Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have two Rainbows I got last year around September. The Female has grown and eats like there is no tomorrow, The male on the other hand is not growing so well he will skip two weeks then eat, but this last time he has skipped 4 weeks. He still seems healthy and has a good grip when out. I have kept the two of them in a split tank that has identical conditions I do not understand this. Any ideas would be very helpful
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The Warren Family Line up
1.1 Hogg Island Boas
1.1 Dumerils Boas
1.2 Suriname RTB
1.1 Brazilian Rainbow Boas
1.2 Salmon RTB
0.1 Columbian RTB
2.3 Dendrobates Vitatus
2.2 Dendrobates Auratus
2.3.2 Sugar Gliders
1.2 Bearded Dragons
0.1 Blue Tegu

It looks like you keep a lot of herps. Many times, males will go off feed when they are more interested in breeding. Could this be the cause for his fasting behavior? How big/old is he? I have a breeder-sized male who has not eaten for several months and I am not worried.

If he is not of reproductive age then I have some questions for you. What are you offering the animal to eat? We saw a post a couple of weeks ago wher someone was having a similar problem. Jeff made the suggestion to offer live rather than thawed food and the snake began feeding immediately.

Could this have anything to do with a shed? When was the last time the animal shed it's skin?

I'd also want to know about the temperatures in the enclosure. Look the snake over for any signs of health problems such as excessive mucous around nostrils/mouth, mites, irregular lumps or bumps within the body cavity, stuck sheds.

There are lots of reasons why a snake may go off feed. If no obvious health issues are present and the snake behaves normally and is not losing weight, then I wouldn't get too worried yet. Eating once every other week or even once a month is O.K. as long as they are eating appropriate meals.

See if you can answer any of these questions and post them O.K.?
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Mike Lockwood
www.tooscaley.com

Also, sometimes they just are not good eaters. I keep many and my 2.5 group from 2004 I have one male that just doesn't eat as much as the rest of his age group. He weighs in at 1 lb, 1 oz while his 6 buddies range from 1 lb 10 oz to 2 lb 8 oz with the average just under 2 lbs.
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Thanks,

Dave "Rainbows-R-Us"

0.1 Wife (WC)
0.2 kids (CBB)
2.7 Brazilian Rainbow Boa (adult breeders)
2.5 Brazilian Rainbow Boa (sub-adult from 2004)
4.8 Brazilian Rainbow Boa (sub-adult from 2005)
2.1 Hypomelanistic BRB
0.1 Het for Hypomelanistic BRB
0.1 BCI "Elvira" normal from 1989
1.0 BCI albino / het-anery
0.1 BCI Hypo / het-albino
0.1 BCI Anery / het-albino
0.1 BCI Hypo (possible super)
1.0 BCI albino het stripe
1.0 BCI salmon hypo
0.1 BCI ghost

lots.lots.lots feeder mice and rats

I do have alot of herps I do not sleep all that much any more so I will go and watch the critters and it helps me to calm down and go to sleep. We have turned it into a family hobby and we all take part in the chores and handling of the animals.
On to the questions he is an 05 so it is not breeding behavior that has him off food. That I would have understood. He shed in March on the 10th and also yesterday. Both were full sheds eyecaps and all. There is no mucus in his mouth or nose. His temps are 75 low side 86 warm with 70% humidity. The female is kept identical and she is a great feeder any time any thing if I let her. I offer him live prey items (tried to switch to F/T with no luck) I offered every size prey from fuzzy to small mouse with no luck. I even offered different color food items to see if he was picky that way. I was just at a loss. He is mite free no lumps still has decent muscle tone. Does not behave at all abnormal still likes to come out and play has a good grip still there are no jerky motions while he is moving. I wonder if it is like Dave said he is just not all that about eating. I was just a little freaked since he is the only snake I have that is not predictable about feeding. Even my gravid females are more steady than he is. Just one of those snakes I guess. Thanks for all your help though any ideas or tips are always appreciated. I can not think of everything and there is no way that I know it all ( Don't tell my wife that though) I am just glad this forum is here for us to combine our knowledge. Thanks again.
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The Warren Family Line up
1.1 Hogg Island Boas
1.1 Dumerils Boas
1.2 Suriname RTB
1.1 Brazilian Rainbow Boas
1.2 Salmon RTB
0.1 Columbian RTB
2.3 Dendrobates Vitatus
2.2 Dendrobates Auratus
2.3.2 Sugar Gliders
1.2 Bearded Dragons
0.1 Blue Tegu

