See above in blue.Originally Posted by Boba
He wasn’t unattended... his tank is in my room so I was keeping an eye on him. But I took it out, snapped it’s neck and tossed it in the freezer for later.
2. Feed in tank... as in his regular tank?
Yes. Where he lives and feels safe.
3. I’ve had him maybe 2-3 weeks now? I waited just over a week before trying to feed for the first time, and then have tried every 4-5 days since.
See the post I just put up. Leave him be for a bit and then offer again.
4. I take the rat out of the freezer and transfer to plastic bag which I then submerge in lukewarm water for about 30 minutes until it’s fully thawed, then transfer to hot water for 20 minutes or so until the rat is a little warmer than room temp... then I’ve been using a separate feeder tank which I warm up with a heat lamp while the rat is thawing, put my snake in and then hold the rat by the tail, twitching him for about 15-20 minutes before giving up.
I will post proper defrosting and offering procedure at the bottom of the post. 20 minutes in hot water = cooked rat, especially at that size. You should defrost at room temp or lukewarm water for as long as it takes for the size of rat, and then drop in hot water (tap water) for 30 seconds to a minute to get the heat pits going on your BP. Not more. Also, offer on tongs for a minute or two. If not interested, leave him alone, you are only stressing him out. You can leave a F/T rat in the tank overnight to see if he eats.
5. I have a 20-gallon glass aquarium with a screen lid. I’ve covered about 2/3 of the lid with plastic (it’s actually a picture frame I just set on top) to try and prevent too much evaporation. I have a heating pad on one side as well as a heat lamp set up to a regulator that keeps the temp on that side between 85 and 95 (it can sometimes get up to 104 during the day though, my thermometer has a memory so I can check it if I’ve been gone). This generally keeps the other side of the tank around 70-80, though it can get a bit warmer during the day. But my BP usually hangs out on the warm side anyway. I have two small water dishes on either side of the tank, a plastic hollowed-out tree thing that is his favorite hide on the warm side, and a cardboard box as hide #2 on the cool side. He rarely prefers that hide. I use Repti Bark substrate, but added a coconut husk mat under part of it near the heating pad because I was hoping that would help retain water and increase the humidity. I also have some vines and such scattered around for him to climb/explore as he goes around his tank.
Proper temps are: 88-90F hot spot. 82-84F ambient. 78-80F cool side.
All heating elements must be thermostat controlled. A BP exposed to 104F for any length of time can lead to nerve damage and/or death.
UNPLUG heating elements and get a thermostat - ASAP. Better to have a cool snake for a day or two than a dead one.
6. Yes, I agree. What else can I do?
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Reply With Quote