Feeding Live vs F/T

[Diablo]

I searched a bit on the forum for a thread like this, but didn't find too many with opinions that I have seen lately so I'm asking for a discussion on this. I only ask because my local shop seems to only be getting live mice and pinkies lately as their local provider has been having issues or something with F/T. I bought live pinkies today, and my gu ate them up. I really didn't like it, but it is the circle of life. My problems with it is that it might make him aggressive. I would rather just go with frozen but if I have to and my local place doesn't get a constant supply of frozen then I might just have to feed live. What are your guys' thoughts, opinions, experiences?

 

[MrNiceGuy736u]

Ive heard the same. F/t is What im using...well he ate his first one today and that's after i made it wet...wouldn't eat it normal lol any one else have that problem. Likes his food with water. But have you thought of breeding them yourself. I would love to.

 

[TeguBlake]

Freez them your self, sounds sad but they were gonna die anyways

 

[Diablo]

Freez them your self, sounds sad but they were gonna die anyways

I don't think I can bring myself to do that after today lol. Honestly it was really sad picking them up with tongs and hearing them scream as Yoshi ate them. Maybe I'm a whimp, but I just couldn't give them a slow death. I want someone else to do that for me lol

 

[TeguLouie]

its not slow. they go to sleep first. they just slow down until they go under and then never wake up. another alternative which is the same way that the shop will kill them is with Co2. put the in a bag and get a canister like for a pellet gun from walmart. rig it up so you can puncture the seal and point it into the bag the close it. they suffocate and go. same way as the shop does it.

that being said. feeding him live mice wont make him aggressive. it looks like they are more because you are feeding them when you see it. they treat dead food just as vigorously as thy do live food. just nature its in their instincts. IMO it doesnt matter how you feed them as long as you feed them.

 

[MrNiceGuy736u]

Could always. Get live and bonk them on the head...like a fish when your out on the stream. Not that bad then...how do you freeze your own. Im most likely going to do this. Have you trIde ground turkey? Or order online...

 

[Rhetoric]

I used to buy 50-150 Asf rats when it was practical. I had to buy them live but I couldn't pass it up at the price I was getting. I would buy dry ice and use co2 to do the deed, then freeze them. I have done live a couple times but I haven't in a long time and I wouldn't make a habit of it. Since they are more carnivorous I don't want to risk the chance of aggression. I don't want guru to think its okay to chase/eat things that move. The dry ice worked really well and it's super cheap to do.

 

[tegus4life]

You can also order frozen mice online if you want

 

[tommylee22]

I strongly suggest this place as a food sorce(https://www.hare-today.com/). You get whole ground animals, many options and if you need frozen rodents they offer that as well. My Tegu (Biggin) loves the quail and ground rabit with mixed in whole ground free range chicken eggs. The price is awesome, you get the food, break it out into serving ziplock bags freeze and you're good for months. I will also promise you your Tegu will go ape Shi*T for this food.

T

 

[Neeko]

The only issue I have with live is the chance of them being sick and or having parasites. Frozen can have parasite issues too I hear.

 

[Logie_Bear]

If your getting them from a trusted breeder / shop I wouldn't worry too much about parasites. Most would be killed in the freezing process tho. And if you stick them in the freezer to kill them, remember its only humane on the babies. It's a slow way to go for an adult rodent.

 

[TeguLouie]

If your getting them from a trusted breeder / shop I wouldn't worry too much about parasites. Most would be killed in the freezing process tho. And if you stick them in the freezer to kill them, remember its only humane on the babies. It's a slow way to go for an adult rodent.

they are food. who cares how they go as long as your Gu eats?

 

[Little Wise Owl]

If your getting them from a trusted breeder / shop I wouldn't worry too much about parasites. Most would be killed in the freezing process tho. And if you stick them in the freezer to kill them, remember its only humane on the babies. It's a slow way to go for an adult rodent.

they are food. who cares how they go as long as your Gu eats?

