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Feeding and Buying F/T Mice

Posted By:

mamatwiggy

Okay, so I am getting 2 new ball pythons tomorrow.

I have had snakes in the past and have always fed live. But after seeing many good points online about feeding f/t I have decided to switch over. I asked the breeder, and he says they have been eating very well, and they eat f/t, but have eaten live in the past.

I have never frozen or thawed mice before, and I don't know where I can purchase them in bulk. If anyone has any tips, or links, I would appreciate it.

Thanks,
Twiggy


Points:	100
Topics:	Feeding
Tags:	Ballpython, Frozen, Mice, Thawed
Species:	Pythons > Pythons > Python regius
Administrative:	Show/Hide

Accepted Answer

10/28/2010 7:31:23 PM

BirchbarkBoas

RodentPro.com is a good place for buying bulk frozen rodents. The shipping is pretty high but if you get a year's supply (or you have a lot of animals to feed) it's worth it. However if you can get some locally or from a reptile show that might be even better.

I thaw my rodents in ziplock baggies dropped into a bucket/kettle/bowl of hot water. The water will cool off pretty quick at first while the rodent is thawing so I change it a few times to keep it warm. Otherwise you can take the rodents out and let them thaw throughout the day, or in the refridgerator and warm them up via the water method prior to feeding. I like to give my snakes a warm meal. :) I would just advise against microwaving the rodents since you could accidently cook them.

Glad you decided to make the switch to F/T! It's much safer for the snake. :)

Member Comment

10/28/2010 8:53:22 PM

Miss Andrea

I thaw my rodents out by taking them out in the am and either putting them in the fridge if they are smaller or leave them at room temp if they are med-large rats. By the evening, they are all thawed and ready to feed. Then I heat them up in warm water. I have made a youtube vid on how I do it, here is a link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hU7dPpl8oks Good luck!

Member Comment

10/28/2010 8:57:35 PM

Doomtrooper

You should be able to find frozen feeders at any local herp show or check on fauna for a local suplier I thaw Mine in warm wather its real fast

Member Comment

10/28/2010 10:24:06 PM

aaron

RodentPro +1

Member Comment

10/29/2010 4:34:56 AM

shellboa

+1 Rodent Pro , only heard good things about them.

I raise my own mice and to freeze them I use co2 to euthanise and then vacuum seal (seal a meal) and pop them in the freezer. This way I can do weekly fed batches and don't thaw to many or have to pry apart mousicles.

Agree with water thawing, easiest and cleanest. Plastic bag keeps away bugs and then sink (or tub/bucket etc.) clean up is a snap.

Purchasing in bulk or splitting an order is the way to go. It maight take you a while to figure out how much they will eat but having to many is always better than not having enough and monitors will still eat freezer burned mice so hook up with some one who has one. LoL

Member Comment

10/29/2010 10:04:33 AM

HurricaneJen

LLLReptile sells frozen rodents, and in smaller quantities than Rodent pro does. Takes about a week to receive your order, and you have more flexibility in how quickly you can change sizes. I know with my balls I tend to upgrade rodent size relatively quickly when they are on mice, but once up to rats it doesn't seem to matter as much.

Thawing is easy; just stick the rodent in a plastic bag (or loose in the water, either way works) and run hot water over it. For adult mice this takes just a couple of minutes, rats it takes much longer so I'll use the hot water in a bucket method. Basic safe food handling practices work well for thawing out rodents - thaw them out in the same way you'd thaw out a steak, for the most part, and the only difference is that instead of cooking it, you're warming it up so that it is warm to the touch.

I also highly recommend a pair of tongs or tweezers to use to offer the rodent to the snake. :)

Member Comment

10/29/2010 10:55:10 AM

hun73r

RodentPro is good and so is Big Cheese.

Member Comment

10/29/2010 11:36:52 AM

NorthBrazilian

I hate RodentP** !! THe Mouse Factory has by far the most consitent and healthiest product... I got alot of garbage from RodentP**, including decapitated rats... rotten rats.. freezer burnt mice, dirty mice....

Member Comment

10/29/2010 2:32:40 PM

crazysnakelady

I get my stuff mainly from RP and have no issues whatsoever. +1

Member Comment

10/29/2010 4:39:53 PM

Floof

RodentPro is ok, but you need to keep in mind that you're only ordering for 2 snakes, and probably young snakes at that? Rodentpro is pretty strictly "bulk" orders. Not really worth it if you only have a couple young snakes to order for, since they're going to outgrow the prey long before you use it all.

The Mouse Factory does much smaller quantity orders than RP, and smaller boxes so shipping is less, and their product is fantastic quality. For the smallest quantity and to save on shipping, your best bet is to find a local supplier or go to a reptile expo. There's just about always a vendor or three selling f/t at expos.

Member Comment

10/30/2010 1:14:16 AM

aaron

I've been rockin' out RP consistently since 2001. I've NEVER had anything decapitated or rotten or freezer burnt.
Ever.

Member Comment

10/30/2010 1:15:48 AM

aaron

And yeah, good for you for going F/T if you can, and they do keep for a good long time. If you're feeding every week, you should burn through that well before they're too old.

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