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I have a female (Big Red) that was with the same Summit Hypo male as my pastel CBLT. They were with him about the same period, though the CBLT had him first. I would switch him off every time I fed him.

This will be her 5th shed since introduction of the male; frankly I've never heard of this happening, so I am very concerned.

Is she gravid? She looks like it (swelled & darkened). She acts like it (coils often, loss of appetite). But, perhaps she will only give me slugs. This pregnancy or is really taking a toll on her - I fear it will end up being too much for her. The only snakes I know that shed so much are ill or seriously stressed.

Prior to breeding she shed every few months and ate every week or two without fail. But since the breeding began, Nov 25, 2005, she shed in Dec 05, Jan 23, March 12, and the last time April 07...and she is in the blue again. Since breeding began, she has eaten 3 times, the last being April 08. She never had a huge ovulation swell, it's been a gradual increase in size. She is alien to anything I've experienced before. I am at a loss with her. Going by her second shed in Jan, she would be due in May. I swear I will be gray or bald before she is through with me.

Has anyone one had a female shed that many times during gestation? If so, did she go on to have a successful litter?

Here she was prior to being bred:
Top:

Bottom:

Here she is in the blue April 01

Here she is April 10 having just shed

Here she is April 19 - it was cage cleaning day and I found her going blue again.

Open to opinions.
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Delusions of Grandeur feed the EGO...

It's really hard to say without seeing your boa in person, but....

If you saw and actual ovulation, then you know she's carrying "something".

If you didn't see an actual ovulation, she could still be pregnant. It could be that you just missed it.

It could also be that she's having a false pregnancy. I've had boas that go through all the motions. They shed and then start to get HUGE. Then they never give birth to anything.

Since she's shed several times it's really tough to know for sure. If it was my boa and it shed that many times I would say, she's not gravid/pregnant, unless I saw an actual ovulation. If you have a temp gun you can check her temps. A gravid boa will normally stay between 86 and 88 degrees, even on the cool end of the cage.

I don't know if your boa is pregnant or not. It's just not as likely give the info you supplied.

At this point you should take her to the vet and have her checked out to be sure. An ultra sound is expensive, but it's the best way to know for sure.

thoughts. I do have a temp gun, and she is 86.8. I tried it out on another, just to make sure it was working, and they were 82. Perhaps it is a false pregnancy, and that is stressing her out. I've never had a snake go through that, but I have experienced it with dogs. As it stands right now, since her stress level is so high, I am afraid to move her, much less take her to the vet. So, for the time being, I guess it will remain a wait game.

Too, I hope someone else will have had something similar happen and will tell me about it...but, I fear this will end up getting burried under the exciting litter posts above.
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Delusions of Grandeur feed the EGO...

My opinion is that if there is no obvious signs the snake is having problems, you should just wait it out as if she was pregnant.

On a side note I have been thinking about something ...
You are able to hear the heartbeat of a human child inside the mother with a stethoscope, so why not boas. I dont know if it will work or not as I have not had the opportunity to test the theory. For much less than it costs for an ultrasound machine you may be able to tell if your boa is carrying actual live babies. I think you can get a stethoscope for about $30 so its not such a great investment to try out.

If you do try it, let me know the results (post em or email me please).
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- Jason F.

I don't think it's possible to hear a snakes heart beat with a stethoscope. How ever.... It might be possible to hear it with a fetal doppler. You can purchase one on Ebay. They're more sensitive and they're actaully an ultra sound device. I don't know if you'll hear actual heart beats, but it might be possible for you to hear "something".

I sympathize with your feelings. I would figure she isn't gravid because you know her and you didn't see ovulation per se, plus all the other non-gravid behaviors, but you still need to treat her like she is because of course it's still possible. The vet will only stress her out even more too, and since she sn't ill or having obvous complications so it isn't strictly necessary. All the trip to the vet will do is make you feel better, not benefit her.

Now here's my advice. Do what it takes to get yourself less anxious because either way she will be fine, and there's nothing you can do for her now but wait and try to not stress her out anymore than you possibly can. There one breeder, I don't recall who, who says all you can do it put boas together, they will do the rest. It's so true.

Did you read that post by Bill Gaines a day or two ago? : ) Good luck!.

Caden

I'm not sure what you mean by all the other non-gravid behaviors...she's behaving the same as my other female boas during gestation. The only difference is I didn't notice on ov-swell and she is shedding like mad. My last female to birth shed 2 times after her POS, which had been the highest number of sheds for any of my females during gestation, until Big Red.

Perhaps it is just a false pregnancy or slugs over stressing her. That very well could be. I guess time will tell. She's definitely swollen though.
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Delusions of Grandeur feed the EGO...

similar experiences and their outcomes.

Thanks!!
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Delusions of Grandeur feed the EGO...