Only eaten about 3 times in 5 months

[MedicalAuthor]

No worries, I was thinking it might cause regurgitation, which I wanted to check.

[MedicalAuthor]

Given the success with live and the spotty success/failure with f/t, I’m thinking about trying a fuzzy/largest-with-eyes-closed rat for next feeding. I was thinking of getting two fuzzy mice and a rat and doing the mice first and then the rat. This way if it is an absolute aversion to rats, he already has food in him and I don’t miss a week of feeding and I can take the rat back.

Any glaring negatives to this as a next step?

[MedicalAuthor]

Update: Got two fuzzy mice and one fuzzy rat. Offered mouse first, went after it. Offered second mouse, took immediately. I then offered the fuzzy rat (which was on the small side, maybe 10g) and the snake did something peculiar. The fuzzy rat wasn't moving much and the snake kept sliding its head over it. Finally, instead of striking and wrapping it, the snake started to swallow it, still alive. The tail was still moving as he finished it.

I might stick with this for a few weeks (two mice plus a rat) and then see if I can transition to just rats and then see if I can transition to f/t rats.

[Malum Argenteum]

Checked back through the thread and didn't see mention that this was tried, so: a good way to transition from live to f/t is once a snake is feeding well on live (mice or rats; it seems your snake has no strong preference, which is good) is to offer freshly killed prey. It smells live, and looks somewhat live, but has none of the risks of live. It is also a step on the way to getting a resistant snake to switch from hunting to what is sometimes basically scavenging (eating a long-dead prey item from the ground). Feeding a bunch of random stuff (size and species) is indeed getting food into the snake, but isn't exactly a plan for weaning him onto a sustainable long term diet.

Feeding fresh prekilled isn't exactly something all novice keepers want to get into (both because of the psychological hurdles, and also the cost of equipment needed to humanely euthanize larger rodents), but taking on the care of a live feeder isn't a recommended novice situation either. It is really unfortunate that breeders will sell live-only feeders to new keepers.

One other option to try is to get frozen feeders from a different source. It has been my experience with a range of colubrids and boids (the only pythons I've bred are blood pythons, once, which I had a friend sell for me and so I lost track of their ongoing feeding habits) that some snakes will refuse some f/t feeders from one source but readily take them from some other source. Likely, the scent of the rodent matters, and rodents from different breeders will have different scents.

[Bogertophis]

Checked back through the thread and didn't see mention that this was tried, so: a good way to transition from live to f/t is once a snake is feeding well on live (mice or rats; it seems your snake has no strong preference, which is good) is to offer freshly killed prey. It smells live, and looks somewhat live, but has none of the risks of live. It is also a step on the way to getting a resistant snake to switch from hunting to what is sometimes basically scavenging (eating a long-dead prey item from the ground). Feeding a bunch of random stuff (size and species) is indeed getting food into the snake, but isn't exactly a plan for weaning him onto a sustainable long term diet.

Feeding fresh prekilled isn't exactly something all novice keepers want to get into (both because of the psychological hurdles, and also the cost of equipment needed to humanely euthanize larger rodents), but taking on the care of a live feeder isn't a recommended novice situation either. It is really unfortunate that breeders will sell live-only feeders to new keepers.

One other option to try is to get frozen feeders from a different source. It has been my experience with a range of colubrids and boids (the only pythons I've bred are blood pythons, once, which I had a friend sell for me and so I lost track of their ongoing feeding habits) that some snakes will refuse some f/t feeders from one source but readily take them from some other source. Likely, the scent of the rodent matters, and rodents from different breeders will have different scents.

Great advice, as usual. Offering "fresh-killed" obviously isn't for everyone, but I can vouch for it being a very helpful technique for those who can manage it.

I have no doubt that the reason snakes seem to know the difference in rodents from different suppliers is that the feeders really DO smell (& taste) different based on what they were fed. Some, like me, raise rodents on professional rodent lab pellets, while some others, unfortunately, feed theirs dog food kibble- and that would greatly impact the scent & taste to a snake.

[MedicalAuthor]

I'm open to killing them myself. What's the best method for, say, a small rat, which I think could be the right size for my BP?

It's got to be less painful than being swallowed alive. And I'm not squeamish

I think I'm going to continue 'priming' him with live fuzzy mice to begin feeding for a few weeks, though, since he has consistently taken those down.

[Malum Argenteum]

What's the best method for, say, a small rat, which I think could be the right size for my BP?

Best, in my experience, is pressurized CO2 with a flowmeter at a rate of 30-70% of the rat's enclosure volume per minute. A 5lb CO2 tank and flowmeter can be had for about $125; a full tank at a local welding supply or beer CO2 shop, and a flowmeter off Amazon, is often the least expensive way to go. Contrary to the belief of many people, CO2 asphyxiation using dry ice is not humane, and it is not approved for euthanasia in the US.

Cervical dislocation (basically, breaking the neck) is also approved, though can be tough to master (I could not get the hang of it, anyway, and I'm fairly proficient at harvesting a range of animals for human consumption).

There are a couple other non chemical methods described in the AVMA guidelines, but probably not ideal for the situation. Best to confirm any non-professional advice (such as mine) against the AVMA guidelines before proceeding.

AVMA euthanasia guidelines.

Instructions for cervical dislocation.

[Homebody]

Cervical dislocation (basically, breaking the neck) is also approved, though can be tough to master (I could not get the hang of it, anyway, and I'm fairly proficient at harvesting a range of animals for human consumption).

Instructions for cervical dislocation.

I appreciate your sharing your experience with cervical dislocation. I briefly considered using this method to feed fresh killed mice to my snake. The guy in this video (graphic) makes it look easy. I decided against it. I suspected that it isn't as easy as he makes it look. DIY videos made by experts often make tasks look easier than they are for beginners. I have some experience screwing up DIY projects I've seen in a video. The result is a mess. I imagine that screwing this up could be downright horrible.

[Malum Argenteum]

Yeah, when you mess up building a bookshelf you can just have a nice bonfire and keep trying until you learn the techniques. Different situation with euthanasia.

Probably some people can get the hang of it right off, and that's great, but CO2 is simply a matter of feeding a tube into a box with a rodent in it and setting the meter at the right level until the rodent is dead -- no talent required. CO2 can also provide a little more emotional distance from the event, which can be valuable; long term, harvesting animals can take a bit of a toll on a person, or at least change a person in ways that may be more complex than expected.

[MedicalAuthor]

Also, as an update my BP is 282g now. Just weighed (two days after last feed)