Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Are there any stores around the Southern California area that carries a hefty supply of live pinkies and fuzzies all year round? Or do I have to resort to ordering them online?

I would try and stay with frozen thawed and order on line. Of course it will depend on your need, if you are just caring for one or two snakes then your own breeding colony of mice 1.3 will supply all the mice you will ever need and then some. I will be feeding well over 200 baby corns this year and I use f/t. the ones that refuse to take the nonmoving pinks can normally be teased fed to take them. I will normally tap the snake on the side of the neck with the pink. That normally is enough to get them fired up to strike, once they have the mouse in their mouth and I sit very still they will start to eat it. It can take many hours of frustrating feeding to get them all fed, and at about late August or early September of every year I swear that I will never breed another baby corn again!, But I turn around and do it again the next year. The ones that just won’t feed I will sell extremely cheap to someone willing to put the work into feeding a corn the need live or anoles to get them started. I can’t tell you how many times I have sent out non-feeders just to have the person e-mail me back to ask if I sent the right snakes because none of them gave her any problem feeding LOL. Such is the life of a snake breeder.
Good Luck
-----
Jim Hopkins "Hoppy"
Hopkins Holesale Herps
Hopfam1@aol.com

Hoppy, thanks for the input. The main reason I want to feed my snake live mice is simply because it's just so fascinating to watch them eat. I can't imagine feeding 200 corn snakes. How time consuming and frustrating that must be (for the fussy eaters)! But if I must feed them only frozen mice, I guess I have no choice.

I have corns that were told only eat live, i have a small container of chopped up pinkies, I place food in a bowl and they properly eat out of that. Now im totally out of mice and my rats are in the pregnant zone and no one is due to pop yet, perfect timing for everyone.
-----
My roomates are 1BP,1BCI2corns,Rotti,3cats,desert scorpions, and snake food AKA the food chain. See my kids at: http://community.webshots.com/user/diggy415

Try reptile shows. I buy my mice (I buy frozen, but they also sell live) at a local (~2 hours) reptile show. I pay $0.60 for "jumbo" mice (the size of small rats). It is cheaper for me (even after paying for gas and my admission into the show) than ordering online (shipping is EXPENSIVE)and way better than my local pet store ($2.00 for a mouse 1/2 the size!!!!)..

My advice for you is to look at your local reptile show( I am sure there is one...I live in KY and have 2 to chose from )
-----
Hangin with the Herps
ZZ