Converting from live to F/T

sillypaperrabbit · #1 (**permalink**) 10-14-2002, 07:12 PM

so i tried to feed my ball python F/T yesterday...

they didn't have any small rats at the pet store so i had to settle for a few pinkies.. i even wiggled it around to make it look alive but i scared my poor snake and it just ended up crawling away for it... i covered the tank with a blanket for some hours and still no luck...

i guess i should return these frozen pinkies and get a live mouse. i don't want my snake to starve. =\ help!

i read somehwere on this website about feeding it a live pinky then a f/t but i couldn't find any live pinkies in Los angeles... hmmm [img]modules/Forum/images/smiles/icon_frown.gif[/img]
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eddie · #2 (**permalink**) 10-14-2002, 07:20 PM

Hmmm... did you put it right in his face when ya tried?
This can freak most snakes out.

Try again, but when thawed and warm, bump the snake gently on its sides with the food item.
This will get the snakes attention without spooking it.
Other ways are the deli cup or paper bag method.
Place the snake in a tupper ware type container overnight or a paper bag folded and stapled shut. Both with airholes of course.

Most snakes have no problem switching out but some times you need to take baby steps, starting with stunned then to frsh killed etc.

If you try either of those ways, watch, cause stunned will wake upo and be in a bad mood, and some times fresh killed really isn't.

XzyluM · #3 (**permalink**) 10-14-2002, 08:11 PM

A mistake a lot of new people make when trying to convert their snakes to pre-killed prey is their confidence. A few meals isn't going to hurt a snake. It took one month to get my royal eating frzen/thawed and now I have no problem with him. If he doesn't come along right away, give him time, he'll eventually come around.
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Dr.Oviparous · #4 (**permalink**) 10-15-2002, 09:56 AM

<TABLE BORDER=0 ALIGN=CENTER WIDTH=85%><TR><TD><font class="pn-sub">Quote:</font><HR></TD></TR><TR><TD><FONT class="pn-sub"><BLOCKQUOTE> i guess i should return these frozen pinkies and get a live mouse </BLOCKQUOTE></FONT></TD></TR><TR><TD><HR></TD></TR></TABLE> The rats were thawed prior to attempting to feed I assume......? There are different opinions on this, but I believe the general consensus, and my opinion, is that it is unhealthy (for the snake) to thaw and refreeze rodents. -Juggalo
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sillypaperrabbit · #5 (**permalink**) 10-15-2002, 05:30 PM

>><TABLE BORDER=0 ALIGN=CENTER WIDTH=85%><TR><TD><font class="pn-sub">Quote:</font><HR></TD></TR><TR><TD><FONT class="pn-sub"><BLOCKQUOTE> i guess i should return these frozen pinkies and get a live mouse </BLOCKQUOTE></FONT></TD></TR><TR><TD><HR></TD></TR></TABLE> The rats were thawed prior to attempting to feed I assume......? There are different opinions on this, but I believe the general consensus, and my opinion, is that it is unhealthy (for the snake) to thaw and refreeze rodents. -Juggalo

oh no, i wasn't going to put the thawed rodents back into the freezer... i meant that i was going to return the other frozen pinkies that hasn't been thawed back to the petstore. [img]modules/Forum/images/smiles/icon_wink.gif[/img]
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Voodoo · #6 (**permalink**) 10-15-2002, 05:41 PM

I've gotten all of my BPs over to f/t. They weren't hard to convert, except for one.

Shmee, my newest, won't eat anywhere but in her cage, in the middle of the night. I have to thaw the rat pup, put it in front of the entrance to whichever hide she's in, and leave her alone in complete darkness for hours. She eventually eats it.

The other ones, however, didn't seem to notice a difference between a f/t and a live rat. I got lucky with them.
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JuliusSqueezer · #7 (**permalink**) 10-16-2002, 09:22 PM

The biggest problem with converting snakes to frozen/thawed or prekilled is that people think they have to convert them. You do not have to train your snake to take dead prey. Snakes will eat dead things in the wild if they happen to find them before something else does. They will also steal already dead prey from other snakes. It is as natural as killing....though in the wild most feeding opportunities happen to be live animals. They don't kill because they like to kill...they kill because that is the cards dealt to them and they need to eat. I just picked up a new baby black ratsnake while visiting Barry in NC...he is a little spazzy and anxiety ridden and no way he is gonna eat until he calms down right? wrong. He took a thawed pink mouse right off the tongs the very first attempt at feeding him last night.
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