Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I may or may not have a gravid female boa. How do I tell if she's pregnant? How do I know when she's going to lay her eggs? What do I do to prepare her? What do I do to prepare the tank? Anyone have any secrets or tips or advice for me so I can make sure everything goes well? Is there anyway to help make sure the babies make it? I posted a picture of her, but it's with a camera phone so it's not so good. Thanks so much!

PS - I know that the newspaper she's on looks disgusting and she's about to shed so she's not very shiny. I got her off of craigslist and the guy I got her from, didn't really keep it clean. It's clean now and I'll post new pics later.

I'm not qualified to answer your questions, but I will say this: "lay her eggs" does not apply. Boas (the majority of species, anyway, and definitely this one) are viviparous, they give birth to live babies. Good luck,

-Pat
-----
0.0.1 Normal corn snake (Frito)
0.0.1 Creamsicle corn (Tang)
0.0.1 Ghost corn (Raynham)
1.1 Bay of LA rosy boas (Rivet and Cali)

Wow. I have a lot more to learn than I thought. Thanks for being nice about my lack of knowledge. You have to start somewhere though right? Anyone have any help for me?

Can't say anything about pregnancy detection, outside of things like ultrasound and radiographs, which are a bit extreme and possibly tough to find a vet willing to do on a snake. As for care if she IS gravid, the care sheet linked below seems to have some solid specifics on temperature and such! Also, there're various books on breeding and general health available. A quick search on BN.com or Amazon might turn up some useful stuff! Good luck,

-Pat
Kingsnake's boa care sheet

-----
0.0.1 Normal corn snake (Frito)
0.0.1 Creamsicle corn (Tang)
0.0.1 Ghost corn (Raynham)
1.1 Bay of LA rosy boas (Rivet and Cali)

Was it kept with a male?

I am no expert, but I know gravid females usually have a temp a few degrees higher than other boas. Maybe you have a few and you can check them all with a temp gun. Hope that helps. She's very pretty. Good luck.
Caden

Yes, the females should be kept at a higher temperature at first but then the temps should begin to even out gradually as time goes on. She IS a pretty girl isn't she? And to answer the first question, yes. She was kept with a male for most, if not all, of her life. I'm assuming. It was a recommendation of a friend to seperate them. Was that a good idea? I don't want them to be too stressed. Any more help out there for me?