feeder rats big enough to bite

[redfeather2006]

Rocky is now eating medium to large rats, which is causing a dillema. He absolutely will NOT eat frozen (believe me i've tried), but there have been a coupel of times where he will very quickly strike and constrict the rat, but the rat bites him! once he got a bite that left a dime-sized hole in him. It healed up just fine, but what if next time it doesn't heal so well?

Does anyone ahve any advice on what I can do to "stun" the feeder rat before handing it over to Rocky? I was told by the reptile store employees to grab the rat by the tail and slam it's head on a hard surface. I've been trying that but it doesn't seem to help much. So...any advice?

[ineedsoap16]

In the past I've accomplished this by getting the Rat / Mouse into a sock, and then doing the deed. Makes it a little easier anyways.

Ryan

[gonesnakee]

What type of snake & describe "tried".
Like whats the longest you have gone without offering it anything prior trying a FT item that was heated right up & offered at night via "tease feed"?
Anything less than a few months is not long enough.
A healthy adult snake can easily go 3-4 months without any food with no ill effects.
I would suggest not offering it anything for at least 2 months or so & then try a rat that is smaller than usual heated right up to the core to at least 100F+ & to offer it at night in its enclosure with tongs.
Most folks do not "wait them out" anywhere near long enough before giving in & feeding them what they want to eat.
Most all snakes can be switched over fairly easily with the right persistance, Mark

edit - see its a Hogg Isle Boa, IMHO Boas are typically the easiest to switch over as they are great feeders

[infernalis]

A pillow case works fine too. Twirl that sucker like you hate it and slam it down so hard it shatters the rats spine.

I just read the last post.. this is very true. A bunch of my snakes (the nocturnal feeders) I leave the thawed out prey item in the cage overnight. Almost always gone by morning.

[redfeather2006]

Ive never waited 2-3 months before feeding him, it's always been once every two weeks. I usually feed him in the afternoon so I'll try feeding him at night...and possibly try the whole sock/pillow case thing first to see if that helps. if not, I'll go the long route.

thanks everyone!!

[gonesnakee]

Trying fresh killed 1rst IMHO is the "long route" as it still has you dealing with live rats all of the time, 2 weeks for a snake like that is like having a late breakfast ;)
Take into consideration a snake like that in the wild would thrive just fine on a 1/2 dozen meals a year or less ;)
Most ALL snakes in captivity are overfed or close to it, mine included despite not being obese by any means. Good Luck Mark
P.S. all the Hoggs I ever had hated me LOL, maybe they heard me dissing Boas all the time? :o LOL
P.P.S. Aussie Pythons Rule!!! :D

[infernalis]

I only feed my BP once a month, twice if he's lucky and he's still as thick as a log.

[blkjkoknhrt]

I have a 4 ft Hondura milk I'm feeding 1 mouse every week. the prey item looks ridiculously inadequate, and she will take 2 at a time, right after each other. Is this suitable?

[gonesnakee]

Prey should be the girth of the thickest part of the snake upto 1.5 times thicker even & 1-3 items at a time depending on if they are the girth of the snake or larger & the frequency of the meals.
Smaller items may require a dozen at a time to equal the same.
I see you are in the Peg I recommend talking to my friend Casey at Winnipeg Reptiles there he can help you out & set you up with anything ypou need for your snake or any other reptile for that matter.
He is one of the folks that put on the shows there as well & ones coming up in Oct I think? Mark

[marvelfreak]

I have a 4 ft Hondura milk I'm feeding 1 mouse every week. the prey item looks ridiculously inadequate, and she will take 2 at a time, right after each other. Is this suitable?
That size i say a small rat.

[gonesnakee]

Judging by the pics in the other thread small adult mice or rat pups.
Most Milks are not big on big prey items.
Rat sizes here go as follows: pinky, fuzzy, pup, weaned, small, med, lg, jumbo etc.
Most weaned are the size of jumbo mice & smalls double or triple a large adult mouse. Mark

[marvelfreak]

Where i get my rats they have 3 different sizes they call small. The smallest would be a pup sizes, the med small (yes that's what they call it) a weaned, and a large small (a actual small rat). Mark right a weaned is the size you want.

[RandyRhoads420]

Can't believe you'd have trouble stunning it. Just like he said grab by the tail and one good wack should be way more than sufficient. Most of the time i don't even have to do that just a hard flick to the temple on even large adult rats...

[Reptile_Reptile]

a pillow case works fine too. Twirl that sucker like you hate it and slam it down so hard it shatters the rats spine.

I just read the last post.. This is very true. A bunch of my snakes (the nocturnal feeders) i leave the thawed out prey item in the cage overnight. Almost always gone by morning...... 0_0 ......