Getting a thawed jumbo mouse at right temperature

[Acedink]

I seem to always have trouble getting the mouse to the right temp for my Banana Ball. He's interested, comes out, sniffs it, and then after 20 seconds or so, goes back into his hide. He's never been a picky eater but I feel like the mouse temp isn't quite right. I have been using a hair dryer, but roughly how long should I heat up the mouse w/ the hair dryer? Is there a more efficient way that people recommend?

[Craiga 01453]

Do you have a temp gun? If so you can use that to check the temp. You want to focus on the head and aim for about 100°. After enough feeds you'll have it down and won't need to temp it.

I personally heat in water. I fill a small tub type thing with hot tap water. I simply drop the defrosted prey right in the water. The larger the prey the longer I let it heat up.

I like the added hydration of feeding the prey wet. Every one of my snakes takes the prey wet, but I have heard of some finicky eaters who won't.

[Acedink]

May give that a shot. Normally if I thaw in room temp water, and the baggie leaks, I then blow dry the thing dry, but maybe I won't have to. Didn't know if they'd lose any smell in the water. Thanks!

[wnateg]

I also do wet. It thaws better than when in a bag. I leave cold water running for 2-3 hours, until totally thaw, then switch to hot water for like 10-15 minutes. An extra large rat is 100 degrees no problem. I don't bother using a hair dryer.

[Zincubus]

Next time you have a steak or beef burger soak it in water for as while before you eat it .. compare the smell , taste and texture


Seriously though .. I let the frozen rodents thaw naturally in the snake room for a few hours then in the evening most of the snakes are ready and waiting ( even drooling lol) .. then a 5 to 10 second blast with a hairdryer and BOOM .
It works 99% of the time but if the snake is determined to fast or it’s going into shed mode then just leave it 7 to 10 days .


The thing about the hairdryer trick is that it’s a ‘method ‘ really .. feed evenings, dim or low lighting , wait until the snake is well settled under a hide ( or has its head peeling out ) then blast the mouse /rat with hairdryer and INSTANTLY dangle it in front of the hide entrance for them to drag under and eat . If it doesn’t get it first time but shows even the slightest interest then they will take it if you repeat the method each time . It’s important to get the warm meal to the hide entrance immediately so their heat pits can kick in ( that’s where the dim lighting helps as well as keeping them calm )


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