Rat feeding question

[Kb-]

So, I bought a six year old female from Reptiles By Mack at a local expo almost two months ago. Was told she was eating live. I've only ever fed frozen thawed, so I tried that first just to see. No luck, so I bought a medium rat and tried offering fresh kill-- as I've been told that it's dangerous to feed larger rats live. Still nothing, so now I've been trying live large mice. She's very active, tongue flicks, but the mouse can go right past her and nothing happens. I know it's probably too small, she's got a big enough girth to be eating medium/large rats.

How does everyone feed live rats? I've heard that some people stun them first, some just toss them into the enclosure, some kill first.. I'm just terrified of the damage a big rat could inflict.

[200xth]

So, I bought a six year old female from Reptiles By Mack at a local expo almost two months ago. Was told she was eating live. I've only ever fed frozen thawed, so I tried that first just to see. No luck, so I bought a medium rat and tried offering fresh kill-- as I've been told that it's dangerous to feed larger rats live. Still nothing, so now I've been trying live large mice. She's very active, tongue flicks, but the mouse can go right past her and nothing happens. I know it's probably too small, she's got a big enough girth to be eating medium/large rats.

How does everyone feed live rats? I've heard that some people stun them first, some just toss them into the enclosure, some kill first.. I'm just terrified of the damage a big rat could inflict.

Live feedings are generally pretty safe if done responsibly. Incidents are actually pretty rare, but if you're worried about something happening feed smaller rats. A rat 65g to 75g is enough for almost any adult BP.

Keep it simple.

Don't stun the rat, don't starve the rat, don't dehydrate the rat.

Simply place the rat in the enclosure, and let your snake do the rest. If she is hungry, she will take care of business. If she doesn't eat within 15 or 20 mins take the rat out, try again on the next scheduled feed.

[Kb-]

If you have a snake that hasn't eaten in a few months, what kind of schedule would you recommenced?

[Daigga]

I'll add to this and point out that you should never leave a live rat alone with your snake; supervision is key. I'm always present during my live feedings with a pair of feeding tongs on standby just in case of a bad wrap (the tongs give the feeder something to bite on that isn't your snake). Other than that, just drop in the rat, maybe give it a nugget of dog food if your unsure about its temperament, and let your girl do her thing.

[200xth]

If you have a snake that hasn't eaten in a few months, what kind of schedule would you recommenced?

I only feed on weekends so I'm stuck to multiples of 7 days.

If they haven't eaten in a while, and have good weight, I'll offer every 14 days. Once they start eating they stay on 14 days for a couple of months (4 feedings) then I'll try bumping them to 7 days. Some like eating every week, some are fine every 14 days, so I try to figure out what each snake prefers and do that if possible.

[JoshSloane]

Just adding my two cents here. It seems like there are a lot of "Non feeding" threads that are initiated a month or so after a snake is purchased. I feel like this happens frequently as the animal is stressed moving habitats and conditions. With all husbandry parameters within specs im sure your snake will eat once it gets acclimated.

[bondo]

Lots of good suggestions here. Since the snake is new start by feeding live. Let the snake get comfortable and then you can try prekilled once she is eating good. Don't feed mice to a snake that eats rats. You don't want her addicted to mice and then try to get her back on rats again. Was this girl bred at all? She may be off food if she is close to ovulating.

[Stewart_Reptiles]

So, I bought a six year old female from Reptiles By Mack at a local expo almost two months ago. Was told she was eating live. I've only ever fed frozen thawed, so I tried that first just to see. No luck, so I bought a medium rat and tried offering fresh kill-- as I've been told that it's dangerous to feed larger rats live. Still nothing, so now I've been trying live large mice. She's very active, tongue flicks, but the mouse can go right past her and nothing happens. I know it's probably too small, she's got a big enough girth to be eating medium/large rats.

How does everyone feed live rats? I've heard that some people stun them first, some just toss them into the enclosure, some kill first.. I'm just terrified of the damage a big rat could inflict.

It's not unusual for adult females to go of feed for a long amount of time when changing environment, the key here is patience, optimal husbandry and feeding the same prey than what was previously offered.

Because she is big enough for a large rat does not mean she needs to or should get a large rat, if you want to have an animal feeding with consistency feed smaller preys this will also allow you to feed live without issues.

The largest I feed are 125/150 grams rats and those are only meant for females 3000 grams and over.

The key to live feeding

Scenting the room
Making sure the feeder is well hydrated and well fed (offer food and water if you purchase your feeders from a store)
Feeding a appropriately sized prey
No stunning,not only is it inhumane for the prey but in the event the feeder wakes from it's daze it could make it far more dangerous for your snake.
Monitor feeding
Remove prey within 15 to 20 min if uneaten.

I feed 250 live prey a months to my breeders and never had an issue, many do the same without issues either.