Baby BP strikes, constricts, but drops frozen thawed.

[Bogertophis]

I didn't think about that. Next time I'll try warming it up in hot water without a bag, maybe that will help keep it warmer for longer. I just figured it's more natural if the rodent is dry but I have heard some BPs will only eat if the prey is wet. It's crazy! Thanks for the response

And the pet store does carry frozen rats, at least I'm pretty sure they do, but I forgot to ask them where they had them. Again, kicking myself for that. They had a ton of awesome animals and I got distracted looking around lol!

FYI, I never thaw rodents in plastic bags- always just directly in cool water first, until soft throughout, then in very warm water (depending on what I'm feeding- most of my snakes couldn't care less if the prey is warm, lol). I blot them off on paper towels, but they're damp when served. The water will reduce some of the rodent scent, which most snakes will adapt to & some even prefer. But yes, water immersion is the most efficient way to change the temperature of something, whether thawing initially, or warming it up after.

In your case, if your snake prefers rats but you only have mice, & you thaw a mouse in water, the rat-scent you transfer with used rat-bedding may be more effective, & get the mouse accepted.

I understand getting "distracted" in a pet store, but do look for frozen rats of the right size- that would probably be best anyway, as when your BP grows up, it's easier to feed just one item (rat of appropriate size) than needing to give multiple mice because one is too small for a "meal".