This type of attitude towards feeder animals and livestock really rubs me the wrong way. Sure, they're going to die but why cause them horrendous pain and suffering? I love all animals, and even though the feeders are going to die, I'd want them to be put out as humanely as possible. They feel pain like we do. If I had the choice of being dissected and dismembered or having my neck snapped, I would choose the quicker way out.

Regarding live feeding... I figure with the amount of mice/rats an adult tegu eats, it'd be inconvenient and expensive to live feed. I know for me it's easier and cheaper to keep hundreds of feeders in my freezer.

 

[Diablo]

I didnt know hare today sold frozen feeders. Im probably gonna buy from them

Sent from my DROID RAZR

 

[Logie_Bear]

[quote='TeguLouie' pid='124381'

they are food. who cares how they go as long as your Gu eats?
[/quote]


They are living, thinking animals. And rats , for one, are very intelligent animals and make just as wonderful companions as a reptile does for another person. Putting an adult rat in the freezer would not be a quick death. They have fur and body fat and would take many hours to die, slowly and painfully. You would have to be a pretty messed up individual not to care one little bit about the fact you are torturing an animal.

 

[TeguLouie]

They are living, thinking animals. And rats , for one, are very intelligent animals and make just as wonderful companions as a reptile does for another person. Putting an adult rat in the freezer would not be a quick death. They have fur and body fat and would take many hours to die, slowly and painfully. You would have to be a pretty messed up individual not to care one little bit about the fact you are torturing an animal.

thank you for your quick judgement on my character and state of mind. no i feel that whether you feed frozen or live it doesnt matter how as long as you feed your pet. i care for Lou more than i care about how his food dies.

---

[quote='TeguLouie]

[quote='TeguLouie' pid='124381'

they are food. who cares how they go as long as your Gu eats?

They are living, thinking animals. And rats , for one, are very intelligent animals and make just as wonderful companions as a reptile does for another person. Putting an adult rat in the freezer would not be a quick death. They have fur and body fat and would take many hours to die, slowly and painfully. You would have to be a pretty messed up individual not to care one little bit about the fact you are torturing an animal.

thank you for your quick judgement on my character and state of mind. no i feel that whether you feed frozen or live it doesnt matter how as long as you feed your pet. i care for Lou more than i care about how his food dies.
[/quote]

also you can flash freeze using dry ice or Co2. you do what you do to feed your pet and ill do what i do.

 

[JohnMatthew]

they are food. who cares how they go as long as your Gu eats?

thank you for your quick judgement on my character and state of mind. no i feel that whether you feed frozen or live it doesnt matter how as long as you feed your pet. i care for Lou more than i care about how his food dies.

also you can flash freeze using dry ice or Co2. you do what you do to feed your pet and ill do what i do.

its not slow. they go to sleep first. they just slow down until they go under and then never wake up. another alternative which is the same way that the shop will kill them is with Co2. put the in a bag and get a canister like for a pellet gun from walmart. rig it up so you can puncture the seal and point it into the bag the close it. they suffocate and go. same way as the shop does it.

that being said. feeding him live mice wont make him aggressive. it looks like they are more because you are feeding them when you see it. they treat dead food just as vigorously as thy do live food. just nature its in their instincts. IMO it doesnt matter how you feed them as long as you feed them.

TeguLouie, which of these methods have you personally used, how often and for how long? I'm trying to determine how much weight your words should hold. The way you talk about "flash freezing" and "puncturing" co2 canisters makes me think you know very little about this subject and are just blowing smoke. You seem confused to me, nothing is getting frozen alive here bud. If you don't even know what's going on how can you expect people to take you seriously?

 

[TeguLouie]

Here's what the NYU school of medicine says:

Quote:
Guidelines for Performing Euthanasia via C02
For rodent species, CO2 is an acceptable form of euthanasia when used under the following guidelines:

We do not recommend prefilling (precharging) the euthanasia chamber with CO2, since high concentrations (>70%) can cause nasal irritation and excitability. Rather, the animals should first be placed into the chamber, followed by the addition of CO2 at a low flow rate (20% of the chamber volume per minute) to complete the process. Rapid gas flows should be avoided since excessive noises ("winds") can develop and induce excitement/distress in the animals.

