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[JuliusSqueezer]

You are wrong on so many levels

For one...rattlesnakes do not "hibernate". They brumate. There is a huge difference. They do not brumate in rat burrows either. Some species den up in dens that have been used by themselves and their ancestors for centuries. Some share dens with tortoises and other snakes. Some will den in abandoned burrows of various types. Some end up eaten for their efforts.

Second...Your snake is not in the wild. It is in captivity and in YOUR care. It is YOUR responsibility to provide the best possible care. Ignoring hundreds of years of collective first hand experience given to you freely is a slap in the face and I can't speak for anyone but myself but it's people like you that from time to time make me question why I waste so much time here trying to help people.

Third...Mortality rate in the wild FAR exceeds survival rate. This is why snakes have such large litters and clutches. Nature does not always take the best care of it's creatures. Everything is prone to predation including the predators. If you want to mimic nature then you need to provide an occasional flood and forest fire in your snake cage. Maybe put a hawk or two in the cage as well. See what happens.

Fourth...ANY live rodent past the age that it's eyes are open is capable of killing your snake. Bad mannered? huh? Your assessment of rat psychology came from where? Your butt? Please put it back. I wouldn't call self preservation "bad manners". Rats are smarter than snakes. In the wild, if a rat isn't subdued right away or if a snake for whatever reason does not want to eat, whichever animal first decided to avoid this confrontation will leave. In a 40 gallon tank, both animals are cornered and cannot leave. This will cause a nonfeeding snake to cower down and a cornered rat to become very defensive. It may take a little time or it may not but eventually or right away, a cornered rat will grow bold and eliminate any threat.