Transitioning from mice to rats

[MyKuLoO]

Hello,

I have a 3 ft. Jungle Carpet Python. Last week I successfully fed her a mouse and this week I wanted to start the transition to rats. So I started out with a rat pup...it was not much bigger than the mouse from last week.

My snake sniffed the rat pup and then both retreated to their corners and just sat there for hours. I heard that carpets don't know or like the smell of rats at first so I tried a trick I heard about and gave the rat pup a bath in chicken stock mixed with water. I had heard that this makes the snake like the taste better.

This did not work either. Any tips?

[FWK]

I don't keep Carpets but all of my critters made the change pretty easily just by scenting the rats with the mice they used to eat. I just warm a mouse and a rat in the same bowl of water. Haven't had any trouble to speak of yet. If she is still hesitant brain the mouse and rub the brain matter on the rat.

[Kera]

^^ what FWK said, my carpet had no problem transitioning. Maybe leave it in the tank overnight, maybe they will get more interested. even just thawing a mouse in the same water as a rat can do wonders. if you wait it out also, it might take it, since that'd be its only food source. best of luck xx

[aaron_cg]

If those fail to work, the way I got my old carpet to Rats was this:

I fed a small mouse, half the size of a normal meal, and then while they are in feed mode, a rat the same size. Do that 2 or 3 times, and then the next feeding they took Rats straight, no problem.

[MyKuLoO]

when you say warm them u mean in the microwave....haha...honestly didn't know what you meant by that. I've only been using live mice/rats so I suppose you are talking about frozen?

[pinefamily]

Warming frozen prey in warm to hot water, put the rat in with a mouse. Here in Australia it is illegal to feed live prey to our snakes, so I can't really offer advice. The only thing that might work is as Kera suggested. If you wait a week or two, you might find the snake is hungry enough to take it.
None of our pythons have had any trouble changing from mice to rats; some of our hatchies have even gone back and forth with no problem.

[franks]

Do you have a Jungle carpet Python? They can be a little tough to switch over. I think the process is alot easier with frozen thawed. No matter how you choose to go about this I would strongly recommend switching to F/T as soon as possible. The danger to your snake will only increase with the size of the prey offered.

My method that worked wad to break a small hopper in half (while frozen) and thaw it with a rat to the guts and scent soaked the rat. Worked pretty quickly for me- I only had to do it twice. If you are going to stick with live for now I would try the idea suggested above of offering a small mouse and follow it with a small rat. Good luck and let us know it it goes.

[Chris72]

The tricks that have worked the best for us are:

1) (for strong feeders)
Use scrap of paper towel that smells like a live rodent (mouse) to scent the snake enclosure. By the hide opening if animal is in the hide. After 5-8minutes replace with rat (guide it into the enclosure)

2) (for pickier feeders. Mentioned above)
To get feed response...offer a tiny mouse....once that is picked up by the snake go right back in with a rat. make sure total volume of meal does not constitute "power feeding"

Then there is the game of switching from live to F/T is you want to. (not as hard)

Regardless of the method you use to switch from mice to rats I would space out feedings more than usual so that your animal is a little more "ready" to eat.

Hope that helps.

[MyKuLoO]

So I tried the feeding a small mouse then follow it with a pinky rat method and my snake seems to still not want to take a rat. He will sniff it even touch it with his mouth but not strike at it. Any other ideas? I want to keep him on live feed as long as possible and then switch him to T/F just cause I don't have the means to keep frozen mice/rats at this time. Too many people in my family objecting to me keeping it in the family fridge.

[franks]

It is alot easier to switch if they are eating frozen. If this is not an option, I would skip a feeding or two then try to rat.

[GUITARZAN509]

It is alot easier to switch if they are eating frozen. If this is not an option, I would skip a feeding or two then try to rat.

This has also worked for me every time, skipping a meal, had an IJ female i got tired of feeding 6 or 7 adult mice at a time

[shaunyboy]

scent the rat pups with mice mate

heat the rat pup and and a mouse pinky/fuzzy,then burst the mouse pinky/fuzzy wide open...


smear mouse blood and guts all over the rat pup,then give the rat pup another heat up,then offer to the snake

you can also brain the rat pup,puncture the skull with the point of a pair of scissors until grey liquid comes out the puncture holes,give the head another heat,then offer to the snake

DO NOT OFFER MICE EVER AGAIN,NO MATTER HOW MANY WEEKS GO BY

patience and perciverance is required when swapping from mice to rats mate


cheers shaun

P.S.it took mr just over 4 month to cross my female Diamond over

[pinefamily]

Dedicate a freezer-proof plastic container with a lid to rodents, and store your frozen prey in the freezer that way. You might be able to win your family over that way.

[Chris72]

It sounds like you are feeding live and your animal is scent picky.

I had an animal that was stuck on live mice so I kept 4 mice, fed her only ever three weeks, kept the (rodent) bedding smelling rather mousy....always put the rat pup in (smelly) mouse bedding between putting bedding in to scent your carpet and replacing it with a scented pup.

I would put the rat pup in a small deli cut, filled with mouse bedding, put the top on....wait 2 hrs...voila, mouse flavored rat pup.

The hunger combined with a mouse scented rat might get you over the hump.

Once she takes a rat.....never give her a mouse again.