Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hello all,

I just got my first adult cornsnake, and I will be giving him his first meal at my place soon. I have a shipment of frozen adult mice from Rodentpro, but don't know a good technique (ie: fast, and not gross) to defrost them.

Any ideas?

I do a whole bunch at a time, and I put them in a Ziploc, heat up some water in the microwave, and put the bag in the hot water. (Not too hot...I usually do 30 sec to a minute) I goes fastest if you use something to weight the mouse down and submerge it, like a cup filled with water. You can just put the mouse right in the warm water, but my snakes won't eat it if it doesn't smell like mouse or rat. Oh, and you probably will have to change the water a few times. I don't know, I've never done just one mouse before. Hope this helps. Good luck!
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Too many rats

I just put the mouse in the bottom of a cup and fill it with warm water, do something else for 20 minutes and then dab it dry (making sure not to actually touch it; she gets pretty feisty around feeding time; don't want to be mistaken for a tasty treat).

>>I just put the mouse in the bottom of a cup and fill it with warm water, do something else for 20 minutes and then dab it dry (making sure not to actually touch it; she gets pretty feisty around feeding time; don't want to be mistaken for a tasty treat).

I have quite a few to feed so I take a large tuperware dish fill it with tap water, as hot as it will get, and drop them in.
I do not like placing them in a baggie and then placing that in the hot water. It makes the mice sweat and makes them smell pretty rank.
They smell better when thawed directly in the water.
For just one all you need to do is place it in a bowl of hot tap water for 15 to 20 minutes and pat it dry with a paper towel and it is ready to go.
Some people don't even worry about patting them dry.
I use Big Cheese rodents and the adult mice come 25 to a styrofoam tray so I just fold a couple of paper towels on one of those trays and lay all the thawed mice on that.
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Corn snakes and rat snakes..No one can have just one.
"Resistance is futile"
Jimmy Johnson
(Draybar)
Draybars Snakes

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I usually defrost 15-20 mice and rats in a sitting, and I just dump all of the frozen rodents into a big rubbermaid and pour hot tapwater over them, let it sit for about 20 minutes, then 'fish' for the sizes I need as I work my way down the line.

I don't like thawing rodents in the ziploc baggies I store them in because with the number of frozen rodents I keep on hand, it would be impractical and EXPENSIVE to thaw them in the bags. So I thaw mine right in the water...

I've learned through this method that even the PICKIEST feeders will go absolutely BONKERS over rats and mice thawed in the same water as pinkie rabbits...

I just throw all the frozen feeders in a big black garbage sack (cuz they don't leak) and put in a tub of hot H2O to defrost, but don't cook them. You might need to change the water if it gets cold but they will still defrost in cold H2O just not as fast. Serve at body temp and when freshly defrosted. They do smell stronger and I have gotten finicky eaters to become great eaters this way. I just don't like wet feeders; they make a mess. Whatever you do don't microwave them! Ha!
-Meg

I really dislike thawing rodents in water like that. I've tried more than one thing, and that's always been what i've liked the least.

I pull all of the frozen rodents I need out, put 'em together in a ZipLoc, and throw them in the crisper. I don't use more than one side of the crisper in my fridge, so it's no problem. I leave the rodents in there overnight, and the next day, put them under a heat lamp for about 10 minutes. Warms a whole plate of mice up enough to feed.

For single rodents, you can indeed use the microwave. You just have to be careful. If the rodent is completely thawed, put it in the microwave for 2 or 3 seconds at a time. Just keep checking it. Remember that they warm from the inside out, so feeling them isn't enough. Between microwaving, let it sit a minute. Keep an eye on the ears & tail, as the thinner skin there is normally the first bit to start to darken. If it wrinkles or darkens, it's too warm.

In my microwave, I put a single adult rat in for 3 seconds, turn it over, do 3 more, turn it, and do 3 more, then let it sit a few minutes & it's ready to go. But, as i said, make sure they're thawed completely before warming them like that!

I usually start with luke warm water. Dump that out when cold and add some warmer water. Then dump that and add hoter water till they are very warm. That way they can cool off a little between warm water and getting them into the container with the snake.

I'm not sure exactly why it happened, but one time I put a couple of hoppers in a bag in hot water. When I came back to check on them, one of them kinda exploded. It was reall nasty. Thats why I start of with cooler water.
Rob
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I just put the mouse directly in hot tap water for about 25 min and then hit it with a hair dryer until it is dry.