Pinkies look weird - Arctic Mice

After doing some research I noticed that the pinkies I'm offering to Phoenix (and which he has thus far refused) don't look like what I'm seeing other people use - instead of basically mouse-shaped and pink, they're like little purple sacks attached to heads. One of them has a tail, and I think they all have front leg definition but generally iffy back legs, and they just...look weird. I've seen references to 'reds' but haven't been able to figure out what those are, maybe that's what these are - but either way, I'm thinking they're not what I should be trying to feed him.

(I haven't weighed Phoenix yet because I was trying to cut down on the new experiences before his first feeding, but given how long it's taking I'm going to weigh him soon anyway just so I know; he's just over 3 months old, if that helps.)

Mostly what I'm wondering is if I should try buying more pinkies from Arctic Mice and see if they're better (maybe it was just that one box), or should I try ordering pinkies from another supplier? Does anyone have experience with Arctic Mice pinkies?

The sound like very poor quality pinkies or reds for sure!
Red's are newborn mice that have not taken mother's milk yet. "Purple's" might be a better name since they to be more purple than red LOL. You can actually see the milk in their belly when they have. All the missing limbs is breakage after freezing.
Just recently I had to buy a few dozen from a new england pet chain that looked how you are describing. I my case they all were ok to use and I had no issues.

The big issue is that they fall apart so easily! It doesn't matter if I use my fingers or the tongs, the skin starts sloughing off and they fall to pieces within a matter of minutes.

Originally Posted by Fletcher

The big issue is that they fall apart so easily! It doesn't matter if I use my fingers or the tongs, the skin starts sloughing off and they fall to pieces within a matter of minutes.

Possibly they were deceased before freezing, incorrectly frozen or defrosted at some point. I would throw them out and buy elsewhere.

Yeah, to me that sounds like they were thawed out and refrozen. If you have a reptile store near you, you can usually get them cheaper and hopefully better quality.

I bought another box of pinkies from the same brand and they were actually pinkies, not reds, didn't fall apart, and Phoenix quite happily took the first one I offered him! For now I'm going to assume I just had bad luck the first time around, but if I keep having issues with Arctic Mice I'll look into other options.

Congrats on the successful feeding. Sounds like a good game plan going forward.