How to convince corn snake to eat thawed mice?

Question

he used to eat them but now starts to look interested but then won't eat it. We bought a pack of frozen mice...how long do they stay good in the freezer? I really don't want to have to feed him live mice!

yes, we do the wiggling and jiggling and he used to strike fairly quickly. we did try a live mouse once just to see what he would do and barely had time to see him strike. but he has taken the frozen mice since then.

yes, we do the wiggling and jiggling and he used to strike fairly quickly. we did try a live mouse once just to see what he would do and barely had time to see him strike. but he has taken the frozen mice since then.

Answer 1

When snakes go off frozen prey it's sometimes difficult to get them back on, but there's a couple ways you can try to do it.

First off, make sure the mouse is thawed and warm. Snakes can see thermal gradients, so if they see a nice warm mouse it may seem more 'alive'.

The first thing you can try is chopping up the mouse before giving it to the snake, that way he's able to smell all the good stuff inside. If he takes that you can cut the mouse up into larger and larger pieces until he's eventually taking the whole mouse.

Now the other method seems a little harsh, but really it's not so bad. Just don't feed the snake for a few days before offering the dead mouse (try it cut up again). The simple fact is, if he's hungry enough, he's going to eat. Once he starts taking the dead mice he should stay on them.

And finally, mice are only good for about 6 months frozen, after that they begin to lose their nutritional value.

Answer 2

I used to be a big fan of feeding frozen until I had a snake react in a similar way. He didn't seem to want to take a frozen, so I threw it away and waited a few weeks and offered him another. He eventually took it. The next day he was dead. I took him and the mice I was feeding to the vet and they did a necropsy. (an autopsy on people) and found that the half digested mouse smelled rotten which it shouldn't have. The vet said the most likely cause of this is that the mice were thawed during shipping, and had rotted slightly then were refrozen in the store, (Petco) they did not smell rotten and looked like any other mice I had fed to him. I feed live now. If the mice can hurt your snake then I recommend buying live and killing it yourself so you know they are fresh!

Answer 3

Mine eat frozen mice like pigs! I thaw them in warm water until they don't feel cold, and then just before I feed I soak the mouse in really hot water for about 15-20 seconds--snakes like them warm. They strike and grab before I can even drop it into the feeding tank!

Answer 4

At this time of the year most corn snakes lose interest in feeding on anything. They generally slow down or stop feeding due to the shorter daylight and lower temps. Mine have all stopped feeding for about 3wks. now & they do this every year. just make sure that they have access to fresh water & offer food every 7-10 days till they start feeding normally again.

Answer 5

My niece puts her corn snake in a large paper bag with the mouse then removes it when it is completely finished. She thaws the mouse in a glass of water for a while. Frozen, they'll last till it eats them all.

Answer 6

Dip the dead mouse into a can of chicken broth the extra scent usually makes the snake want to strike.

Answer 7

Have you tried holding them out with tongs and wiggling them? It should tempt the snake if the mice are warm.

Answer 8

Put it in a container topped off alone with the mouse.

Answer 9

"My last resort, which works 75% of the time for hatchling corns that won't eat, is to cut open the brain of a pinkie, squeeze out some blood, then try feeding this to the corn."

http://members.aol.com/Kathandcam/Hawkherp/care.html

Answer 10

you may have to.some times you have to hold them by the tail and make it look like it is moving,use pliers, dont get bit..25 yr herp exp here..