live rat

Ok, so, for the first time in all the time i've had him, bobo refuses to eat. As he is a health happy snake, this is not another 'oh no he isn't eating' thread, this is a 'what do I do with a live rat?'

As I only have two snakes, I have always bought my feeders at the pet store. i've never had a problem with getting bobo to eat, so I've never needed to worry about housing a live rat for more than a few hours. Personally i'm not to thrilled with the idea of keeping it around for a week to see if bobo will eat later. And Hadiya just entered shed, so i'm not going to try and offer her a rat when she can barely see.

besides not wanting a rat around, my cats have tried to eat the rat numerous times, and even gotten themselves stuck in the smaller tank where the rat is now trying to get it.

Why not try an offer it to the other snake? I offer food regardless of shed or not. Some eat and some don't.

Make friends with it. :)

I modified a tub for "spare" mice.. some ventilation holes, aspen, an empty paper towel roll, and an old water bottle, some food, and a wheel. They just stay over in the corner and I open it up to change food/water. Really no maintenance or smell so far. It isn't that bad. :)

give it to your other snake or throw it in the bath tub with your cat, kinda like training if you ever have a mouse in the house.

Do not give it to the other snake, she will just get stressed and it will put her further back into her shell. She needs to be left alone completely.

How big is the rat? If it's any bigger than 50-60g, then you will want to take it back. Male Balls don't need anything bigger than 2 adult mice a week or a weaned rat, or they will fast(which is likely what he's doing). If you've been feeding him medium rats or larger, then he's probably just fasting so his body can catch up.

My BP is approx 300 grams and eats one mouse (22g) every 5 days. Would that be a lot, just fine or too little for him/her? I'm still to-day not sure if it's a he or a she.

If you feed live you have to plan for refusals - I'm always amazed that this bit gets missed when people decide to live feed. It's not that big of a deal with set up a rodent home and offer that rat food and water for a week until it's needed for feeding. Surely you must have some place in your entire home where you can put the rat's enclosure and your cats aren't able to harrass it.

Another option would be to kill it humanely (?cervical dislocation) and freeze it then offer it f/t later.

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Originally Posted by kurgan

Another option would be to kill it humanely (?cervical dislocation) and freeze it then offer it f/t later.

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If you don't have the necessary supplies to house the rat for a week until the next feed, I agree that you should dispatch the rat and toss it in the freezer. I don't know much about cervical dislocation, but from what I have been told, the quickest and most humane way other than CO2 asphyxiation would be to put it in a pillowcase or bag of some kind and give it one good hard whack on a solid surface. (I use the wall or floor of my garage when I PK rats)

I have a tank, and a lid for it so the cats can't bother the rat. It has a water bowl, I don't have any water bottles I can put in there. I gave it some of the rabbit food I have and a small bit of bread and cheese.

I'm just not thrilled with the thought of a rat in my house for long