I am trying to get my ball python (snake) to love frozen rats, but it won't eat it. It's interested, but not enough to eat it. Help?
2006-10-09 18:35:52 · 10 answers · asked by DN 2 in Pets ➔ Reptiles
Balls can be picky eaters. Make sure the rat is totally thawed and slightly warm. Remember snakes don't have good eye sight, they search for prey by "seeing" it's body heat, so something that is room temp or cool will not be considered food.
Try wiggling it with the tongs and if that doesn't work try "Brainnig" the rat. ***Not for the squimish*** Poke a hole in the skull or crack the skull of the thawed rat so the smell of the brain can come out. It's a little gross at first, but a lot of snakes seem to really take to the scent.
2006-10-10 01:02:11 · answer #1 · answered by Kmcquestion 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Would you want to eat a nasty thawed out rat? Sometimes they can be picky. Like they will only eat a particular type of food. And frozen rats may be the food they do not like. I would suggest to make sure that the rat is good and thawed out and warm enough, then kinda wiggle it to make it appear alive. But be careful. Use something to wiggle the rat so the snake doesn't bite your hand. If that doesn't work then you might have to regularly go to the pet store and get live food for your snake.
2006-10-09 18:53:15 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
How old is your ball and has he always eaten live? Believe it or not as picky as these things are some get tired of rats. Mine quit eating for six months, got real skinny and only slept. Had him to a ton of different vets. Spent lots of money on x-rays, lab work and meds. The last doc I took him to just said to change his food to mice. So I got five mice and he sucked em down in one night. He has been fine sense. If he has eaten frozen before give it a try. If he has always had live he may not ever eat frozen but it is possible to change him. Make sure the thing is warm enough as they must see the warmth. Let me know if the mouse thing works if you try it. I'm really curious as now that I learned about it I hear it quite often. Makes me wonder how three different vets could skip that info and the fourth one it was his first response to try.
2006-10-10 07:05:42 · answer #3 · answered by LisaMarie 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Some people thaw the rat in warm Chicken soup before feeding it to the snake.. and make sure you hold the rat with tong or something similar and keep it moving. The python will only eat animals it kills... so you have to make it believe that the rat is still alive.
2006-10-09 18:45:14 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
its the snakes natural instinct to not eat anything thats already dead. when I got a ball python the store owner said they wont eat anything that has been frozen. I shouldn't say they wont eat anything thats dead because they will as long as its still warm,like a fresh kill. We used to throw the mice against the wall and break their necks so they couldn't cause the snake any damage and he'd eat them. They know somethings not right with the frozen rats so instinct tells them not to eat it. If you have a problem feeding live animals to your pet a snake is not an ideal pet for you
2006-10-09 18:49:38 · answer #5 · answered by kristina n 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
We always fed ours live rats, but I have seen devices in pet stores that say they're meant to train reptiles to eat things that are already dead. It vibrates. I guess you put the dead rat on there and turn it on and it vibrates or something.
Never used it myself. You might try it, or you might just feed it live rats. Don't try to change nature.
2006-10-10 04:55:54 · answer #6 · answered by jframeisu 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
you may have to try live rats try heating the frozen one up a little my snake loves them but i was told she woulnt eat frozen ones and she does if i heat them up
2006-10-10 02:44:59 · answer #7 · answered by isabellamay3 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
he will keep trying. try to put the rat in with him and leave him alone for a while. snakes arent very smart it will take a while for him to realize what it is
2006-10-10 12:46:44 · answer #8 · answered by inkslinger00743 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
welcome to ball pythons!! none of mine will touch a rat dead or alive fresh or frozen!!! mice only here 5-6 per snake every 6-10 days!!
2006-10-10 12:24:00 · answer #9 · answered by boxermom 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
After you thaw it & dry it, You might try rubbing it on a live Gerbil....Ball Pythons like gerbils!!! You might also try feeding it a gerbil from the pet store - you would have to kill it (painlessly of course) but they usually prefer Gerbils
2006-10-09 19:51:31 · answer #10 · answered by Catcanscratch 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