Only additional comment, try switching over to F/K on all you herps, much safer for them. I raise my own rodents so have no real need for frozen but I still pre-kill all prey for my snakes. At a minimum, very stunned. Only feed live without teeth....pinky/hopper and sometimes crawlers (crawlers can have teeth).
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Thanks,

Dave "Rainbows-R-Us"

0.1 Wife (WC)
0.2 kids (CBB)
2.7 Brazilian Rainbow Boa (adult breeders)
2.5 Brazilian Rainbow Boa (sub-adult from 2004)
4.8 Brazilian Rainbow Boa (sub-adult from 2005)
2.1 Hypomelanistic BRB
0.1 Het for Hypomelanistic BRB
0.1 BCI "Elvira" normal from 1989
1.0 BCI albino / het-anery
0.1 BCI Hypo / het-albino
0.1 BCI Anery / het-albino
0.1 BCI Hypo (possible super)
1.0 BCI albino het stripe
1.0 BCI salmon hypo
0.1 BCI ghost

lots.lots.lots feeder mice and rats

I have a few suggestions for your reluctant to feed BRB. You may have tried them already. First off, I would not assume all is correct if one in the exact same situations eats while another does not eat as well. Treat them as individuals with a general husbandry requirement as a guideline only. I suggest you lower the temps 3 to 4 degrees overall for the reluctant to feed male and increase the humidity to 80 to 85%. Make certain he has tight secure hiding areas on both the cooler and warmer areas. Limit handling to a minimum..... and try feeding a live rat pink or fuzzy at night when he will not be disturbed. and all lights are out. A few of mine were hesitant to feed on too small a prey item. If he still will not feed adjust the temps to meet the snake choosen area of retreat....if he's hanging out on the cool side lower the temps another 3 degrees or raise them if he mostly hangs out on the warmer side. If you have a light on, turn it off. You may also provide a fresh stool sample for a qualified Veterinarian to examine for parasites next defecation. You gave us a fairly detailed account of your enclosure...you didn't mention method of heating, substrate, light/vibration/noise factors or whether the shed was in one piece or not.

Don't give up on us yet....this can likely be fixed with some titration of his captive circumstance.

Linda

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When the student is ready, the teacher appears. When the student is ready, the teacher appears. When the student is ready, the teacher appears. When the student is ready, the teachers appears.

I agree Linda. There may be nothing wrong with the snake. But, a baby BRB with a less than average appetite is worth a close look.
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Mike Lockwood
www.tooscaley.com

He is on eco earth his heating is accomplished through red light and undertank heat pad. He is in my reptile room where the only traffic is when we are in there cleaning, handling the snakes. He has always been a sporadic eater but this has me a little worried. He spends most of his time burried in his substrate since it is a couple of inches thick. He has hides but does not use them. His last shed was a full shed with no leftovers. About the only other thing is I removed him from the enclosure with the female two weeks ago after his 2nd week of not eating thinking that the size difference between them might have him stressed. I will not handle him for a few days and try again. I just worry about leaving live prey in there without me being there to supervise. Thank you for all your help I just hope he will be alright. He did take a mouse pinky last night. I will keep an eye on him and pray hard I guess that is about all I can do along with making sure that my husbandry is up to snuff. Thanks again for the advice I will put it into place and see what happens.
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The Warren Family Line up
1.1 Hogg Island Boas
1.1 Dumerils Boas
1.2 Suriname RTB
1.1 Brazilian Rainbow Boas
1.2 Salmon RTB
0.1 Columbian RTB
2.3 Dendrobates Vitatus
2.2 Dendrobates Auratus
2.3.2 Sugar Gliders
1.2 Bearded Dragons
0.1 Blue Tegu