I just checked on my female Hog Island Boa, DeeDee, who was gravid, and saw that she didn't move when I opened the lid to her cage. I touched her - and found that she is dead.

She was fine this morning - I've been checking on her 3 and 4 times a day because she was near her due date. I went out to do a few errands and checked her when I returned.

I am horribly saddened, this was my first attempt at breeding.

Question - sounds gross but should I bother seeing if there were any viable young that were stuck? She had spread urates around the cage but there was no other fluid. She is still soft (no rigor - I think this happened only shortly before I got home), it feels like there is something hard right near her vent though. The rest of her "pregnancy" weight is soft, I feel no wriggling or anything. I just don't want to put her in the fridge (she will definitely be necropsied) if there is a possibility that there are living young still in there.

Please advise.......

Here is a picture of her as of a few minutes ago.

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Lauren Madar - OphidiaGems.com
1.0 Ball Python, 1.1 Hog Island Boas, 1.1 Hypo BCI, 1.1 Surinam BCC, 0.1 Green Tree Python

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