refreezing?

[TheMetaphysicalNinja]

Is it ok to refreeze mice/rats ect? Not sure why it wouldn't be tbh, but then again... I'm a bit obtuse sometimes!

[zon3k]

i wouldnt risk it.. you are not meant to refreeze meat for humans so i wouldnt risk it for any animals either personally

[TheMetaphysicalNinja]

Thanks

And I didn't even know ya shouldn't refreeze for human's....

yeah I don't cook much. Or do the shopping. :/

[Ssthisto]

I personally wouldn't, except in one specific instance.

Basically, when you thaw out a rodent, any bacteria that were in it before it was frozen will have been in suspended animation. When they warm up, they start multiplying again.

If you put that in a warm snake cage, that makes the bacteria likely to multiply even faster.

So you're running the risk of massively increasing the bacterial load in the prey item, and that doesn't happen just the once. The more times the rodent comes back up to nice bacterial reproduction temperatures, the more bacteria you'll get.

Also, freezing breaks cell walls. If you freeze a rodent, then defrost it, some of the cell walls will have broken, and the rodent will be "mushier" than it was when it was freshly dead. Freeze and thaw it again, and it'll be even worse. The more times it happens, the nastier the rodent gets. This is generally why you don't re-freeze food for people - it loses flavour and texture. I've been guilty of re-freezing a few things that I intend to eat, but only the once, and generally only if it's just me, because I'll eat almost anything.

Lastly, I would never refreeze a rodent I hadn't myself bred, killed and frozen.... because you don't know how many times it's thawed out previously. Did it thaw out a bit in transit between the wholesaler and the shop you got it from?

The only conditions under which I would re-freeze a rodent are:

1. I bred it, killed it and froze it myself, so I know it's only ever been frozen EXACTLY once before.
2. I started thawing it out, but it was still cold to the touch when I decided to refreeze.

That means I wouldn't re-freeze a rodent that'd been refused by a snake.

[TheMetaphysicalNinja]

thanks!

Didn't actually know about the bacteria thing. Assumed freezing completely killed them cuz everything I know of recommends sticking twigs/leaves and such in the freezer overnight before giving them to the inverts.

guess I wont be refreezing then lol.

[Natrix]

Originally Posted by TheMetaphysicalNinja

Is it ok to refreeze mice/rats ect? Not sure why it wouldn't be tbh, but then again... I'm a bit obtuse sometimes!

You can if the rodents have been kept below 3 to 4.C. The peice below is from something I have been researching for a while and should really get on a finish.
Natrix

1) Refrigerator Thawing
This method requires Planning ahead but is considered the best method. The food is placed in a suitable, sealed container and placed in the fridge to thaw out. Depending on the amount being defrosted this process can take several hours or even a full day to achieve but once thawed out and kept at 3 to 4.C the food will keep fresh for several days. Also foods defrosted in the refrigerator can be re-frozen without cooking, although there may be some loss of quality.
Some areas of a fridge may keep the food colder than other areas and food placed in the coldest part will require longer to defrost.

[Grond]

Originally Posted by Natrix

You can if the rodents have been kept below 3 to 4.C. The peice below is from something I have been researching for a while and should really get on a finish.
Natrix

1) Refrigerator Thawing
This method requires Planning ahead but is considered the best method. The food is placed in a suitable, sealed container and placed in the fridge to thaw out. Depending on the amount being defrosted this process can take several hours or even a full day to achieve but once thawed out and kept at 3 to 4.C the food will keep fresh for several days. Also foods defrosted in the refrigerator can be re-frozen without cooking, although there may be some loss of quality.
Some areas of a fridge may keep the food colder than other areas and food placed in the coldest part will require longer to defrost.

Agreed. If it's been kept cool no problems.

If it's been warmed to room temp, or spent any time in a snake cage, then no.