Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hi! I am feeding my Honduran Frozen mice now. But after I read the some books about the internal parasite, I am thinking do I supposes wash the mice before I feed my snake? If I wash the mice, is it going to infect anything? Thanks.

One more question? How do we know does the snake have internal parasites? Thanks

There is no need to wash the rodent before feeding. Just thaw it out and feed your snake. Intestinal parasites are generally found in wild-caught snakes (although they can be spread to CB snakes if housed together). To test for parasites, bring to a qualified herp vet and have a fecal exam done. Good luck, Scott.
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Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.
Martin Luther King, Jr.

"In any civilized society, it is every citizen's responsibility to obey just laws.
But at the same time, it is every citizen's responsibility to disobey unjust laws."
—Martin Luther King Jr

Scott is right about just thaw and feed. Freezing kills the vast majority of the bugs that mice and rats can carry.

Feeding live mice and rats CAN bring parasites in to your animals. Feeding live WILD animals to your snakes is almost guaranteed to do it.

As far as testing to parasites, there's no need to bring the animal to the vet, just collect a fresh feces sample, put it in an old 35mm film cannister or something like that and take the sample to the vet. He will do what's called a Differential Flotation. That's where he mixes the sample with a little stain and a solution (Sodium Nitrite) that has a specific gravity that will allow the eggs of the parasites to float to the top, but fecal matter won't. Then he will collect the floating matter on a coverslip, place it on a slide and examine it with a microscope. The usual charge (in my area) is about $20.00 to $25.00.