Feeding size!

[thedigi1]

Hey guys

I have a quick one, when do you guys know when to up your snakes meal? I wanna go from adult mouse to baby rat I guess if there is a such thing. My ball weighs 165 grams maybe more so I was wondering what you guys suggest.

Thanks

[SatanicIntention]

An adult mouse and a rat pup are the same size. Can you consistently get rat pups in your area every week? One medium adult mouse or a fuzzy rat would be fine for your snake(something around 15-20g).

[thedigi1]

Well I did it! I went and got him a rat pup and I didn't think he was gonna be able to put it away and with a little time he had that rat in him!

I am a little worried though!

When I thawed out the rat I thought I did a good job it read like 110 degrees!
When i fed it to my snake it quickly dropped to 82 and felt kinda cold to the touch still. This has never happened to me. Should I worry about it harming my guy?
I know next time I will keep it longer on a thaw cycle.
So please relax my worried mind and let me know that everything will be alright!!

[starmom]

What thaw cycle?
I defrost my rats by the snake racks and cages all day long and then zap them on the head and belly with a blow dryer for about a minute.
You always want to feel a nice and smooshy-thawed rat tummy and abdomen area...

[thedigi1]

well that is what I call it. I was told when I got my snake that all I had to do was use hot water for like 10 minutes (not boiling) and he should be nice and thawed. In the past for adult mice this was no problem but for this rat pup it seemed to have stayed cold and that was weird. neways is that bad for my snake? I didn't mean to give it a cold rat I mean it wasn't frozen but it was cold it read 82 degrees all over its body while my guy was taking it in.

[stangs13]

I thaw mine in hot water till there soft and squishy in the middle, and there heads are warm-ish. Works for me.I also feed bigger prey when they beg for more!

[starmom]

A partially thawed rat COULD lead to regurg.
I have found that the best way to thaw is slowly and throughout the day.... Never had an exploding rodent or one that was cold.... Works well for pre-scenting also!!
Woops, you have a wee one so thawing won't take all day!!!!!

[thedigi1]

Well how will I know if he regurgitates his rat? Will this be like right away or will it take days for him to regurg?

[starmom]

Well how will I know if he regurgitates his rat? Will this be like right away or will it take days for him to regurg?

It'll be in the day or two after feeding usually. And how will you know?? I'm told the stench will drive you from the room

[thedigi1]

wow that sucks!