Frozen/thawed question

[UltraViolet]

Sooo... I just picked up a rainbow that has been eating frozen thawed, so I'm trying to switch my ball over. Last week the rainbow ended up eating both rats, last night neither of them ate. My question is: How long can a thawed rat be kept in the fridge to be offered again? I took them out of the tanks after about 90 minutes. And any tricks for getting a ball that's used to live food to eat a dead rat? She just stares at it. I've tried making it warmer, tried wiggling it- nothing. I've never fed frozen/thawed before, any help will be useful.

[Pythonfriend]

one little thing to consider....

when a rat starts going bad and isnt fit for consumption anymore, the snakes will notice it long before you do. they are the rhodent experts and have a superior sense of smell.


but then, im speculating, maybe the reasons are different, and the BP still refuses it because he/she has never eaten it before, and the boa just isnt hungry after the double-sized meal she got last week.

since you say using frozen-thawed is a first for you, maybe something is wrong with how you stored it, or you overheated it or something.

i wonder if its good to try again the following day, people generally say you should stick to the scedule, or they say you should wait at least a few days before you try again. i dont know if thawed rhodents can survive one night in the fridge, maybe they can, but they definitively wont survive several days, and re-freezing also isnt a good idea.

in any case, since they get deep-frozen with internal organs and everything, directly after they get killed, they are highly perishable and the bacteria become active as soon as you thaw them. personally i would be cautious and discard any leftovers.

[Benjamin Serenity]

With my guys, it's all about the heat of the rat, I switched my adopted 5 year old over to F/T a few months ago, he'll only take it if the rat is at least 85-90 degrees. I use a temp gun to make sure. I'm not sure about re freezing thawed out rats, but I have done it before, mine was only out for 30 minutes though. I tend to be overly cautious, and if my guys won't eat, I usually end up tossing the rat =/

Try giving him a few more days before you offer again? Maybe he'll be hungrier and not care as much.

[Archimedes]

I dont think its a good idea to put them in the fridge, however tossing them back into the freezer is fine.i normally only refreeze once though, if it doesnt get eaten the next week I toss it. some people say you can refreeze up to three times, I wouldn't but to each their own.

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[Ripsaw642]

With my guys, it's all about the heat of the rat, I switched my adopted 5 year old over to F/T a few months ago, he'll only take it if the rat is at least 85-90 degrees. I use a temp gun to make sure. I'm not sure about re freezing thawed out rats, but I have done it before, mine was only out for 30 minutes though. I tend to be overly cautious, and if my guys won't eat, I usually end up tossing the rat =/

Try giving him a few more days before you offer again? Maybe he'll be hungrier and not care as much.

Temperature is important, not too cold, not too hot. Remember, you're trying to make it look like live food. A live rat's body temp is about 100f.... Try zombie walking it some more too, tongs may be helpful. Try to make it look like its still alive!

[GregsMoko]

I'm not sold on re-freezing but I've read other articles about people nudging the snake with the rat (gentle harassing the snake) and tired it when I first fed my male bp, it got his attention but I realized holding the rat lower , just a couple inches higher than the snake ,triggered his hunting instincts. Then I just swing it a little slowly and bam, it's over. I always tug the rat a little after he's got it , which in your case you might want to do so your snake will feel better about taking a f/t and may take them more easily.

[UltraViolet]

Hmm, I responded yesterday. Not sure why it didn't post. Anyway, thanks for all the responses. It never occurred to me to refreeze- refreezing is a huge no-no for human food. I didn't think refrigeration was going to be ok because the rat still has all its innards, and internal organs start to decompose fast, but it never hurts to ask! I tossed the rats.
I don't have a heatgun. I warm the rat until it's slightly warm to touch, then figure it will cool off to the attractively correct temperature in the tank. Pandora, my ball, has never been on a regular feeding schedule. She got fed whenever I could connect with the guy I get my rats from, usually not often enough. My new rainbow, Isabella, was supposedly on a 2week schedule but hadn't eaten in 3 weeks when I got her. She's eaten once for me, Pandora hasn't eaten for a month. I'm trying to get both on a weekly f/t schedule.
Zombie walking- I like that. It's a great term. I'll wait week and do more of that, see how it goes.