“11 month old hogg isle, she's about 3 feet long, and I feed her 1-2 "hopper" mice” That’s an awful small food item for a 3’ 1year old boa! I fed my corn adult mice at that age and I am by no means a power feeder. How big around is your hog at its widest point? I hope at 3’ and 11months it’s smallest diameter is bigger around than a hopper mouse!

The rule of thumb, is a pray item (I prefer rats even if they are pups and pinkies) slightly smaller than the widest point on your snake or two smaller items that add up to the same mass, about 7-10 days for the first year and more days in between as they get older according to how the snake looks. I don’t count calories (for me) and I don’t count grams, for my snakes.

One thing that I am very aware of is the propensity to over feed, or power feed; this shortens life span and can kill in the first year of life, but don’t starve the little bugger!

To scram: I believe it’s less of a science and more of an art. Just look at your snake and see if it looks healthy. In the wild they eat when they can and down and kill and will fit.

If you really want to micro manage your boas, keep records of how often they shed, what their weight is, when you feed them, and when they defecate. It’s not a bad idea if you have to visit the vet or if you have a lot of snakes.

Good luck!

[ Hide Replies ]

• How often ?how much? - scram, Thu May 17 10:45:22 2007
• RE: How often ?how much? - iheartboas, Thu May 24 19:01:51 2007
• RE: How often ?how much? - iamsnakeshack, Tue Jun 12 12:51:28 2007