[Cazador]

Hi Steve,
First, trout, salmon, pike, large & smallmouth bass are all fine to feed your snakes. They lack the thiaminase enzyme. You can cut them in strips with the bones still inside, but beware of sharp edges. Tree pruning shears work great for cutting frozen fish into small strips/chunks.

Second, I feed my snakes wild game scraps (usually strips of caribou meat). As you can imagine, some snakes are more difficult than others to convert over. One snake was particularly difficult to get onto meat, so I cut the raw meat scraps into the sizes I wanted and froze them in a ziploc bag full of fish slime and water. I got the fish slime by putting several fresh fish skins in a ziploc bag with a bit of warm water (few tablespoons) and left them at room temperature for a few hours. The slime is naturally released from the skins and is perfect for scenting meat. Wait until your snake is hungry and actively patrolling the vivarium before offering a scented piece of meat (or pinkie).

If you're using pinkies, I'd suggest washing them well, then just try dipping them in a small container of the slime. You shouldn't need to freeze the pinkie in the slime, just scent it after your snake is good and hungry (exploring the cage). The freezing bit was for my benefit, so I didn't have to smell the fish all the time. When you're ready, just break off a bit of the frozen slime chunk with meat, and thaw it inside another ziploc bag. You don't want to wash the scent off by thawing it directly in warm water.

For what it's worth, you might be able to buy night crawlers in the fishing section of Wal Mart, K-Mart, etc. throughout the winter. I can in Alaska. Just be sure to get night crawlers and avoid the "red wigglers." Best of luck,
Rick