Boa questions, some odd, some not

[MicahHall]

Ok.. the third week of Feb. my boa baby molted. Shes showing signs of it again. She is about 1 1/2 to 2 feet long. She doesnt hold still enough to get a tape near her to measure accurately. How often will she molt during her first year with us, and will we keep seeing big jumps in sizes when she does?

2. The day we got her, we had to take her out of her swimming pool. This girl loves water!! How much is too much?? No mold anywhere, no parasites, she eats fine, just loves to soak. Ive heard this is normal with them, but I want to make sure shes not unintentionally overdoing it.

3. And dont laugh. Shes up to pretty good sized pinky/ borderline fuzzy mice. Her poop got noticeably bigger, ick, her last meal. Dare I ask how big it will be when shes eating something rabbit sized??

 

[Beardo]

What kind of Boa do you have? I assume it is a Colombian Boa Constrictor (BCI).....if so....

1. A healthy baby boa that is fed well should go through ecdysis every 1-2 months.

2. Some snakes just like to soak, nothing unsual there.

3. A baby boa should never even see a pinky mouse, that is far too small of a prey item for them. Newborn baby Boas can take rat pinkies right off the bat. You should try to get it switched over to rats ASAP, trust me, it'll make life alot easier for both of you.

 

[MicahHall]

What kind of Boa do you have? I assume it is a Colombian Boa Constrictor (BCI).....if so....

1. A healthy baby boa that is fed well should go through ecdysis every 1-2 months.

2. Some snakes just like to soak, nothing unsual there.

3. A baby boa should never even see a pinky mouse, that is far too small of a prey item for them. Newborn baby Boas can take rat pinkies right off the bat. You should try to get it switched over to rats ASAP, trust me, it'll make life alot easier for both of you.

My husband bought her for me as a Red Tail Boa from a local pet store, she looks like a red tail..other than that.. Im a T keeper, this is totally new for me.

Thank you for the molting answer, I can assume that its just her time, and hopefully she can actually accomplish it herself this time!!

I asked about the water, because in other threads its been mentioned that too much soaking can be hiding an existing problem or cause one. She is very healthy right now, so I can only assume she loves her tub as much as I love mine.

As to the pinky mouse, it was what she was eating when we got her. I have taken note of the fact that several people state that switching from mouse to rat is difficult, however, it took some searching online to find someone with frozen rat pups. To make it even more fun, she totally refuses to touch anything thats not alive. Ive tried three million and twelve ways to get her to take and eat a frozen pinky and she pretty much laughed in my face. We are planning on switching her over to rat pups. We have gone so far as to invest a bit of money into an already pregnant rat and her current boyfriend. This way there is no problem of finding one when we need it. Plus it supplies the cats and terriers with hours upon hours of entertainment. Thats a picture I will have to post at a later date of course.

 

[Mister Internet]

Well, my 7' RTB only drops a duece about every 6 weeks, regardless of how often the feedings are... boas are weird that way. But, since you asked, I'd say the droppings, when dropped, are equivalent in both size and appearance to about a black Lab-sized dog. I'm feeding XXL rats from RodentPro about every 10 days, if that gives you any idea.

As to the feeding frozen thing, all I can say is keep trying... especially when they're young, they will eventually eat if they get hungry enough. Make sure it's defrosted, and definitely set it in front of a heater for a bit to make sure it's nice and warm.. DO NOT MICROWAVE! This will cook the pinky and likely cause it to explode in your nuker... not cool. You may have to further entice by "braining", or cracking the rat pup's head open to expose the "goo" inside... sometimes this will push them over the edge. Definitely start trying to switch to frozen ASAP though... it's much harder to teach an old snake new tricks. Don't use the live ones it sounds like you'll have in the short term as a crutch... snakes can be "conditioned" fairly easily sometimes, and if she gets it in her head that she'll only take live, then it will only get reinforced with repetition, and be that much harder to break. You can also try dangling or shaking around the warmed up thawed rat pup... with long tongs of course... sometimes the motion is the only trigger.

 

[MicahHall]

LOL..ick.. I hate diapers..this may very well be the end of my existance as I know it.. I think that is one of those questions that you shoulda LIED about!

Now that care of this baby has shifted over to me fulltime ( he gave up when she tried to use his fingers as a snack) I will really work on the rat thing. Thanks for the advice!

KH

 

[Beardo]

My husband bought her for me as a Red Tail Boa from a local pet store, she looks like a red tail..other than that.. Im a T keeper, this is totally new for me.

In that case, I'd bet the farm that you have a Colombian Boa Constrictor (Boa constrictor imperator). This is the species of boa most commonly sold as "Red-Tail Boas" (even though they are not true Red-Tails....this distinction belongs to their close relative Boa constrictor constrictor).

As to the pinky mouse, it was what she was eating when we got her. I have taken note of the fact that several people state that switching from mouse to rat is difficult, however, it took some searching online to find someone with frozen rat pups. To make it even more fun, she totally refuses to touch anything thats not alive. Ive tried three million and twelve ways to get her to take and eat a frozen pinky and she pretty much laughed in my face. We are planning on switching her over to rat pups. We have gone so far as to invest a bit of money into an already pregnant rat and her current boyfriend. This way there is no problem of finding one when we need it. Plus it supplies the cats and terriers with hours upon hours of entertainment. Thats a picture I will have to post at a later date of course.

I can guarantee she is not interested in the frozen pinky mouse because it is simply too small to elicit a feeding response. A baby boa being fed strictly pinky mice is being grossly underfed and may end up with their growth being stunted. I have also never seen a baby BCI that would not take frozen rats without hesitation so the switch should not be difficult at all. Typically boas have a very good feeding response...I can attest to this from almost having my face taken off by a few overzealous adults during feeding time lol.