin of the tail will come right off. Dry ice CO2 chamber is your best bet

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Cervical dislocation is very clean. Bashing a rat on the head is a bloody mess.
Dislocating the neck is just that. The whole point is to sever the brain connection to the rest of the body. It's ethically considered one of the more humane form of rodent euthanasia by the IACUC. So unless your rat has an open would, there should be no blood. Otherwise, you're doing it incorrectly........
And the skin of the tail will come off if you don't grip the the base of the tail. Basic Rat Handling 101: hold by the base of the tail.

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Originally Posted by AdamF

Before you resort to rodent-cide, couple points:

1) What do you mean by anorexia? How long since last meal?
2) Have you always fed live prey?
3) If #2 is yes, it is not likely to accept FT if not accepting now

Just sayin...

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its only been about 2 months. the anorexia comment anorexia was a joke. not too worried yet. he normally accepts frozen but figured i would try a live to see if it would stimulate him.

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Originally Posted by satomi325

Cervical dislocation is very clean. Bashing a rat on the head is a bloody mess.
Dislocating the neck is just that. The whole point is to sever the brain connection to the rest of the body. It's ethically considered one of the more humane form of rodent euthanasia by the IACUC. So unless your rat has an open would, there should be no blood. Otherwise, you're doing it incorrectly........
And the skin of the tail will come off if you don't grip the the base of the tail. Basic Rat Handling 101: hold by the base of the tail.

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cervical dislocation was the method of choice. quick, easy, no mess.

my husbandry hasn't ever changed. temps in high 80s, hot spot 90-92. cool side 76-78. hides are good. he is a 2010 pastel about 800something grams last weight---2 months ago. i think he is just being a ball python.

live mouse is my next go to but i was hoping to not come off rats. figured i'll freeze this one, give him one more shot at it then try a mouse.

2 months doesnt scare me. he is healthy in all other aspects. i've had one of my snakes go on a 6 or 7 month hunger strike then go right back to eating like a champ.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by satomi325

Cervical dislocation is very clean. Bashing a rat on the head is a bloody mess.
Dislocating the neck is just that. The whole point is to sever the brain connection to the rest of the body. It's ethically considered one of the more humane form of rodent euthanasia by the IACUC. So unless your rat has an open would, there should be no blood. Otherwise, you're doing it incorrectly........
And the skin of the tail will come off if you don't grip the the base of the tail. Basic Rat Handling 101: hold by the base of the tail.

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Thanks for the tip. The first time I did it, then entire tail came right off and started bleeding all over my desk. I'll try this method again!