Place the animals into the chamber and turn the red lever until you hear gas flowing at a low rate.

Gas flow should be maintained for at least 1 minute after apparent clinical death (approximately 5 minutes total). A timer should be used to ensure adequate length of exposure.

It is important to confirm that an animal is dead after removing it from the chamber. This may be accomplished by assuring lack of heartbeat or by performing cervical dislocation following CO2 narcosis or creation of a pneumothorax following CO2 narcosis.

According to the 2000 Report of the AVMA Panel on Euthanasia, "Compressed CO2 gas in cylinders is the only recommended source of carbon dioxide because the inflow to the chamber can be regulated precisely. CO2 generated by other methods such as from dry ice, fire extinguishers, or chemical means (e.g. antacids) is unacceptable."

Only one species at a time should be placed into a chamber, and the chambers must not be overcrowded. Animals must meet the minimum space requirements listed in the "GUIDE" up until the time of euthanasia. When placed into the chamber, all animals must have floor space.

Euthanasia should always be done in cohorts (live animals should not be placed in the chamber with dead animals).

Chambers should be kept clean to minimize odors that might distress animals prior to euthanasia.

Animals must not be euthanized in animal housing rooms, except under special circumstances such as during quarantine for infectious disease agents.

Neonates: Since the time period for euthanasia is substantially prolonged in neonatal rodents (rodents 13-16 days) inherent resistance to hypoxia, CO2 narcosis must be followed by decapitation after the animals lose consciousness.

---

some more information

http://www.alysion.org/euthanasia/index.php

 

[BatGirl1]

Re: RE: Feeding Live vs F/T

If your getting them from a trusted breeder / shop I wouldn't worry too much about parasites. Most would be killed in the freezing process tho. And if you stick them in the freezer to kill them, remember its only humane on the babies. It's a slow way to go for an adult rodent.

they are food. who cares how they go as long as your Gu eats?

This type of attitude towards feeder animals and livestock really rubs me the wrong way. Sure, they're going to die but why cause them horrendous pain and suffering? I love all animals, and even though the feeders are going to die, I'd want them to be put out as humanely as possible. They feel pain like we do. If I had the choice of being dissected and dismembered or having my neck snapped, I would choose the quicker way out.

Regarding live feeding... I figure with the amount of mice/rats an adult tegu eats, it'd be inconvenient and expensive to live feed. I know for me it's easier and cheaper to keep hundreds of feeders in my freezer.

When i bred mice for my snakes i built a sleep chamber out of a plastic container, fishtank air hose, and a glue gun to seal the hole.you connect a tank of co2 i believe it's called...you know like you can get to pressurize paintball guns or whatever.you put live rodent in on paper towel and close lid.release only a little gas into chamber at a time and rodent gets sleepy then passes out then dies.it's humane as you can get.i still felt bad but at least not suffering in freezer or whacking it on the head or whatever..online you can get plans for the chamber.cheap and simple...i used it for years...

Sent from my ZTE-Z990G using Tapatalk 2

 

[Logie_Bear]

thank you for your quick judgement on my character and state of mind. no i feel that whether you feed frozen or live it doesnt matter how as long as you feed your pet. i care for Lou more than i care about how his food dies.

also you can flash freeze using dry ice or Co2. you do what you do to feed your pet and ill do what i do.
[/quote]

I apologize Louie, I was not making a judgment on your character. It's not that I don't understand the need to feed live. I sometimes do myself. But I do care about the animal I'm feeding as well as the food. I've had pet rats for years (no more, unfortunately) and to say 'who cares if it suffers' upsets me in the same way as if you were to say that about a puppy or other pet. So, sorry I got upset. I would just like everyone to care enough to do the humane thing if you are euthanizing an animal.