As Jim correctly stated above, young greens are definitely programmed to feed on birds, and this is most apparent during their first year or so of life. And as Bill pointed out, if they will take it, the chicken broth method is the easiest. This preference for birds has also been shown to be the case with newborns in their natural environment, showing that this is not an artifact of captivity. From what we have experienced, probably 80 to 90% of young greens will take birds as a first meal before they show any interest in rodents. Typically they can be switched over to rodents by prey scenting after they have fed several times on birds. It really depends on the individual snake however, as some will switch over within a couple of weeks, while others may take several months to switch from birds, to scented rats, to unscented rats. Chicks are usually used as they are the most available birds for most people, but almost any bird will work. Along these lines, I believe Jud has found the holy grail of birds to start young greens on, as we have never seen it fail yet. Ducklings appear to be irresistible to young greens. Live chicks are usually considered the best there is for stubborn greens, but we have seen a very small number of greens that would not even look at a live chick immediately take a f/t duckling without hesitation. I have also seen young greens that showed absolutely no interest in rodents, hammer a young rat that had just been rubbed on a duckling for a few seconds. Ducklings are relatively expensive and sometimes hard to find, but are well worth it for starting a really difficult green.
Kelly
