rat was too big, now he won't eat the small rat

[monster]

I've been feeding my BP live rats, he eats them everytime and is quite content. However, it's hard to tell how big the rat is when it's at the store and I misjudged my BP's ability by picking one that was too big. I put my BP in his eating area, and he was ready to strike, but when i took the rat out, he looked unsure and did not want to strike, as the rat was quite large. So, I went back to the store and got a smaller rat than he usually eats, but now he doesn't want to eat it. I'm guessing that he's traumatized a bit from the large rat. SO, i'm wondering if anyone has had an experience like this, and if anyone knows how long my snake will hold out until eating the rat I have for him. I HATE keeping rats, and so I really want him to eat it NOW, and the pet store will not give refunds for the rat, those bastards.. they will take the rat off my hands and sell it to someone else but they don't give a refund. I have thought of getting frozen rats, but the shipping costs are outrageous, so it seems more logical to buy the rats from the store 10 minutes from my house. I live near Burnaby/Vancouver in BC and the only store that sells frozen rats is more than an hour away from my house and they're highly overpriced. Maybe in a month when it's really cold I'll get the frozen rats shipped because the cold conditions should make the shipping cost less. Anyways, so I have this rat, and I'm kind of tempted to stick it in my snakes enclosure to persuade him to eat it. Suggestions?.. NEGATIVE COMMENTS WILL BE IGNORED

[snakeman7]

Hi I looked over your problem and i have had the same problem with one of my small females. I find that when i left her alone for a few days and then tried again she took the rat with no problem. Also to your question the can go for up to a year or better with out eating . I have a male who only eats 4 mounths out of the year . hope this helps you out nothing for you to worrie about.

[snakeman7]

Oh any questions email me .

[monster]

Hi I looked over your problem and i have had the same problem with one of my small females. I find that when i left her alone for a few days and then tried again she took the rat with no problem. Also to your question the can go for up to a year or better with out eating . I have a male who only eats 4 mounths out of the year . hope this helps you out nothing for you to worrie about.


THANX A LOT!.. didn't expect to get such a good response.

[zero&stich]

'Tis the season, bud. My female has begun the fast. My male though, just took a small rat, and decided to surprise me, lol. I didn't rear my pythons from hatchlings; adopted them. So gettin them to take rats, enhances the "ball python headache".

Anyway, sorry for rambling. Unless there is some scientific data or proof, Balls don't become tramatized by a slight difference in their prey's girth, by 'looking at it." You said you wanted to try frozen. THough, I'm from the states and have absolutley no idea what froz rat prices are up there, here's a few suggestions. First, if you're intent on frozen and you have the 'stomach' for it, dislocate the rat's neck and toss it in your freezer, for next time. :) Or, try this website: www.rodentpro.com. They serve Canandians to. Actually, I think they serve quite a few others.

Other than that, if your husbantry is correct, your snake may just not want to feed, and very well may not feed for days, weeks or months. Balls are known for shutting down on food for no apperant reason and even if they 'give you the hungry' glance; they will just ignore you all together, lol. Sorry to laugh as this is probably frustrating for you. But my female pulled that example tonight. She was out and about in her cage, acting like she was going to starve!! So I snapped a mouse's neck and offered ot to her from my 'stat's - no go. Though my male, is in a fierce feeding mood. Almost snapped my nose tonight! I despise Octobers'...*grumbles*

Again, if your husbantry is correct, it'll feed eventually. Just be patient, as hard as that is, believe me. :)

Edit- forgot wait least one week to offer again. Continusally offering food every hour or day will not entice the snake to eat. It might only further cause stress. Patience, :)

[SOS]

I've had the same experience with a number of snakes throughout the years. A food item too large turns off the snake from feeding. I've had this happen in corn snakes, balls, and kings. In every case, I just waited a week or 2 before trying to feed again and they ate without problems. Provided that the reason your snake isn't eating is in fact because of the incident with the big rat (and not something else like a normal fasting period) then I wouldn't worry right now.

Oh and I live in Vancouver and got rats shipped this summer. Shipping costs weren't bad at all. Something around $60-$70 for shipping including dry ice. That's pretty good if you order lots. Problem for me is that I ordered from a certain company which seems to have gotten a really bad reputation (but my experience with them was EXCELLENT), so I'm not sure whether or not I should find a different source, or stick with them.

Where's the local store that sells frozen rats and how much do they charge?

[rrrrr]

If you dont want to keep it, kill it and freeze it (in that order please...freezing it to death is cruel). Cervical dislocation is best, but wacking it can work too.

[gonesnakee]

If live rats are readily available & frozen ones are not, but your snake will eat F/T I would suggest prekilling the rat before feeding. If it doesn't eat the fresh killed, freeze it for later. Even though you have stated you will ignore what you call NEGATIVE COMMENTS, but what others would consider COMMON SENSE Why are you feeding live rats to it if it will take F/T? Sounds pretty irresponsible to me, Seriously Mark

[monster]

If live rats are readily available & frozen ones are not, but your snake will eat F/T I would suggest prekilling the rat before feeding. If it doesn't eat the fresh killed, freeze it for later. Even though you have stated you will ignore what you call NEGATIVE COMMENTS, but what others would consider COMMON SENSE Why are you feeding live rats to it if it will take F/T? Sounds pretty irresponsible to me, Seriously Mark


naw man, i didn't find what you said to be negative, except the capitals were quite annoying. however you're not giving common sense at all. For your information, my snake has eaten live mice and rats since it was born even by the breeder, i see no need to change to frozen, only if it is convenient. there is no point in me making an order for frozen rats with 60-70 dollar shipping charge because i only keep one snake and i only have 1 refrigerator which i share with my family, so i could not buy a big order of rats. I'm not irresponsible, i take really good care of my snake, give him everything he needs. besides, what the hell is wrong with giving live rodents, they have lived for thousands of years eating live rodents. :bugout: now that is common sense. and i don't feel comfortable killing rats, i'm only human. the snake however, is a predator and is made for killing them rodents, so i'll let him do his job. you're snakes may be timid, but mine likes the thrill of the hunt, you can see him wind up when he's put in his feeding area.

