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So is there some sort of mouse thawing procedure?

Dinah

Dinah

New member
So tonight is Zelda's second feeding with us. When I was preparing her first meal, the first pink I thawed for her cooked :rofl: because the water was to hot, so I threw it out and made a different one which she ate fine. But my methods for preparing dinner are WAAAYYY less than precise because I don't know how hot the water should be or for how long I am supposed to let it soak. So I was hoping to get some info from ya'll, in the hopes that I do not cook any more mice.

Here is what we did last time when she ate

I took out the pinky mouse put into a ziploc, and left it for about 15 minutes in warm water(the first time the water was WAAYYY to hot but the second time it was fine), then still in the ziploc I ran it under really hot water, then I cut slits in the back and put it into the feeding cup, where Zelda was already wiating.

So comments? Suggestions? Water temps? Approx times?

Thanks everyone!
 
I make a cup of instant tea when I make mice :)

I get a normal sized coffee mug and fill it with water, microwave on high for 1 minute, and pour the water into the feeding container with the mouse or mouse bits in it. Then I fill the mug with water again and put it in for a minute and a half, let the tea steep, and when it's cool enough to drink, I know the mouse is thawed. Whole process from the time the mouse touches the water to the time it's thawed is about 3-4 minutes. The water should be cool enough that you can stick a finger in, but hot enough you can't leave it in.
 
funny, I found there is no true right or wrong here just as long as the mouse is warm thaw and doesn't harm the snake (regurges).
 
Wade likes to marinate them in tequila and then hold them in his mouth until they are a toasty 98.6F. You might seek other opinions before resorting to this option. ;)
 
Pepper said:
I make a cup of instant tea when I make mice :)
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I LOVE tea!

Lennycorn said:
funny, I found there is no true right or wrong here just as long as the mouse is warm thaw and doesn't harm the snake (regurges).
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I did throw away the cooked one and the second one she took just fine and she didn't regurg or anything. I just wan't sure if there was already a tried and true system or not.

LBoz said:
Wade likes to marinate them in tequila and then hold them in his mouth until they are a toasty 98.6F. You might seek other opinions before resorting to this option. ;)
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Wade I will of course need a pic for demonstration purposes :roflmao:
 
I concur. I run the water until it is as hot as it’s going to get. I fill a large water glass with pinkies and then fill with hot water from the tap. Then I take a second water glass and put in about 6 ice cubes, 6 shots of tequila (you don’t have to actually measure) and top it off with tonic water. By this time the water in the first glass has cooled so I dump it out and refill it with hot water being careful to not let any pinkies go down the drain. Then I proceed to drink from the second glass. When it is about half gone, I drain the water from the first glass again and refill with hot water. Resume drinking from the second glass. When the second glass is empty, I refill it as before. By this time the pinkies are just right and you have a fresh drink in hand to enjoy while you feed the little guys.

It is very important to not confuse the two glasses during the preparation.
 
It is very important to not confuse the two glasses during the preparation.
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Talking from experience, eh Wade?

Make sure it is your first glass of tequila when you start, to avoid any inebriated confusion.
 
I tried to find a link to the original thread on this topic but couldn't find it. It's an old story.
 
I put the meal in a glass and feel with hot water from the tab, then I wait for some time, empty the glass and feel again with hot water for a few seconds. I want for the snake and put here in the feeding bin. Check if the snake is not too hot and give to the snake.

When I move to a bigger meal, I always after the first hot water press the belly of the mouse to check if is all defrost. If is defrost ok, other way I put again in hot water and wait a little bit more.

I read on this forum that you can give to a snake a cooked mouse.


I must try your method of thawing wade :)
 
I generally don't worry if Cornwallis' mouse is a little bit cooked. It's happened sometimes, and it doesn't seem to bother him. I'm usually more worried about making sure it's completely thawed. Correct me if I'm wrong, but it would seem to me that the only reason to worry about a mouse meal being a little cooked is if the snake refuses to eat it that way.
 
I microwave a mug of water for 1:30, after which I drop the mouse in. For pinks I think I was letting it sit 9 or 10 minutes.
 
Hail_Britannia said:
Correct me if I'm wrong, but it would seem to me that the only reason to worry about a mouse meal being a little cooked is if the snake refuses to eat it that way.
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I don't know if it would be bad of not, but it was her first feed with us so I didn't want to risk it being bad or her not eating it, Also, since I have a whole package it wasn't a problem to thaw a second one.
 
Maybe I'm missing the context of the mouse being "cooked." Too hot shouldn't be an issue, but actual cooking of the mouse via oven or microwave does something to the bones of the mouse. I'm no expert, but I'm sure someone here will add their opinion. It's much like the fact that you can give a dog uncooked chicken bones, but not ones that have been cooked...I'm assuming that they become too brittle and prone to splintering?
 
It's interesting how everybody has their own procedure. I guess it makes sense. ;)

What I do is run the hot tap while I get everything prepared. I get the mice out of the freezer, and put them in the thawing container. I use 16 ounce deli cups from the local deli. I put the pinks in first, then fill the deli cup with hot water. I put the lid on and time it for right around 5 minutes with pinkies. (Anything bigger than a hopper gets thawed for approximately 10 minutes.) Once the timer goes off, I dump the water, slit the mice, and feed them. I don't worry too much about using ziplocs anymore, because I don't feed on substrate. My snakes don't seem to mind wet mice either. :)
 
LBoz, I know when I say "cooked," I mean that the mouse was sitting in water that was so hot that some of the flesh has started to cook. I think that's what Dinah meant as well. I'm not sitting here whipping up little mouse fricasees or something, I don't have that kind of time :)

I guess what we're debating is whether having a mouse meal with a little half-cooked flesh is harmful to the snake. I wouldn't think so, but I'm still a rookie.
 
Hail_Britannia said:
LBoz, I know when I say "cooked," I mean that the mouse was sitting in water that was so hot that some of the flesh has started to cook. I think that's what Dinah meant as well.
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Yep that's what I meant. And I don't think it would do any damage to a snake :shrugs:, I just figured better to be safe than sorry, plus it was her first feeding so I didn't want anything to be off putting to her.

Suzy said:
I don't worry too much about using ziplocs anymore, because I don't feed on substrate. My snakes don't seem to mind wet mice either. :)
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We feed in a separate container that doesn't have any bedding either, but I was using the ziploc because there is only 1 pink to thaw so it seemed easier to just use the ziploc.
 
Me, I put said mouse in a ziploc, then I run the hot water until it is as hot as it will get. I fill a soup/cereal bowl with hot water and place bag o mouse in it.
Then I get a second bowl and place it on top of the floating bag o mouse and fill that bowl with hot water.
Wait a few min, drain water, slightly squish mouse(while still in bag) to make sure it is completely thawed and very warm through out.
If it is not completely thawed and very warm through out then repeat.
Once mouse is done, slit skin on back and give to snake, yum yum!
 
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