Thawed Enough

Hey guys so I fed my ball two frozen micr cause I didn't have the right size. I thawed them but I'm not sure if I didn't enough. When she was eating the nice it seemed to go down really slow and seemed like she was having trouble. I'm worried I didn't thaw them enough. If I didn't will she be okay? Please help

You can't tell by how fast it goes down. Generally any ive watched eat it went down slow. Just be sure from now on its thawed well. I thaw at room temp then heat up in hot water with feeder in sandwich bag to keep it dry. As long as it wasn't like half frozen she will be fine. A lot of balls won't strike orey thats not heated enough.

Well they felt warm hopefully they were. Are there any signs or things I should look out for?

It sound gross, but you need to feel the dead mouse's abdomen and check if it's neck are limp to make sure it's thawed all the way through. If you feel a hard part inside the mouse, give it more thawing time.

If it was warm enough for the snake to constrict and stuff than it was probably thawed enough.

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Originally Posted by Megz

Well they felt warm hopefully they were. Are there any signs or things I should look out for?

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Regurgitation, and or death can result from feeding an improperly thawed prey so time will tell.

In the future make sure you thaw the prey item thoroughly at room temp.

I put my mouse in the fridge the night before feeding day. Then I take it out and put it a bowl of hot water. I warm up with a hairdryer if I forget and let it sit too long. Like another poster said, you've gotta feel the belly to make sure it's not frozen.

Yah I understand and stupidly I didn't and so I'm worried they were not completely thawed. How long would you say pups take to thaw? I'm just worried its not thawed enough. I mean she ate both but now I'm worried she could hurt internally?! I'm not sure I'm just freaking out some incite is great right now

At this point all you can do now is hope you thawed them enough. Really nothing to do but wait. How did you thaw?

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Originally Posted by Deborah

Regurgitation, and or death can result from feeding an improperly thawed prey so time will tell.

In the future make sure you thaw the prey item thoroughly at room temp.

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How does death occur when the rat is not thawed enough?


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Originally Posted by martin82531

How does death occur when the rat is not thawed enough?


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Shock to the body's internal temp system. Remember, cold-blooded creatures can't handle frozen outside them, let alone in their bellies.

I thawed them in hot water for 20min. They are two pups. When she was eating them the bodies were warm and squishy but the limbs weren't thawed enough it looks like. They are definitely smaller then the usual. I just checked on her and she looks okay there are no odd bulges. I gentle ran a finger down her to check and she twitched at one spot. When I touched that spot she shook. Then I watched her not touching and she shook that same spot. It looks like it hurt her I dunno. I'm really scared. Could she have internal damage??!!

That could be possible but I dont think thats it... you said the feeders were warm and there arms tend to look stiff. well im sure she is fine. next time like everyone else said make sure that you heat it up enough. Then you won't have to worry about it.

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Yah absolutely I will. I didn't realize until it was too late and that will for sure never happen again. Thank you for saying she will be fine I so hope so.

I'm sure she'll be fine. Mice have bones, regardless of whether they're alive or dead. That's probably why they seemed stiff. If the core was thawed, the extremities likely were as well.

What is worrying me is that twitch. Basically after the feeding I got really worried i ran a finger down her body to feel for any abnormal bulges and I got to one spot and she shook, almost like a reflex. I started watching her to make sure she moved and she shook the same spot again! She kinda lifted it up and shook. I have never seen this happen before. Does anyone know whether this is a bad sign. I mean she's not going to die is she??! I don't want to sound melodramatic or anything but I am extremely worried that because of my stupidity she could be really hurt and her life jeopardized based on what was posted earlier.

The best any of us can say is just to monitor her, at this point. Two or three days will do.

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Originally Posted by Megz

What is worrying me is that twitch. Basically after the feeding I got really worried i ran a finger down her body to feel for any abnormal bulges and I got to one spot and she shook, almost like a reflex.

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If I did that to any of my BP's they would twitch - they're pretty ticklish.

In the future I wouldn't press on its body or anything after it eats. The reason you don't want to handle your BP after it eats is because it can press the undigested food against the belly and upset it, which can cause regurgitation. The twitch was probably just a little bit of discomfort. It sounds like your snake will be fine if it made it till today OK.

The best way to see if it's fully thawed is to squeeze the rodent a bit on the skull and on the hip area. If after a second or 2 of holding it you feel cold, let it thaw / warm a bit more. Those are the last areas to thaw during the defrosting process.

I have noticed something different I have never seen my bp do and want to know whether you guys think (following what happened) if I should be concerned or if other bp's do that. A day after the feeding so was alive and to my knowledge well. I noticed when she was out of her hide that she moved funny. rather then slithering she lifted a section of her body up slightly and move it back. She did this twice in two sections in order to "shuffle" backward rather then "slither." It is now thursday so i removed everything from her tank just to see how she moved. She sat there for awhile and then did the same shuffling motion backwards. then she did start to slither but not much and it seemed very off almost like she was dragging (hard to explain/ definitely different looking to me). I'm worried because it has been two days now. I just wanted to get everyones opinion I do have a vet appointment made but i thought i would ask

Is she a normal? I know balls with the spider gene in them can portray some odd antics. That type of behavior is nothing I've come across.

i'd make a new thread on this new behavior, linking back to this one for reference. You'll probably get wider range of feedback that way.

yes she is a normal female