[gonesnakee]

Obviously you are failing to see the big picture. The only reason the breeder fed live to it was because it was easier. No warming it up or tease feeding to be done, just throw it live. I personally have kept 1000's of snakes (I'm a snake breeder BTW) & there is zero need to feed live. Ever see a snake with 1 eye? Ever wonder what happened to the other eye? A live rat can do considerable damage to your snake & snakes in the wild are mortally wounded or die from secondary infections all the time due to rodent related injuries. So your "nature comments" are null & void as snakes do die all the time as a result of prey related injuries. Sure the snake is a predator, but if you think that the prey just dies willingly & doesn't put up a fight you are sadly mistaken. Rats can leave a nasty bite which is very prone to infection. You snake may be lucky & never sustain such an injury, but it may not. Why risk having a 1 eyed snake or having to take it to the vet for antibiotics & treatments for an injury that is 1000% avoidable? Sounds pretty irresponsible to me in my opinion. Chances are your snake has a better grasp of this than yourself as it was intimidated by the larger rat & wouldn't strike it. The bigger/older the rats are the greater the chances are it is going to hurt your snake. If the snake will take F/T there is absoulutely no reason to continually risk injuring it every feeding. The choice is yours to make, but it will be the snake that ends up paying for it in the end. Mark
P.S. run a search & see what pics you can find of what a live rat can do to a BP you will be quite shocked.

[zero&stich]

only have 1 refrigerator which i share with my family I found an old fridge at a flea market. :) Its stored in my basement, away from my family's fridge, just for that reason, lol. They got sick of seein loads of frozen rats piling up!

I'm not irresponsible, i take really good care of my snake, give him everything he needs. besides, what the hell is wrong with giving live rodents, they have lived for thousands of years eating live rodents. Reptiles have evolved to adapt, yes, but here's the hard cold truth. In the wild, snakes especially, are lucky to live for 5 years! Pretty sad, when most snakes are capable of lasting a good 10-40 yrs in captivity. There main preditors are rodents, birds and Man. I have no doubt that you take well care of your animal, but when someone offers you GOOD advice, I would heed the warning. To disregard it, is being foolish. You ask why feeding live is bad? My answer is the same as Marks'. Both of us speak from experience. I've seen broken jaws, deformed spines, scars, kinked tails; to name a few, thats from feeding live. If your animal will accept frozen, you'll thank yourself if you decide to switch. The bonus's are no injured snake, no risks of mites or a sickly 'feeder'.

Good luck to you and hope the snake eats soon.

[monster]

I found an old fridge at a flea market. :) Its stored in my basement, away from my family's fridge, just for that reason, lol. They got sick of seein loads of frozen rats piling up!

Reptiles have evolved to adapt, yes, but here's the hard cold truth. In the wild, snakes especially, are lucky to live for 5 years! Pretty sad, when most snakes are capable of lasting a good 10-40 yrs in captivity. There main preditors are rodents, birds and Man. I have no doubt that you take well care of your animal, but when someone offers you GOOD advice, I would heed the warning. To disregard it, is being foolish. You ask why feeding live is bad? My answer is the same as Marks'. Both of us speak from experience. I've seen broken jaws, deformed spines, scars, kinked tails; to name a few, thats from feeding live. If your animal will accept frozen, you'll thank yourself if you decide to switch. The bonus's are no injured snake, no risks of mites or a sickly 'feeder'.

Good luck to you and hope the snake eats soon.


cool. good input.

[hbwright]

Another reason besides already stated. Parasites. Yea, snakes "in the wild" get parasites too.

[SOS]

Monster, how much do you pay for your live/frozen rats right now?

Oh and I also have personal experience of a rat injuring a ball python. It was my first ball and I had fed it live for over 2 years without any problems. Well, one day a rat managed to get his head loose from the snake's coils and bit down hard on the snake's spine. It left a permanent mark and the snake refused to eat for a long time after. The question is not if the snake will get hurt, it's when. Good luck and I'm sure once you start feeding frozen, you'll wonder why you ever fed live! I find it much easier to feed frozen.

If you're worried about shipping costs for frozen rodents, perhaps you should try to find others in your area who are willing to split a shipment with you?

[robitza]

Monster, I have been keeping snakes for a long time. I used to feed live way back when I first had snakes in the early 90's but not anymore. Yes in the wild they eat live but we as owners should not be putting our pets at risk of injury or death from a meal. I am glad that when I eat the animal is dead, don't want to be attacked by an angry cow. But seriously, I have seen a stunned rat revive and tear a ball python apart before we could get it out of the tank. It is much safer to pre-kill or use frozen thawed. My daughter raises mice and we feed the mice to our smaller snakes. Always make sure they are health and dead before we feed them. I go to the store and purchase rats and kill them before feeding. Don't want to risk my snakes to the violence of an angry rat.