Only eats live food...

[Julius2314]

Hello :) I was wondering if anyone else has this... I have tried frozen mice many times, i have knocked out live mice, i have even tried white live mice... but it never eats it. The only food it seems to like is live black or multi colored mice lol. i can't get her to eat anything els... Mabey the others was just bad timing or what lol. What do you guys have to say about this is it normal?

[SnakeyJay]

Royals are known for being finicky eaters, at least he's eating :)...

On a serious note, how many times consecutively did you try frozen/thawed? As sometimes you have to wait till they're real hungry.

[bcr226]

Some snakes are like that. I have two pythons that refuse anything but live mice. We're working on moving them over to rat pups now but talk about a pain. Our third python will eat just about anything dead or alive.

As for color, some snakes will only eat mice or rats of a certain color or sex. thankfully, mine aren't THAT picky but I have a feeling they enjoy killing their food. Don't worry, as long as they are eating something and aren't losing weight, you're good to go. You can try only offering f/t for a few weeks and see if she gets hungry enough to eat it.

I've tried that with mine and it was a no go for the two but don't let that discourage you.

Mike

[jarich]

How are you feeding the prekilled and f/t? Are you just putting them in their on the floor? I had one snake once that I had to make the f/t do the zombie dance (grab them by the back with forceps and jiggle them around like they were still alive). I only had to do it for awhile until he got used to just taking them off the ground. Also, sometimes it helps to sort of super heat the head. One of the other members mentioned holding it against a radiator for a few seconds. Gives them a nice hot target as they cant see very well during the day.

[Julius2314]

I try the frozen for about 2 1/2 weeks, i layed it in there, i dangled it in front of hide, i left it in there for several hours, i don't mind feeding it live food it is very fascinating to watch personally, She kinda playes with it to. She drags it around the cage then goes back to the same spot she got it and eats it. And with the live she eats almost instantly. Its just nice to know that this is common lol :) thank you

[alessia55]

It's a matter of waiting it out. If you really want to switch to f/t, offer an f/t rat every other week. He will eventually be hungry enough to eat it. You may want to try dipping it in unsalted chicken broth to entice him a little more at first.

[Julius2314]

I don't really want to switch, live mice is a little more expensive but i don't mind. I was just wondering if it was normal i guess. Is there any benefit in f/t or live? nutrition wise?

[Lankyrob]

What aree you going to do when mice arent enou food for your royal? Are you willing to buy and feed upto ten mice at each feed?

Personally i would be wanting to switch it onto rats as soon as possible and also onto f/t too :)

[Mark Taylor]

Good advice as usual Rob!

[mykee]

What Rob said.
Rob, how DARE you use common sense.
Shame on you

[Lankyrob]

Mykee!! thats three compliments in three years!! And two in a MONTH!! whats the matter with you?? ;)

[Tracy33]

:p:) Thats funny .

[Aaron_S]

I don't really want to switch, live mice is a little more expensive but i don't mind. I was just wondering if it was normal i guess. Is there any benefit in f/t or live? nutrition wise?

Why do you prefer mice?

[Julius2314]

my ball is a baby. iv never seen a rat at the petco that she could eat lol.. only the mice

[Aaron_S]

my ball is a baby. iv never seen a rat at the petco that she could eat lol.. only the mice

Try looking for rodents somewhere other than a pet store.

Plenty of classified sites where you may find someone in your area looking to offload some surplus frozen rodents.

[Little Wise Owl]

Is there any benefit in f/t or live? nutrition wise?

Nutrition wise? Not really. The benefit to frozen is that you can buy in bulk (online, local breeder, at expo, etc) for a cheaper price and they won't bite your snake's eyes out.

[alessia55]

my ball is a baby. iv never seen a rat at the petco that she could eat lol.. only the mice
The live mice at Petco are around $3 each, and you have to go there every time you're going to feed it to your snake. What if your snake won't eat it? What will you do with the mouse then? House it, feed it, take care of it, until the snake agrees to eat? You would need to buy food and a cage/tank to house the mouse. Just something to think about ;)
On the other hand, you can buy frozen rats (better to switch your BP from mice to rats sooner rather than later) for much less. Then you don't have to take care of the rat if your snake won't eat it because you can just throw it out, and not have to run to the shop the following week since the rats will just be sitting in your freezer. There's also the added bonus that dead rats can't hurt your snake in the feeding process :)

[bcr226]

We're in the process of switching to rats here for our two smaller pythons. They ate last night with gusto... but the rats were live. I stunned each one and put them in. Neither lasted more than a few seconds. Colt, our small typical is a voracious eater. I just wish he and Manda would go f/t... LOL

[Julius2314]

Then i shall wean it to F/T ^.^ lol Thank you it makes scene to :)

[alessia55]

Then i shall wean it to F/T ^.^ lol Thank you it makes scene to :)
Sounds good! Let us know if you have any questions getting him to switch over :)

[LadyLockeout]

I'm having this problem with Oscar :( I switched him from mice to rats without issue, I started with small rats and then worked him up to large, which is what he should have been eating all along. Fast, clean kills, no trouble swallowing. I'm trying to transition him now to f/t and he he shows more interest in my hand or the tongs than the dead rat. I've tried zombie dance, super heating the head, leaving it under the heat lamp, braining it, dipping it in broth, nothing. He hasn't eaten since 12/28/12, but I know he's not in any starvation danger yet. I've offered him 3 f/t since then. He had a shed about a week ago (perfect) so I just tried offering him another one tonight. No dice. He tasted at it, but that was it.

How long can I let it go for, before I give in and offer him a live?

[Aaron_S]

Another couple months.

You're also trying too many tricks. he isn't getting used to the same consistent smell. Just offer a f/t every 7 days.

[LadyLockeout]

Will do, thank you. How long can I leave it in the cage before I take it out? I've read around on here 24 hours, is that correct?

[Aaron_S]

I go 12 hours, over night. In the morning it gets tossed.

[medicinhed]

Nutrition wise? Not really. The benefit to frozen is that you can buy in bulk (online, local breeder, at expo, etc) for a cheaper price and they won't bite your snake's eyes out.

LOL. Thanks for the new nightmare.

[nothsa]

I was having huge isues with my ball not eating. tried everything the breeder suggested, tried everything i've come across on this site and nothing. Then one night out of frustration/desperation i just tossed in a liive mouse, turned off the lights and threw a towel over the cage...total darkness. Not even 2 minutes later and BAM struck, coiled and engulfed the mouse in no time.

I know live, especially unmonitered is a no no, but now its the only way he eats and boy does it work! My son wants to change its name from "Snuggles" to "Night Stalker!