Feeder thawing in refrigerator

[HenryTheSnake]

Hey All!
I wanted to know your opinions about thawing using this method:

1. Take frozen feeder out of freezer and put into refrigerator
2. Wait 12-24 hours
3. Take out of refrigerator and let sit at room temperature for 1-3 hours
4. Use a heat lamp to heat mouse up, or use a blow drier (which one do you guys prefer and why)

What do you guys think of this method?
Thanks,
HenryTheSnake

[lorrainesmom]

I've never tried to thaw in fridge, I usually put the feeder in my feeding tub, and sit it on the dryer on laundry day. That way the feeder is warm, and so is the tub. I've never had a meal refusal since ive been using that method.

[Smitty33]

I like to use a blow drier. I slide his glass door open a bit then go over and start heating up the rat with blow drier. I like to blow the scent towards him and get him worked up a bit before I offer. I find it so funny how it doesn't take long for him to get a whiff and come bailing out of his hide all fired up and ready. Every now and then he won't strike and will only eat it if I leave it in his cage but he usually always eats.

[bproffer]

I think that sounds fine. Personally I take mine from frozen and place them in a Baggie and then into a bowl of hot water for an hour or so. If it get cold, I'll replace the hot water. Then I take them into the snake room and finish warming them with my wife's hair dryer (she totally loves that btw..). The snakes almost immediately come out of their hides when they smell the prey.

[Albert Clark]

I never put rodents in my human food fridge. If you are referring to using a fridge that is exclusively for reptile food then I think that is fine and acceptable. Personally, I use a couple of other methods to defrost rodents. For the small and medium rats I sometimes place them on paper towels to thaw out straight out of the freezer for several hours. Then I warm soak them in moderately warm water for about 1 hour in zip lock bags. Just prior to offering I blast them with the blow dryer. The hatchlings eat rat pups and they get set out at room temps for about 2 hours then placed in zip lock bags into warm water. The rat pups are then offered and usually snatched up without hesitation. If a hatchling seems interested in a rat pup but doesn't strike and wrap it then I hit it with the blow dryer and reoffer. Rat pups are more easily warmed bc they are a lot smaller and less dense.

[LittleTreeGuy]

I don't use a blow dryer at all. Here is what I do:

1. Take out of freezer and put in a ziploc bag
2. Put bag into bowl of luke warm water and sit an empty cup (or something) on it, so it's held under water. Leave it there until the prey is soft and squeezable and no cold spots.
3. replace luke warm water with hot tap water and let it sit in there for maybe a minute or two... (the time it takes me to get from my kitchn to the snake's enclosure.
4. Pull the mouse out of the baggie with my hemostats and present it to the snake.

I too have never had an issue and have gotten very fast feed responses. I've seen videos of some people always putting the whole mouse in warm water. I guess the snake gets more water that way, but I've never tried it. My method allows me to go from freezer to dinner time in about 10 minutes if i want, and doesn't take anything special. I think the main thing is just finding something that works for you and your snake. From what I have read, some snakes are just a lot more finicky when it comes to their prey and feeding habbits. Others, not so much. I'm sure there are some other factors, but I'm just a newbie, so I'll keep those thoughts to myself. lol

[bcr229]

Some of my snakes are on 3-4 pound rabbits. I thaw them in the refrigerator for two days prior to feeding, otherwise it takes forever for them to warm up when going from the deep freeze to eating temperature, and thawing them on the counter would take hours.

Large and jumbo rats get thawed overnight in the refrigerator. Smaller feeders can be warmed up pretty quickly.

[PitOnTheProwl]

Ziplock bag, fill sink with hot water, place rodent in bag, place bag in sink with a dinner plate on top to submerge.

[Mstuppiello921]

This is the exact method that I use as well...

1. From the freezer to the fridge the night before.
2. When I get home from work, I put it by the snake cage to get to room temp.
3. Blow dry to 110 degrees head temp, 100 body temp
4. Eats every time

I thaw in the fridge to eliminate the chance of building bacteria when sitting at room temp for too long.

[gameonpython]

Skip the fridge... I leave the rats on top of the snakes cage overnight and feed them in the morning. To heat them up, I hold them under the heat lamp for a minute or hold the rats head under warm water for a minute. Leaving it on top of the snakes cage gets them in the "mood" to eat too.


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