Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I am trying to get my Boa to start taking F/t small rats. My question is, i got the rat today, thawed it like i was supposed to, and tried to feed. He wasnt hungry i guess cause he didnt want anyhting to do with it. My question is, should i put it in the frige and try again? I was told by some that it wont keep, and i should just throw it away and I was told by some that it would stay good in the frige for up to 2 days..... which way should I go?
It was NERD that said it was ok for up to 2 days... But its always a good idea to get a general concensus.....

In my opinion, it depends how the rat was defrosted and for how long, as well as how long it was sitting at room temperature.

The longer it sits at room temperature, the longer it starts to internally decompose.
After about two days, gases build up and can explode the stomach cavity.. Another day or two start the maggots...

If you had the rat out for about a couple hours, I would say it is safe to leave in the fridge for a day or two at max, or back in the freezer, as long as the next thaw is very gentle/slow..

In the cases were I would have to leave the prey out in the snakes cage overnight, the next day you will notice a bad smell.. at this point it is not recommended to put back in the fridge and reuse...
I have some solid eaters that will take that rat immediately, but I would not hold on to it any longer, or recool to then rethaw again.. that can start to be dangerous..

Hope this helps. thanks, Joe
-----
Thanks and take care - Joe Rollo
'Tis not the stongest of the species that will eventually survive, nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change' Charles Darwin

I personally don't try to save any of my rodents for a 2nd try. I guess it would depend at least partly on how long you left it in the cage with the snake (more than a couple of hours and I would definitely pitch it). I have found that with a few of my snakes, if the mouse/rat isn't pretty warm they won't strike it, so after it's thawed I let it sit for a few additional minutes in tap water that's been run about as hot as it will get. That coupled with dangling it from a long set of hemastats seems to work. If they don't strike it from the hemastats, I usually leave it in the cage for a couple of hours or sometimes overnight. If they don't eat it then, I usually don't offer food again until either the next feeding day, or in the case of my adult boas that are fed every 3-4 weeks, I'll offer again in a week or so.

Raven

Well, I thawed the rat in warm water, still in the bag, so it didnt even get wet. As far as how long it was in the room temerature.... about 20 minutes Tops. I tried it a few minutes, and it didnt seem interested, so I put it back in the bag, and put it in the frige. I just wanted to be sure it would still be good, but from the looks of it, it should be fine. Thanks for the help..... Oh yea, one thing.... if i thaw it in water and it is wet when I offer it, it may get some aspen shavings on its fur.... would that hurt the snake if it were to ingest some of it, or would it be no matter? Thanks again....

Ideally ingesting any wood shavings should be avoided as it can cause impactions. If the snake is an adult, there's less chance of that happening but can be a real risk with neonates and juveniles. I can't remember who practiced this now, but someone once mentioned serving the rat on a paper plate or sheet of newspaper to avoid having the snake ingest any substrate. It seems like a plausible solution.

Raven