thawing your f/t

[BuckeyeBalls]

Actually I thought about that! But where they sit to be thawed is on a second floor balcony. The only thing that could possibly grab it for a meal would be a hawk. We have a lot of them around. But then again if the thing never moves the hawk wouldn't pick up on it.

Very true

[loonunit]

just wondering why are we so worried about the rat being wet, as long as its not soaking wet everything is good

I mostly just pat them dry out of respect for the picky eaters, who I figure prefer their dead mice to look as much like live mice as possible. It's also harder to warm their noses when they're wet--but that's another thing I'm doing to accommodate the finicky snakes.

(I spend a lot less effort in the summer, when everyone is gobbling down 4 or 5 jumbo mice each week!)

[loonunit]

Actually I thought about that! But where they sit to be thawed is on a second floor balcony. The only thing that could possibly grab it for a meal would be a hawk. We have a lot of them around. But then again if the thing never moves the hawk wouldn't pick up on it.

Hah, I have dogs! I used to leave my mice out to thaw when I went out to dinner. I stopped doing that because sometimes when I returned, I'd discover that a mouse was missing. And SOMETIMES I'd find the missing mouse IN MY BED.

[bsd13]

On top of an old grocery bag sitting next to my snake's cages. The room's about 80 degrees and I let them sit there for about an hour and a half. When they're thawed everyone is ready to eat.

[PYMOM]

on feeding day i take mine out and thaw on the counter....about 30 min before feeding i put in baggie and put in a bowl of hot water...he takes it as soon a i dangle it over him.

[mrmertz]

Hah, I have dogs! I used to leave my mice out to thaw when I went out to dinner. I stopped doing that because sometimes when I returned, I'd discover that a mouse was missing. And SOMETIMES I'd find the missing mouse IN MY BED.

Let me get this straight...the dog(s) - not a cat, would take a mouse and then carry it off to your bed?!

Wow. What would REALLY freak me out is if the dog carried the mouse off to the bed and when I got home I found candles lit and soft music playing!

[m0esgirl]

i put them in the ziploc bags that you can suck the air out of (cant remember what they're called) and put them in hot water, then blow dry them to keep them warm and dry, if any get wet ill pat them dry, i figure i dont like eating soggy burgers, why would my snakes like soggy rats? ;D

[Wh00h0069]

I leave mine out for twenty-four hours, then put them in hot water for about thirty minutes. I thaw out around thirty to forty at a time, and many different sizes. They are all kept in zip-lock bags while thawing and in the water.

[Crazy4Herps]

Room temp for 12 hours or so. I usually leave a plate of rats out on top of the cages. It's hilarious to watch the snakes throughout the day!! They'll smell them and start going crazy. I always make sure to clean cages beforehand... I can't even open the cages without getting a hungry snake jumping out at me! I love my good eaters.

[Angry J]

Room temp for 12 hours or so. I usually leave a plate of rats out on top of the cages. It's hilarious to watch the snakes throughout the day!! They'll smell them and start going crazy. I always make sure to clean cages beforehand... I can't even open the cages without getting a hungry snake jumping out at me! I love my good eaters.

I fed all of my mouse and pinky rat eaters last night and used this method to thaw them. My adult male BP was so aroused that he struck at the enclosure wall when I walked by!