Well not knowing how much you actually know about snakes in general I will try to help as best as I can. If you caught the snakes in summer they may have ate for you back then because of the fact that it was not during the time they usually hibernate, or brumate. If you keep any other captive born reptiles you may be bringing in cooties by letting wild caught animals be in the same room. The different types of food methods are brought into play when a snake is showing signs of emaciation. If the snakes had good bodyweight you may have jumped the gun. Snakes in the wild generally eat a lot less than ones in captivity. Using rats from outside is a terrible idea for you and the snakes. Sure that's what they eat in the wild but there's parasites and possibly diseases that you could be bringin into your home by doing that. If you simply enjoy keeping snakes, and do not need a high dollar animal do yourself a favor and let them go in spring. You can get a 100% healthy feeding gopher for very cheap, especially at a local show. The snakes will be happy and when you see the difference as far as looking at the snake as a pet goes........you will be glad you released them back where they belong into the wild. If they seem special to you, and you hoped to use them in a breeding project, I would take them to a vet. I would also cool them asap and not feed them til spring is in the air and temps rise. If you go that route stick with captive bred food for them. Also, they may prefer mice over rats. If you have more specifics about the size of the snakes and how they're acting during the current winter months I may be able to help a little more. But as a guess, I would say they're not feeding much due to thier instinct telling them to hibernate. Hope this helps Tom Stevens
